Lewellen v. State of Missouri
| Decision Date | 20 December 1967 |
| Docket Number | No. 1260.,1260. |
| Citation | 277 F. Supp. 9 |
| Parties | Homer J. LEWELLEN, Petitioner, v. STATE OF MISSOURI, Respondent. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Western District of Missouri |
Homer J. Lewellen, pro se.
Norman Anderson, Atty. Gen. of Mo., Jefferson City, Mo., for respondent.
Petitioner, an inmate at the Missouri State Penitentiary at Jefferson City, seeks leave to file a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in forma pauperis. Leave to so proceed will be granted.
The petition alleges that a detainer has been filed against petitioner by the Magistrate Court of Jackson County, Missouri, and that that Court has refused to act either to bring petitioner to trial or dismiss the action. The petition further alleges that petitioner has sought remedy in the State courts by way of a writ of mandamus in the Circuit Court of Jackson County and the Supreme Court of Missouri. The petition further alleges that both of those Courts denied petitioner relief.
Petitioner does not contend that his present custody is unlawful. Further, petitioner does not contend that the detainer about which he complains adversely affects in any way his present sentence. And, finally, even if petitioner did contend that his present sentence was adversely affected by the detainer about which he complains, he does not contend that he has appropriately presented that issue to the State courts.
Petitioner acknowledges some familiarity with his remedies under the Uniform Mandatory Disposition of Detainers Law which was adopted by Missouri. Section 222.080(1) provides:
Any person imprisoned in a correctional institution of this state may request a final disposition of any untried indictment or information pending in this state against him while so imprisoned. The request shall be in writing addressed to the court in which the indictment or information is pending and to the prosecuting attorney charged with the duty of prosecuting it, and shall set forth the place of imprisonment.
Subparagraph (3) of that Section provides:
Failure of the director of corrections to inform a prisoner, as required by this section, within one year after a detainer has been filed at the institution shall entitle him to a final dismissal of the indictment or information with prejudice. (L.1959 H.B. No. 259 § 1)
If petitioner complies with the specific requirements of subparagraph (1) of Section 222.080, that a written request for final disposition of an untried charge be sent to the Court and the prosecuting attorney, then Section 222.100 provides:
Within one hundred and eighty days after...
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