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Petition For Writ Of Habeas Corpus (Under 28 USC 2254) - Maryland
| Petition For Writ Of Habeas Corpus (Under 28 USC 2254) Form. This is a Maryland form and can be used in Pro Se District Court Federal . |
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INSTRUCTIONS FOR PERSONS FILING A PRO SE PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS UNDER 28 U.S.C. 2254These instructions are to help you understand the forms for filing a petition for writ of habeas corpus anda little bit about Court procedures, but THE COURT CANNOT GIVE YOU LEGAL ADVICE. Is this form for you?Generally, 2254 may be used by a person in custody pursuant to a judgment by a state court or who inthe future will be in custody pursuant to a judgment by a state court, to seek a determination that thecustody is in violation of the Constitution, laws, or treaties of the United States. 28 U.S.C. 2244(b) limitsthe jurisdiction of this Court to one petition per judgment, unless permission to consider a second orsuccessive petition is given by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. If you previouslyfiled a habeas corpus petition under 28 U.S.C. 2254 challenging the same judgment, which was dismissedor denied with prejudice, do not use these forms. Use the forms for filing a motion with the United StatesCourt of Appeals to authorize consideration of a second or successive habeas corpus petition. How to file a petitionTo begin a lawsuit you must file an original and one copy of your petition with the court. You should keepa copy of the petition for your own records. The Court is not responsible for providing copies to you.ALL COPIES MUST BE IDENTICAL TO THE ORIGINAL. Your petition must be legibly handwritten or typed. If you need more space to answer a question you maywrite on the back of the form or attach additional pages. All pages should be 8 by 11".Generally, the Respondents are the warden or administrator of the facility where you are detained and theAttorney General for the State of Maryland. In some cases, there may be other respondents. If you wish to challenge judgments from different courts or judgments entered at different times in differentcases, you must file a separate petition for each judgment. If you are challenging multiple convictions in asingle indictment or in cases which were tried at the same time, you may file a single petition.Answer the questions about state court proceedings carefully. FAILING TO PROVIDE THEINFORMATION REQUESTED MAY RESULT IN YOUR PETITION BEING DENIED OR CAUSEDELAYS IN PROCESSING YOUR PETITION. In your petition list each ground on which you are seeking relief and state the facts of your case that supporteach ground. Because federal law limits the circumstances under which a second or successive petitionmay be considered, you should include all grounds upon which you wish to seek relief. It is not necessaryto provide legal citations. If you wish to submit arguments in support of your petition, they should be in theform of a separate memorandum. 2254 Petition (Rev. 02/18/2005) <<<<<<<<<********>>>>>>>>>>>>> 2The petition must be signed under oath by the person seeking relief or by someone authorized to act onhis or her behalf. When the forms are completed mail the original and one copy to: Clerk, United States District Court forthe District of Maryland, 101 West Lombard Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21201. How to ask for the filing fee to be waivedThere is a fee of $5.00 for filing this type of lawsuit. This must be paid at the time your petition is filed. Ifyou are unable to pay the filing fee you may ask the Court to let you proceed in forma pauperis. Thepractice of this Court is that a motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis will not be granted if, afterpaying the filing fee, you would have $25.00 or more left in your institutional account. What the court will do with your petitionOnce your petition is received by the Court it will be reviewed and a case number and judge will beassigned. Everything that you receive from the Court about your case will have your case number on it.Everything that you send to the Court other than the petition and motion and affidavit to proceed in formapauperis should have the case number on it. The Court may order that you provide additional information.If it does, it is important that you submit the information in a timely manner. If you do not respond yourpetition may be denied. The Court may order that the Respondents fil an answer to your petition. If ananswer is filed you may file a reply within thirty days from the date it was filed or such other time as is fixedby the Court. Things to know about representing yourselfThere are specific procedural rules which apply to actions under 28 U.S.C. 2254. They are called theRules Governing Habeas Corpus Cases Under Section 2254 In The United States District Courts. TheFederal Rules of Civil Procedure will apply in some circumstances, as well as the Local Rules of this Court.Unless directed otherwise, all communications to the Court about your case should be addressed to: Clerk of the Court United States District Court 101 West Lombard Street Baltimore, Maryland 21201You must notify the Court in writing of any change in your address. Failure to do this may resultin dismissal of your case. After you file the petition no communication about your case should be sent directly to any judge. If youwant to ask the Court to do something, you should file a motion. Pleadings and motions should be filed2254 Petition (Rev. 02/18/2005) 2<<<<<<<<<********>>>>>>>>>>>>> 3with the Clerk and a copy should be mailed to the attorney representing the respondent(s) or directly tothe respondent(s) if he/she does not have an attorney. It is important to include a certificate of service onanything you file after your petition showing when you mailed copies and to whom they were sent. Thecertificate of service appears at the end of the pleading or motion and looks like the sample below. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that on this ______ day of ___________________, _____, a copy of this (title of the document) , was mailed, postage prepaid, to (name and address of the attorney or person to whom you sent it). (your signature )It is not necessary to state in the certificate of service that copies were sent to the Court or to the Clerk.Do not file any motions or memoranda that are longer than fifty pages unless you have received permissionfrom the Court. Most motions and memoranda should be much shorter than fifty pages.You do not have to file copies of exhibits that are already on file in the same case. For example, if therespondents in your case file an answer and attach as an exhibit a copy of your post conviction petition,you do not have to attach a co
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