State v. Johnson

738 S.E.2d 86, 292 Ga. 409, 2013 Fulton County D. Rep. 180, 2013 WL 399139, 2013 Ga. LEXIS 113
CourtSupreme Court of Georgia
DecidedFebruary 4, 2013
DocketS12A2085
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 738 S.E.2d 86 (State v. Johnson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Johnson, 738 S.E.2d 86, 292 Ga. 409, 2013 Fulton County D. Rep. 180, 2013 WL 399139, 2013 Ga. LEXIS 113 (Ga. 2013).

Opinion

NAHMIAS, Justice.

On October 1,2010, when appellee Joshua Johnson was 15 years old, he was arrested for the alleged murder of his grandmother. Johnson was held in a youth detention center until October 11, when [410]*410he was released on $50,000 bond, with conditions that included home confinement (at his cousin’s house) and electronic monitoring under OCGA § 17-6-1.1. More than seven months later, on May 26, 2011, Johnson was indicted for murder in the Superior Court of Whitfield County.

In November 2011, Johnson filed a motion asking the superior court to transfer his case to the juvenile court pursuant to OCGA § 17-7-50.1, which says in relevant part:

(a) Any child who is charged with a crime that is within the jurisdiction of the superior court, as provided in Code Section 15-11-28 or 15-11-30.2, who is detained shall within 180 days of the date of detention be entitled to have the charge against him or her presented to the grand jury. . . .
(b) If the grand jury does not return a true bill against the detained child within the time limitations set forth in subsection (a) of this Code section, the detained child’s case shall be transferred to the juvenile court and shall proceed thereafter as provided in Chapter 11 of Title 15.

Johnson claimed that both his time in the youth detention center and on bond under the home confinement and electronic monitoring program constituted “detention” within the meaning of OCGA § 17-7-50.1 (a). And because he was not indicted within 180 days of being so detained, Johnson argued, he was entitled to have his indictment dismissed and his case transferred to the juvenile court under OCGA § 17-7-50.1 (b). On June 28, 2012, the trial court issued an order denying Johnson’s motion to dismiss the indictment but granting his motion to transfer the case to the juvenile court, ruling that the home confinement and electronic-monitoring program qualified as detention under OCGA § 17-7-50.1 (a).

The State then filed this direct appeal. At the Court’s request, the parties briefed the question of whether the State was authorized to appeal the trial court’s transfer order. We now hold that the State cannot appeal a transfer order entered under OCGA § 17-7-50.1 (b), and we therefore must dismiss this appeal.1

“The State does not have the right to appeal decisions in criminal cases unless there is a specific statutory provision granting the right.” State v. Caffee, 291 Ga. 31, 33 (728 SE2d 121) (2012). The types of trial [411]*411court rulings that the State may appeal are listed in OCGA § 5-7-1 (a) . When the General Assembly enacted OCGA § 17-7-50.1 in 2006, see Ga. Laws 2006, p. 172, § 2, it did not amend or reference OCGA § 5-7-1 to specifically authorize the State to appeal transfer orders entered pursuant to OCGA § 17-7-50.1 (b). The State contends, however, that an order transferring a case from superior court to juvenile court under OCGA § 17-7-50.1 (b) amounts to “an order... setting aside or dismissing an[ ] indictment,” which the State may appeal under OCGA § 5-7-1 (a) (1). We disagree.

To begin with, OCGA § 17-7-50.1 (b) does not speak of “setting aside,” “dismissing,” or taking any other action regarding an indictment returned against a juvenile. Instead, the provision directs that the juvenile’s entire “case” be “transferred” to juvenile court if the 180-day charging deadline is not met. Thus, the trial court here, in accordance with the statutory text, transferred Johnson’s case to the juvenile court but declined to dismiss the indictment.

Even more telling is the statutory scheme. In 1994, the General Assembly gave the superior courts original jurisdiction, exclusive of the juvenile courts, over seven serious felonies committed by juveniles ages 13 to 17. See Ga. Laws 1994, pp. 1012, 1034; then OCGA § 15-11-5 (b) (2) (A); now OCGA § 15-11-28 (b) (2) (A). However, if such an offense was not punishable by the death penalty or life imprisonment, the superior court was given discretion to transfer the case to the juvenile c'ourt after indictment and “after investigation and for extraordinary cause.” Ga. Laws 1994atp. 1034;thenOCGA § 15-11-5 (b) (2) (B); now OCGA § 15-11-28 (b) (2) (B).2

In the same 1994 act, and in distinct contrast to the 2006 act creating OCGA § 17-7-50.1, the General Assembly amended OCGA § 5-7-1 to authorize the State to appeal this type of transfer order. See Ga. Laws 1994 at p. 1049; then OCGA § 5-7-1 (a) (5);nowOCGA § 5-7-1 (a) (6) (authorizing an appeal by the State “[f]rom an order, decision, or judgment of a superior court transferring a case to the juvenile court pursuant to subparagraph (b) (2) (B) of Code Section 15-11-28”). To emphasize the point, the General Assembly also included a reference to OCGA § 5-7-1 in the transfer statute. See Ga. Laws 1994 at p. 1034; then OCGA § 15-11-5 (b) (2) (B); now OCGA § 15-11-28 (b) (2) (B) (stating that a transfer order under § 15-11-28 (b) (2) (B) “shall be appealable by the State of Georgia pursuant to Code Section 5-7-1”).

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
738 S.E.2d 86, 292 Ga. 409, 2013 Fulton County D. Rep. 180, 2013 WL 399139, 2013 Ga. LEXIS 113, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-johnson-ga-2013.