Latham v. State

In Latham v. State 225 Ga. App. 147 (483 S.E.2d 322) (1997), a defendant was sentenced to seven years in prison followed by twenty-three years on probation. Because she was pregnant at the time, she did not immediately begin serving her prison sentence. After the term of court expired, but before she began serving her prison sentence, the defendant moved to eliminate the prison term from her sentence. The Court held that the trial court lacked authority to modify the sentence by eliminating the prison component. The Court noted that, although O.C.G.A. 17-10-1 (a) (5) (A) gave the trial court jurisdiction over the probated portion of a sentence, "no similar language grants the trial court power to modify the term of incarceration." Id. at 149.