Huffman v. State, 57269
| Decision Date | 13 November 1972 |
| Docket Number | No. 1,No. 57269,57269,1 |
| Citation | 487 S.W.2d 549 |
| Parties | Jimmy William HUFFMAN, Appellant, v. STATE of Missouri, Respondent |
| Court | Missouri Supreme Court |
William R. Hass, Thayer, for appellant.
John C. Danforth, Atty. Gen., G. Michael O'Neal, Asst. Atty. Gen., Jefferson City, for respondent.
HIGGINS, Commissioner.
Appeal (taken prior to January 1, 1972) from denial, without evidentiary hearing, of motion under Rule 27.26, V.A.M.R., to vacate and set aside judgment of conviction of murder, first degree.
The 'motion and the files and records,' Rule 27.26, supra, of this case show:
On October 8, 1946, movant, then sixteen years old, pleaded guilty to murder, first degree, and was sentenced to life imprisonment. He is currently serving such sentence. On September 9, 1967, movant filed a prior motion under Rule 27.26 and, as grounds for relief, alleged:
(1) Lost transcript of 1946 trial for murder;
(2) Plea of guilty was not made voluntarily;
(3) Coerced confession;
(4) Confession obtained in the State of Louisiana and held over petitioner's head in State of Missouri;
(5) No attorney for twenty-one days after arrest;
(6) No legal guardian or ad litem appointed to speak for 16-year-old boy;
(7) No jurisdiction to try 16-year-old boy as an adult where request for transfer made.
Prior to hearing, the motion was twice amended to add as grounds for relief:
(8) The court and its officers at the time of movant's arrest, hearings, trials, and sentencing were prejudiced against and their emotions toward this movant incensed, who was a child of 15 years, and he was pressed into early hearings and trials by the court, its officers, and counsel without the benefit of proper legal advice and protection;
(9) This movant was not afforded a preliminary hearing in said cause as required by the laws of the State of Missouri for the reasons that no proper record and transcript of the proceedings and testimony given were kept as required by the laws of the State of Missouri;
(10) The arrest, alleged plea of guilty, and sentencing of this movant were not conducted and had as required by the Constitution of the United States, the Constitution of the State of Missouri, or the laws thereof;
(11) Movant was not afforded a fair and impartial preliminary hearing on the 16th day of September, 1946, as required by the laws of the State of Missouri and was not afforded a fair and impartial hearing in the Circuit Court of Howell County, Missouri, on the 8th day of October, 1946;
(12) The alleged available affidavits, warrants and court records and available transcripts of all proceedings in the Justice of the Peace Court of Howell County, Missouri, are mere shams and are not adequate to sustain the orders, charges or sentence imposed;
(13) The alleged available affidavits, warrants and court records and available transcripts of all proceedings in the Circuit Court of Howell County, Missouri, in said case, are mere shams and are not adequate to sustain the orders, charges or sentence imposed;
(14) Movant was dedied the effective assistance of counsel at the alleged preliminary hearing in the Justice of the Peace Court held September 16, 1946, and at the time of his sentence in the Circuit Court on October 8, 1949, and during the time of the preparation therefor;
(15) Movant's arrest was by warrant on September 12, 1946, which was issued without filing of a valid affidavit therefor by the justice of the peace;
(16) At the time of his alleged plea of guilty in the Howell County Circuit Court on October 8, 1946, movant was scared and confused and due to his age and immaturity, his alleged plea was not voluntarily made;
(17) Movant has tried since 1948 to obtain transcripts and records of the charge and the procedures surrounding his sentence, but up until recently his requests were either ignored or not fulfilled, which delay has prejudiced movant's rights herein for judicial review.
On February 13, 1968, movant was accorded an evidentiary hearing and, as a result of the hearing and findings, the motion was denied. The judgment in denial of relief was affirmed on appeal. Huffman v. State, Mo., 451 S.W.2d 21.
Subsequently, movant petitioned for writ of federal habeas corpus in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. That court dismissed the petition as premature; and on January 12, 1971, movant filed the present motion alleging as grounds for relief:
On January 14, 1971, respondent moved to dismiss the aforesaid motion on grounds that movant had previously presented the same or similar grounds for relief; that movant had not presented any new grounds for relief; that the grounds of this motion have or should have been raised by the prior motion; and that a full evidentiary hearing has previously been accorded on all such grounds.
On August 20, 1971, the court considered the motion and announced a dismissal of the motion and leave to movant to make an offer of proof, whereupon counsel for movant made the following offer of proof:
'Second, that the context of said articles as reported by Donald J. Delaney in the Daily Quill together with his oral testimony at an evidentiary hearing, would refute the testimony of the State's witnesses at a previous Motion to Vacate that there was no written confession.
'Three, that said Donald J. Delaney would testify at an evidentiary hearing that he was the author of the above articles written in said newspaper on July 5 and 16.
'Four, that the said Donald J. Delaney would further testify to the fact that he was permitted access to the petitioner before his Court appointed counsel was allowed to see him and that as the result thereof, certain articles prejudicial to pertitioner were obtained though he were a young man of fifteen years of age.
'Sixth, that copies of said Quill articles pertinent to this matter written in 1946 are in and of themselves not competent evidence but that if petitioner were allowed an evidentiary hearing on this motion, he could and would subpoena the author of same to verify the contents of said articles.
'Seventh, that several grounds alleged in the original 27.26 hearing by this petitioner held in Shannon County Circuit Court in Eminence, Missouri, same being Case No. 910 were not briefed or raised on appeal by petitioner's Court appointed counsel and that if petitioner were allowed an evidentiary hearing on this motion, he could produce the testimony of his previously...
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