State v. Malone
Decision Date | 13 January 1995 |
Citation | 654 So.2d 92 |
Parties | STATE v. Michael MALONE. CR 94-118. |
Court | Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals |
James H. Evans, Atty. Gen., Andrew Redd and Alice Ann Byrne, Dept. of Corrections, for appellant.
Michael Malone, pro se.
This is an appeal by the Alabama Department of Corrections from the order of the circuit court granting a default judgment against the State for its failure to timely amend its answer in response to an inmate's petition for writ of habeas corpus within the time set by the court. The relevant history of this case is as follows:
June 2, 1994: A petition for a writ of habeas corpus was filed by Michael Malone, an inmate in the Alabama prison system. Malone complained that he was not receiving retroactive incentive good time credit on his 1990 sentence of 15 years for robbery in the third degree.
July 27, 1994: An assistant attorney general assigned to the Alabama Department of Corrections and and representing the respondent, filed a motion to dismiss the petition. C.R. 18.
August 3, 1994: Malone filed a motion, dated August 1, 1994, to strike the respondents' motion to dismiss. C.R. 23.
The circuit court filed the following order (which was dated August 2, 1994):
"It is therefore ORDERED that the Respondent[§ are] granted 30 days from this date in which to amend the Motion to Dismiss/Answer, to address the issues raised in the Petition." C.R. 27.
September 9, 1994: Malone filed a motion seeking a default judgment. That motion included a certificate of service showing that the attorney for the respondents had been served with a copy of the motion. C.R. 48.
September 13, 1994: The circuit court granted Malone's motion for default judgment and ordered "that petitioner be granted retroactive good time accrued from the date of his conviction for Robbery III, September 24, 1990, in Tuscaloosa County, as requested in his petition for habeas corpus." C.R. 49.
September 22, 1994: The respondents filed a motion to set aside the default judgment, claiming that they "never received the order of August 2, 1994, ordering an amended motion to dismiss and answer." C.R. 51. At that time, the respondents also filed an "amended answer and motion to dismiss." C.R. 54. Attached to the amended answer is the affidavit of Betty Teague, director of central records of the Alabama Department of Corrections, stating that C.R. 57.
September 23, 1994: The circuit court entered its order denying the respondents' motion to set aside the default judgment:
In Prescott v. Baker, 644 So.2d 877, 879-80 (Ala.1994), the Alabama Supreme Court stated:
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Coslett v. State
...entitled to receive, and thus do not have a liberty interest in receiving, "good time" deductions from their sentences. State v. Malone, 654 So.2d 92 (Ala.Cr.App.1995); Parker v. State, 648 So.2d 653 (Ala.Cr.App.1994); Gullett v. State, 613 So.2d 400 (Ala.Cr.App.1992). However, once an inma......
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...and unless and until the averments of the petition have been proved by competent evidence." Allen, 424 F.2d at 138. In State v. Malone, 654 So.2d 92 (Ala. Crim.App.1995), this Court reversed the trial court's order denying the DOC's motion to set aside the entry of a judgment in favor of an......