Morris Scott Holmes v. State

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia ATLANTA,__________________ April 17, 2013 The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order: A13D0314. MORRIS SCOTT HOLMES v. THE STATE. Morris Scott Holmes was convicted of felony murder and aggravated assault. His conviction was upheld by the Supreme Court in Holmes v. State, 275 Ga. 853 ( 572 SE2d 569 ) (2002). Following the denial of his extraordinary motion for new trial, Holmes filed an application for discretionary appeal in this Court. However, under our Constitution, the Supreme Court has appellate jurisdiction over “[a]ll cases in which a sentence of death was imposed or could be imposed.” See Ga. Const. of 1983, Art. VI, Sec. VI, Par. III (8). Because a penalty of death can be imposed for the crime of murder, jurisdiction is proper in the Supreme Court. See OCGA § 17-10-30 (b); Neal v. State, 290 Ga. 563, 572 ( 722 SE2d 765 ) (2012) (Hunstein, C. J., concurring); see also State v. Thornton, 253 Ga. 524 (1) ( 322 SE2d 711 ) (1984) (directing this Court to transfer “all cases in which either a sentence of death or of life imprisonment has been imposed upon conviction of murder”). Accordingly, Holmes’ appeal is hereby TRANSFERRED to the Supreme Court for disposition. Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia 04/17/2013 Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,__________________ 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.