NCJ Number
97413
Journal
Ohio State Law Journal Volume: 44 Issue: 2 Dated: (1983) Pages: 269-445
Date Published
1983
Length
172 pages
Annotation
These symposium articles address various aspects of the use of Federal habeas corpus by State prisoners and focus on the enforcement of rights that are the core of the relationship between the individual and the State.
Abstract
The discussion considers the possibility of designing a structure and a procedure to provide a meaningful review of State convictions and a substantial measure of finality while simultaneously eliminating inefficient, duplicative, and protracted litigation. Federal courts' decreasing role in reviewing the propriety of a State prisoner's State court conviction or sentence is noted, and reasons for the changes in the courts' roles are suggested. The Rehnquist-Stevens debate over the certificate of probable cause is described, and current legislative reform of the certificate requirement is analyzed. Additionally, the expansion and contraction of Federal habeas corpus is chronicled, and the influence of social change on the reach of the writ is explained. The article reviews Supreme Court decisions which are deemed to writing the habeas statute rather than interpret it; the Court's decision in Brown v. Allen is examined and determined to be the Court's best effort at statutory interpretation. Finally, the 'exhaustion' doctrine is appraised and criticized; suggestions for improving the Supreme Court's handling and interpretation of the doctrine are offered. Included are 992 references.