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Jackson v. State

The failure to hold a presentence hearing did not render the defendant's life sentence on his conviction for armed robbery void.

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In 1988, William R. Jackson was indicted for the offense of armed robbery, found guilty by a jury, and sentenced to life imprisonment. His conviction was affirmed on appeal in Jackson v. State , 199 Ga. App. 163 404 SE2d 333 1991. In the present pro se appeal, Jackson claims the trial court in which he was convicted erred by denying his pro se “Petition To Correct Void Sentence” and his pro se “Motion To Vacate Void Judgments,” both filed in 2004. For the following reasons, we affirm in part and dismiss in part. In his “Petition To Correct Void Sentence,” Jackson claims that the life sentence is void because he was sentenced without a presentence hearing in violation of OCGA § 17-10-2. In denying this motion, the trial court correctly ruled that the failure to hold a presentence hearing did not render the sentence void. Williams v. State , 271 Ga. 686 523 SE2d 857 1999. Accordingly, the judgment of the trial court denying this motion is affirmed.

In his “Motion To Vacate Void Judgments,” Jackson claims that his armed robbery conviction is void under OCGA § 17-9-4 because the convicting court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over him. Specifically, Jackson alleges that he was convicted without a “lawful complaint filed with affidavits that shows the probable cause” for his arrest. The motion essentially seeks to vacate the judgment of conviction for armed robbery. However, “we have consistently held that a motion to vacate a judgment will not lie in a criminal case.” Wright v. State , 277 Ga. 810, 811 596 SE2d 587 2004. Although OCGA § 17-9-4 provides that the judgment of a court without jurisdiction of the person or subject matter is void, and that any court may so hold when it becomes material to the interest of the parties to consider the issue, this code section “does not authorize a departure from the recognized procedures for challenging a criminal conviction.” Wright , 277 Ga. at 811.

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