Maurice Dewayne Conner v. State

Court of Appeals
of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________
May 04, 2026

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A26A1829. MAURICE DEWAYNE CONNER v. THE STATE.

A jury found Maurice Dewayne Conner guilty of participating in criminal street
gang activity, conspiracy to commit a crime, and possession of a firearm by a convicted
felon. On August 29, 2014, the trial court sentenced him to 30 years in prison.
Although the record contains no motion for new trial, on March 24, 2025, Conner
filed an amended motion for new trial.1 The trial court denied the motion on August
4, 2025, and Conner filed a notice of appeal on August 5, 2025. We, however, lack
jurisdiction.
A notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days of entry of the judgment or trial
court order sought to be appealed. OCGA § 5-6-38(a). The proper and timely filing
of a notice of appeal is an absolute requirement to confer appellate jurisdiction on this
Court. Davis v. State, 330 Ga. App. 711, 711 (769 SE2d 133) (2015). Although the filing
of a motion for a new trial generally extends the deadline for filing a notice of appeal,
see OCGA § 5-6-38(a), an untimely motion for a new trial does not extend the time
for filing an appeal. Davis, 330 Ga. App. at 712. To be timely, a motion for a new trial
must be made “within 30 days of the entry of the judgment on the verdict.” OCGA
§ 5-5-40 (a).

1
In November 2021, Conner filed a motion for a conformed order granting a
motion for new trial, seeking to adopt the motion of a co-defendant. We are unaware
of any authority for the filing of such a motion. In any event, the trial court denied the
motion on April 5, 2024.
Here, Conner’s only motion seeking a new trial was filed on March 25, 2025,
over 10 years after entry of his sentence. Under these circumstances, we lack
jurisdiction to consider the trial court’s order purporting to deny the motion for new
trial, and this appeal is hereby DISMISSED.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia
Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________
05/04/2026
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.