2025 Code of Georgia
Title 42 - Penal Institutions (Chs. 1 — 13)
Chapter 8 - Probation (Arts. 1 — 9)
Article 3 - First Offenders (§§ 42-8-60 — 42-8-66)

Annotations

JUDICIAL DECISIONS

O. C. G. A. Art. 3, Ch. 8, T. 42 does not apply to the sentence for violent felonies outlined in O. C. G. A. § 17-10-6.1. Fleming v. State, 233 Ga. App. 483, 504 S. E.2d 542 (1998) (overruling State v. Allmond, 225 Ga. App. 509. 484 S. E.2d 306 (1997).

Defendant found guilty of a serious violent felony under O. C. G. A. § 17-10-6.1 could apply for first offender status prior to the 1998 amendments to O. C. G. A. Art. 3, Ch. 8, T. 42. Fleming v. State, 271 Ga. 587, 523 S. E.2d 315 (1999), reversing Fleming v. State, 233 Ga. App. 483, 504 S. E.2d 542, 1998 Ga. App. LEXIS 1014 (1998); Horton v. State, 241 Ga. App. 605, 527 S. E.2d 254, 1999 Ga. App. LEXIS 1681 (1999) (reversing Fleming v. State, 233 Ga. App. 483, 504 S. E.2d 542, 1998 Ga. App. LEXIS 1014 (1998)).

Probation cannot be revoked for a violation of terms and conditions if there are no terms and conditions to the probation. Helton v. State, 166 Ga. App. 565, 305 S. E.2d 27, 1983 Ga. App. LEXIS 2251 (1983).

When a first offender probation is revoked, that probation, and the probation’s terms and conditions, is effectively eliminated, leaving nothing to be carried over to any subsequent probation. Helton v. State, 166 Ga. App. 565, 305 S. E.2d 27, 1983 Ga. App. LEXIS 2251 (1983).

At the sentencing phase of a murder trial, the state offered in aggravation an indictment, the defendant’s plea of guilty to the indictment, and a sentence imposed under O. C. G. A. Art. 3, Ch. 8, T. 42 for the offenses of entering an automobile and theft by taking. This evidence was admissible, since evidence in aggravation is not limited to convictions, and reliable information tending to show a defendant’s general bad character is admissible in aggravation. Williams v. State, 258 Ga. 281, 368 S. E.2d 742, 1988 Ga. LEXIS 276 (1988), cert. denied, 492 U. S. 925, 109 S. Ct. 3261, 106 L. Ed. 2d 606, 1989 U. S. LEXIS 3313 (1989).

Opinion Notes

First Offender Act, O. C. G. A. § 42-8-60 et seq., is applicable to misdemeanor offenses. 2000 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 2000-1.

Person who has been placed on probation pursuant to the First Offender Act, O. C. G. A. § 42-8-60 et seq., does not become incompetent to serve on a grand or petit jury under Code Section 15-12-60 either before or after being discharged without court adjudication of guilt. 1990 Op. Att’y Gen. No. U90-6.

“Conviction”, as defined in the Drug-Free Public Work Force Act of 1990, O. C. G. A. § 45-23-3, does not include treatment under the Georgia First Offender Act, O. C. G. A. § 42-8-60 et seq., nor does it include a conviction based on a plea of nolo contendere. 1990 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 90-16.

Research References & Practice Aids

For note, “Bailing on Bail: The Unconstitutionality of Fixed, Monetary Bail Systems and Their Continued Use Throughout the United States,” see 52 Ga. L. Rev. 985 (2018).

For article, “The Meaning of a Misdemeanor in a Post-Ferguson World: Evaluating the Reliability of Prior Conviction Evidence,” see 54 Ga. L. Rev. 927 (2020).

O. C. G. A. Title 42

O. C. G. A. Title 42, Ch. 8