Curtis Tyner v. State
Summary
The Court of Appeals of Georgia transferred Curtis Tyner's murder conviction appeal to the Supreme Court of Georgia. The transfer was based on the Supreme Court's exclusive appellate jurisdiction over murder cases under the Georgia Constitution, even when the death penalty was not pursued. The Court applied the Georgia Supreme Court's precedent in Hart v. State regarding jurisdiction over murder appeals.
What changed
The Court of Appeals of Georgia issued an order transferring Appeal No. A26A1505 (Curtis Tyner v. The State) to the Supreme Court of Georgia. The transfer was mandated because the Georgia Constitution grants the Supreme Court exclusive appellate jurisdiction over all cases in which a sentence of death was imposed or could be imposed, which encompasses murder and felony murder charges regardless of whether the death penalty was actually sought.
For defendants and the State, this represents a procedural jurisdictional shift. No compliance obligations are created by this transfer order itself. The Supreme Court of Georgia will now have authority over the appeal from the denial of Tyner's motion to vacate sentence.
Archived snapshot
Apr 17, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
Jump To
Top Caption Disposition Combined Opinion
Support FLP
CourtListener is a project of Free
Law Project, a federally-recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit. Members help support our work and get special access to features.
Please become a member today.
April 17, 2026 Get Citation Alerts Download PDF Add Note
Curtis Tyner v. State
Court of Appeals of Georgia
- Citations: None known
- Docket Number: A26A1505
Disposition: Transferred To Supreme Court
Disposition
Transferred To Supreme Court
Combined Opinion
Court of Appeals
of the State of Georgia
ATLANTA,____________________
April 17, 2026
The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:
A26A1505. CURTIS TYNER v. THE STATE.
Curtis Tyner was convicted of murder, felony murder, and other offenses. He
subsequently filed, among other things, a motion to vacate sentence, which the trial court
denied. He then filed a direct appeal to this Court.
The Supreme Court of Georgia has appellate jurisdiction over “[a]ll cases in which
a sentence of death was imposed or could be imposed.” Ga. Const. of 1983, Art. VI, Sec. VI,
Par. III (8). Because a penalty of death may be imposed for the crimes of murder and felony
murder, jurisdiction over this appeal lies in the Supreme Court. See OCGA § 16-5-1 (a), (c),
(e) (1); see also Hart v. State, 322 Ga. 1, 10(1) (917 SE2d 631) (2025) (even in murder cases
in which the death penalty was not sought, the Supreme Court has opted to exercise its
jurisdiction to review all such cases). The Supreme Court’s jurisdiction over murder cases
includes appeals from orders resolving post-judgment motions in such cases. See Simpson v.
State, 292 Ga. 764 (740 SE2d 124) (2013) (considering an appeal from the denial of a motion
in arrest of judgment attacking murder convictions as void).
Accordingly, this appeal is hereby TRANSFERRED to the Supreme Court for
disposition.
Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia
04/17/2026
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.
Related changes
Get daily alerts for GA Court of Appeals Opinions
Daily digest delivered to your inbox.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
About this page
Every important government, regulator, and court update from around the world. One place. Real-time. Free. Our mission
Source document text, dates, docket IDs, and authority are extracted directly from GA Court of Appeals.
The summary, classification, recommended actions, deadlines, and penalty information are AI-generated from the original text and may contain errors. Always verify against the source document.
Classification
Who this affects
Taxonomy
Browse Categories
Get alerts for this source
We'll email you when GA Court of Appeals Opinions publishes new changes.
Subscribed!
Optional. Filters your digest to exactly the updates that matter to you.