Federal Procedure- Habeas Corpus-Custody as a Prerequisite for Jurisdiction

Authors

William C. Griffith, University of Michigan Law SchoolFollow

Abstract

Having exhausted his state remedies in seeking a reversal of a 1954 conviction for forgery, petitioner applied in May 1956 for a writ of habeas corpus in a federal district court alleging, inter alia, that his conviction without benefit of counsel was a denial of due process under the fourteenth amendment. After dismissal by that court and affirmance by the court of appeals, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in March 1959. Pending a decision, petitioner completed his sentence and was released from prison. In a per curiam opinion, held, dismissed, four Justices dissenting. In a habeas corpus proceeding the Court is without jurisdiction if the petitioner is not in custody at the time the judgment will become effective. Parker v. Ellis, 362 U.S. 574 (1960).

Recommended Citation

William C. Griffith, Federal Procedure- Habeas Corpus-Custody as a Prerequisite for Jurisdiction, 59 Mich. L. Rev. 312 (1960).
Available at: https://repository.law.umich.edu/mlr/vol59/iss2/10