Court Opinion

ID: 9854757
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 06:13:35.43452+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:23:20.912619
License: Public Domain

ON MOTION FOR REHEARING
Mobley, Justice.
The State has filed a motion for rehearing in this case. This court has been divided on the question of whether the State has the right to file such a motion, the majority being of the opinion-that it does have such right. Glustrom v. State, 206 Ga. 734, 740 (58 S. E. 2d 534); Henderson v. State, 209 Ga. 238, 241 (71 S. E. 2d 628). Justice Head, in his dissenting opinion in the Glustrom case, concurred in by Presiding Justice Wyatt and Justice Almand, ably discussed the reasons in support of the position that the State’s motion should be dismissed. In this State, the State in a criminal case has no right to sue out a writ of error on a judgment in favor of a defendant. State v. Jones, 7 Ga. 422; Code § 70-201. This court has also held that it is without jurisdiction to entertain *384at the instance of the State a petition for certiorari from a decision of the Court of Appeals in a criminal case. State v. B’Gos, 175 Ga. 627 (165 S. E. 566). The reasoning applicable to the right of the State to appeal in a criminal case and to file a petition for certiorari to this court, which was thoroughly and fully set out in the Glustrom and B’Gos cases, supra, does not in our opinion apply to a motion for rehearing on behalf of the State in a criminal case.
It is well established that the judgments of this court are completely' under its control during the term at which they are rendered until the remittitur of this court has been forwarded to the court below; and that, during the time before the remittitur is transmitted, this court may alter, amend, or set aside its judgments. “The right of the court to keep under its own control during the term the judgments rendered by it, until the remittitur has been transmitted to the court below, has given rise to the practice of allowing motions for rehearing to be filed, although a rehearing by this court in any case is not referred to in any way either in the constitution or statutes of the State.” Cooper v. Portner Brewing Co., 113 Ga. 1, 2 (38 S. E. 347). The only references to the matter of rehearings in the law of this State are contained in Rule 40 (Code, Ann. Supp., § 24-4544), which, while not providing for motions for rehearings, states the rules governing the manner of filing such motions, and in Code (Ann.) § 24-3801, which deals with the terms and sessions of the Supreme Court, and contains the following provision: “Provided further, no judgment, other than judgment on motion for a rehearing, shall be rendered during the last fifteen days of any term.” This court, in Seaboard Air-Line Ry. v. Jones, 119 Ga. 907 (2) (47 S. E. 320) held: “There being no law expressly authorizing the parties to a case to apply for a rehearing, whether such application will be entertained, and, if entertained, what disposition shall be made of it, are questions addressed entirely to the sound discretion of the court.” And in the same case it was held in headnote 1 as follows: “The Supreme Court will, during the term at which a judgment is rendered, and before the remittitur has been forwarded to the clerk of the trial court, when dissatisfied with the judgment, of its own motion order a rehearing of the case.”
*385Thus, it being clear that there is no law expressly authorizing a rehearing, and that whether an application for rehearing will be entertained, and its disposition, are matters within the sound discretion of the court, the question then is whether this court in the exercise of its discretion should permit the State to file motions for rehearings in criminal cases.
As pointed out above, a judgment of this court granting a new trial to a defendant in a criminal case remains within the breast of the court until the remittitur has been forwarded to the clerk of the trial court, and during that time this court has the right to alter, amend, or vacate its judgment. The defendant, during that interim, has acquired no statutory or constitutional rights by reason of the judgment rendered in his favor. The question of putting him in jeopardy in violation of the constitutional provision which provides that “No person shall be put in jeopardy of life, or liberty, more than once for the same offense, save on his, or her own motion for a new trial after conviction, or in case of mistrial” (Code, Ann., § 2-108), is not involved. Since the court, before the remittitur goes out, may on its own motion, where it determines that it has committed error, alter, amend, or vacate its judgment, and since it is the duty of the court to do so, we see no obj ection to the State’s calling to our attention by motion for rehearing any errors or mistakes which the State believes this court has committed.
The motion for rehearing filed by the State is entertained by this court, but upon consideration of the same the motion is denied.

All the Justices concur, except Wyatt, P. J., Head and Almand, JJ., who dissent.