Rontaveous Dotson v. State

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________ May 12, 2026

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A26A0002. RONTAVEOUS DOTSON v. THE STATE.

On June 23, 2025, Rontaveous Dotson entered a non-negotiated guilty plea to 19 counts of burglary in the second degree. The trial court imposed a total sentence of 25 years, with the first 16 to be served in confinement and the remainder to be served on probation. Dotson then filed a notice of appeal.1 This Court, however, lacks jurisdiction.

Effective May 14, 2025, OCGA § 5-6-35 (a) (5.3) requires defendants to file applications for discretionary review for “[d]irect appeals from guilty pleas.” See Ga. L. 2025, p. 621, § 1-2. Thus, to appeal the judgment resulting from the entry of his June 23 guilty plea, Dotson was required to file an application for discretionary appeal. See OCGA § 5-6-35 (a) (5.3). Compliance with the discretionary appeals procedure is jurisdictional. Smoak v. Dept. of Human Resources, 221 Ga. App. 257, 257 (471 SE2d 60) (1996).

1 In his appellate brief, Dotson references two motions to withdraw his guilty plea which he filed in the trial court. Neither the motions, nor any trial court ruling on them, can be found in the record on appeal.

Dotson’s failure to follow the proper procedure deprives this Court of jurisdiction over this appeal, which we hereby DISMISS.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 05/12/2026

I certify that the above is a true extract from the minutes of the Court of Appeals of Georgia.

Witness my signature and the seal of said court hereto affixed the day and year last above written.

, Clerk.