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County attorney: Court of Appeals reverses Superior Court ruling in Hoyte zoning case; related suit remanded
Summary
County Attorney Bin Minter told the board the Court of Appeals reversed the Superior Court in UGOCCC v. Damon Hoyte (Superior Court case 23CV072), reinstating earlier magistrate rulings; in a separate matter—Melissa Haymond v. Hoyte—the Court of Appeals vacated the Superior Court's denial of a motion to dismiss and remanded the case where motions are still pending.
The county’s legal team briefed commissioners on two recent Court of Appeals rulings during the Oct. 7 meeting of the Cusseta‑Chattahoochee County Commission.
County Attorney Bin Minter summarized the outcomes, saying the Court of Appeals reversed a Superior Court decision in the case involving Commissioner Damon Hoyte (Superior Court case number 23CV072) and reinstated the earlier magistrate‑court rulings that had upheld a zoning‑ordinance violation finding. Minter reported the county had appealed the Superior Court’s prior order that had required refunding fines; the Court of Appeals’ recent opinion reversed that relief and reinstated the original magistrate rulings.
In a separate case, Melissa Haymond v. Hoyte, in which the county is a codefendant, Minter said Ms. Haymond had filed a motion to dismiss that the Superior Court denied; the Court of Appeals reversed that denial, vacated the Superior Court’s order and remanded the case to Superior Court where motions to dismiss remain pending. The minutes state the county also has a pending motion to dismiss in the Haymond matter.
What was said and what it means
Minter presented the update as factual information about the county’s pending litigation; the minutes record that he described the timeline of appeals and outstanding motions rather than announcing any new county action or settlement. The minutes do not provide the full Court of Appeals opinions or their citations beyond the Superior Court case number referenced for the Hoyte matter (23CV072).
Next steps
Both matters remain active in the courts: the Haymond case is remanded to Superior Court with motions pending, and the county’s internal records and next procedural steps were not detailed beyond the attorney’s summary. The Chair asked staff to consider a public statement addressing recent media coverage of the rulings; County Manager Thomas Weaver and the County Attorney were asked to prepare a press release if the Commission chose to proceed.
The Commission adjourned without any formal vote tied to the litigation update.
