Petition For Relief From Conviction Or Sentence

APPENDIX A. FORM PETITION The following form petition shall be available without cost to a prisoner in the prisons and other places of detention and shall also be available without cost to any potential petitioner in the office of the clerk of court for any court of record with criminal jurisdiction. The standard form, together with Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-30-202(c), is designed to achieve early finality in postconviction proceedings through one comprehensive petition and one full and fair hearing at which all grounds for challenging the validity of a conviction or sentence will be considered. READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY BEFORE PREPARING THE PETITION (1) This petition must be legibly handwritten or typewritten. It must be signed by petitioner under penalty of perjury. Any false statement of a material fact may serve as the basis for prosecution and conviction of petitioner for perjury. All questions must be answered completely in the proper space on the form or on additional sheets submitted with the form. This form may be obtained at the place of confinement or from any clerk of a court of record with criminal jurisdiction. (2) No citation of authorities need be furnished. If briefs or arguments are submitted, they should be submitted in the form of a separate memorandum and not as part of this form. (3) A separate petition must be filed for each judgment you seek to challenge. If you seek to challenge judgments entered in different trials or guilty plea proceedings, either in the same county or in different counties, you must file separate petitions. (4) YOU MUST INCLUDE IN THIS PETITION ALL GROUNDS FOR RELIEF. FAILURE TO INCLUDE A GROUND FOR RELIEF IN THIS PETITION WILL RESULT IN YOUR BEING PERMANENTLY BARRED FROM PRESENTING IT IN A FUTURE PETITION OR PROCEEDING. (5) YOU MUST INCLUDE ALL FACTS SUPPORTING EACH GROUND FOR RELIEF. YOU MUST BE AS SPECIFIC AS POSSIBLE AS TO THE FACTS. (6) Complete all applicable items in the petition. When the petition is fully completed, the ORIGINAL must be mailed to the appropriate clerk of court. (7) You must comply with these instructions in order to have your petition promptly considered. (8) REMEMBER, A PETITIONER IS ENTITLED TO FILE ONLY ONE PETITION PER CASE. Revised November 2008 American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com IN THE _________ COURT OF __________________ COUNTY, TENNESSEE AT _________________ ) PETITIONER (FULL NAME) ) ) VS. ) ) ) STATE OF TENNESSEE ) (POST-CONVICTION) CASE NO. _______ ) PETITION FOR RELIEF FROM CONVICTION OR SENTENCE Mailing Address of Petitioner (including zip code) _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________ Place of Confinement ________________ Dep't of Corrections Number ______________ NOTICE: BEFORE COMPLETING THIS FORM, READ CAREFULLY THE ACCOMPANYING INSTRUCTIONS. 1. Name and location (city and county) of court which entered the judgment of conviction or sentence challenged ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ 2. Date of judgment of conviction _____________________ 3. Case Number _____________________ American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com 4. Length of sentence _____________________ 5. Offense Convicted of _______________________________________________________________ 6. What was your plea? (Check One) (a) Guilty _____ (b) Not Guilty _____ (c) Not Guilty by reason of mental disease or defect _____ (d) Not guilty and not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect _____ (e) Nolo contendere _____ (f) None _____ If you entered a guilty plea to one count or indictment, and a not guilty plea to another count or indictment, specify. (a) guilty plea counts: ________________________________________________________ (b) not guilty counts: _________________________________________________________ 7. Kind of trial: (Check One) (a) Jury _____ (b) Judge only _____ 8. Did you testify at the trial? Yes _____ No _____ 9. Did you appeal from the judgment of conviction? Yes _____ No _____ 10. If you did appeal, answer the following: (a) As to the state court to which you first appealed, give the following information: (1) Name of court __________________________________________ (2) Result __________________________________________ American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com (3) Date of result __________________________________________ (4) Grounds raised on appeal ________________________________________________________________ (Attach additional sheets if necessary) (b) If you appealed to any other court, then as to the second court to which you appealed, give the following information: (1) Name of court __________________________________________ (2) Result __________________________________________ (3) Date of result __________________________________________ (4) Grounds raised on appeal ________________________________________________________________ (Attach additional sheets if necessary) (c) If you appealed to any other court, then as to the third court to which you appealed, give the following information: (1) Name of court __________________________________________ (2) Result __________________________________________ (3) Date of result __________________________________________ (4) Grounds raised on appeal ________________________________________________________________ (Attach additional sheets if necessary) 11. If more than one (1) year has passed since the date of final action on your direct appeal by the state appellate courts, state why the statute of limitations should not bar your claim. ______________________________________________________________________________ American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com 12. Other than a direct appeal from the judgment(s) of conviction and sentence, have you previously filed any petitions, applications, or motions with respect to the judgment(s) in any state or federal court? Yes _____ No _____ 13. If your answer to Question 12 was Yes, then give the following information in regard to the first such petition, application, or motion you filed: (a) (1) Name of court _____________________ (2) Nature of proceeding _____________________ (3) Grounds raised ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ (Attach additional sheets if nece