Court of Appeals of Georgia July 8, 2014, A14A0622 (Wedel v. State)

Branch, Judge.

James Wedel was tried by a Cherokee County jury and found guilty of one count of child molestation.1 Wedel now appeals from the denial of his motion for a new trial, arguing that the trial court decided his lawyer’s motion to withdraw during an informal hearing from which Wedel was absent, and that this conduct violated his constitutional right to be present at all critical stages