Baze v. Thompson, No. 2009-SC-000188-MR.

Citation302 S.W.3d 57
Decision Date21 January 2010
Docket NumberNo. 2009-SC-000188-MR.
PartiesRalph BAZE, Appellant, v. Ladonna THOMPSON, Commissioner Department of Corrections, Appellee.
CourtUnited States State Supreme Court (Kentucky)
302 S.W.3d 57
Ralph BAZE, Appellant,
v.
Ladonna THOMPSON, Commissioner Department of Corrections, Appellee.
No. 2009-SC-000188-MR.
Supreme Court of Kentucky.
January 21, 2010.

[302 S.W.3d 58]

David Michael Barron, Department of Public Advocacy, Frankfort, KY, Dennis James Burke, Assistant Public Advocate, Department of Public Advocacy, LaGrange, KY, Counsel for Appellant.

Jack Conway, Attorney General, David Wayne Barr, Assistant Attorney General, Office of Criminal Appeals, James Hays Lawson, Assistant Attorney General, Office of the Attorney General, Office of Criminal Appeals, William Robert Long, Jr., Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Appellate Division, Frankfort, KY, Counsel for Appellee.

Opinion of the Court by Justice CUNNINGHAM.


Appellant, Ralph Baze, appeals an order of the Franklin Circuit Court denying his petition for declaratory judgment. Baze, a death row inmate, was convicted of the double murder of two police officers. The conviction and sentence were affirmed by this Court. Baze v. Commonwealth, 965 S.W.2d 817 (Ky.1997). See also Baze v. Commonwealth, 23 S.W.3d 619 (Ky.2000); Baze v. Commonwealth, Nos. 2005-SC-0415-MR and 2005-SC-0420-MR, 2006 WL 1360188 (Ky. May 18, 2006); Baze v. Commonwealth, No.2005-SC-0889-MR, 2006 WL 1360281 (Ky. May 18, 2006); Baze v. Commonwealth, 276 S.W.3d 761 (Ky.2008). In the present action, Baze argues that he has been denied due process of law by the Department of Corrections in the preparation of his petition for clemency.

Counsel for Baze contacted the Department of Corrections requesting permission to interview guards, the death row unit administrator, and death-sentenced inmates at the Kentucky State Penitentiary where Baze is housed. The purpose of the request was to develop information pertaining to Baze's mental health that could potentially be used in a clemency petition. The request was denied.

Baze filed a complaint pursuant to CR 57, CR 65.01 and KRS 418.040 seeking a declaratory judgment that his constitutional rights to due process had been violated. He also sought an injunction requiring the Department of Corrections to allow his counsel access to the identified persons. The Franklin Circuit Court denied the motion.

302 S.W.3d 59

Accepting Baze's contention that he is being denied access to the identified inmates and prison employees, the trial court nonetheless determined that principles of due process do not apply to clemency proceedings, as it is a purely executive function.

At the outset, we reject the contention of the Appellee, Department of Corrections, that Baze's claim is not ripe because he has not yet filed a clemency petition. The present circumstances are not analogous to those in McQueen v. Patton, 948 S.W.2d 418 (Ky.1997), wherein a condemned inmate argued that the Governor's official policy of refusing to grant clemency to any death row inmate violated his rights pursuant to Section 77 of the Kentucky Constitution. This Court determined that a clemency application is "the triggering event for action by the Governor." Because no application had yet been filed, it could not be presumed in advance that the Governor...

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13 cases
  • Lee v. Hutchinson
    • United States
    • U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit
    • 20 Abril 2017
    ...that he has failed to show a substantial likelihood that he could demonstrate the Board violated its policies."); Baze v. Thompson , 302 S.W.3d 57, 60 (Ky. 2010) ("This minimal application requires only that a death row prisoner receive the clemency procedures explicitly set forth by state ......
  • Baze v. Parker
    • United States
    • U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit
    • 4 Febrero 2011
    ...his constitutional rights. The court denied his claim, and the Kentucky Supreme Court affirmed on January 21, 2010. Baze v. Thompson, 302 S.W.3d 57, 58, 60 (Ky.2010). On February 24, 2010, Baze filed a motion in district court, in which he requested an order that KDOC allow him to conduct h......
  • Foley v. Beshear
    • United States
    • United States State Supreme Court — District of Kentucky
    • 11 Junio 2015
    ...against the Department of Corrections based on an alleged violation of an asserted clemency-related right to due process. Baze v. Thompson, 302 S.W.3d 57 (Ky.2010) (upholding denial of claim that due process provisions of state and federal constitutions mandate that death row inmate have ac......
  • Matthews v. White
    • United States
    • U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit
    • 10 Noviembre 2015
    ...even if similar issues are raised. The Governor has "unfettered discretion" to consider a clemency application, Baze v. Thompson, 302 S.W.3d 57, 60 (Ky.2010), and so may decide that clemency is warranted even if Matthews could not meet a particular legal standard for mitigation in court. No......
  • Request a trial to view additional results

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