Title: Holloman v. State

State: delaware

Issuer: Delaware Supreme Court

Document:

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE 
 
DAVID HOLLOMAN a/k/a DAVID 
M. COLES, 
 
Petitioner Below, 
Appellant, 
 
v. 
 
STATE OF DELAWARE, 
 
Respondent Below, 
Appellee. 
§ 
§  No. 372, 2022 
§ 
§  Court Below:  Superior Court 
§  of the State of Delaware 
§   
§  C.A. No. N22M-09-021  
§  Cr. ID No. 0301011099 (N) 
§ 
§ 
§ 
§ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Submitted:   January 11, 2023 
 
 
 
 
   Decided: February 6, 2023 
 
Before SEITZ, Chief Justice; VALIHURA and TRAYNOR, Justices. 
 
 
 
ORDER 
 
After consideration of the appellant’s opening brief, the appellee’s motion to 
affirm, and the record below, the Court concludes that: 
(1) 
The appellant, David Holloman a/k/a David M. Coles, filed this appeal 
from the Superior Court’s denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus.  The 
State of Delaware has filed a motion to affirm the judgment below on the ground 
that it is manifest on the face of Holloman’s opening briefs that his appeal is without 
merit.  We agree and affirm. 
(2) 
In 2006, a Superior Court jury found Holloman guilty of second-degree 
murder and related weapon offenses in Criminal ID No 0301011099.  The Superior 
2 
 
Court sentenced Holloman to thirty-eight years of Level V incarceration, suspended 
after thirty-four years for Level III probation.  This Court affirmed on direct appeal.1   
(3) 
On September 7, 2022, Holloman filed a petition for a writ of habeas 
corpus in the Superior Court.  The Superior Court denied the petition, finding that 
Holloman was legally detained and raised matters outside the scope of habeas corpus 
relief.  This appeal followed.  In his opening brief, Holloman argues that the Superior 
Court erred in failing to consider his claims concerning the Department of 
Correction’s handling of his grievances and imposition of discipline upon him.        
(4) 
Under Delaware law, the writ of habeas corpus provides relief on a very 
limited basis.2  Habeas corpus only “provides an opportunity for one illegally 
confined or incarcerated to obtain judicial review of the jurisdiction of the court 
ordering the commitment.”3  Where the commitment is regular on its face and the 
court clearly had jurisdiction over the subject matter, habeas corpus does not afford 
a remedy to the petitioner.4   
(5) 
The Superior Court did not err in denying Holloman’s petition.  
Holloman did not contend that the sentencing order in Criminal ID No.  0301011099 
 
1 Coles v. State, 959 A.2d 18 (Del. 2008). 
2 Hall v. Carr, 692 A.2d 888, 891 (Del. 1997).   
3 Id.  See also 10 Del. C. § 6902(1) (providing that habeas corpus relief is not available to those 
who are “committed or detained on a charge of treason or felony, the species whereof is plainly 
and fully set forth in the commitment”). 
4 Jones v. Anderson, 183 A.2d 177, 178 (Del. 1962); Curran v. Woolley, 104 A.2d 771, 773-74 
(Del. 1954). 
3 
 
was irregular on its face or that the Superior Court lacked jurisdiction to sentence 
him.  His claims concern prison management, classification decisions, and 
restriction of institutional privileges by the Department of Correction that are not 
subject to habeas corpus review.5     
NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS ORDERED that the Motion to Affirm is 
GRANTED and the judgment of the Superior Court is AFFIRMED. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
BY THE COURT: 
 
 
 
 
 
 
/s/ Karen L. Valihura 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Justice 
 
 
 
5 See, e.g., Biggins v. State, 2009 WL 924506, at *1 (Del. Apr. 7, 2009) (affirming denial of petition 
for writ of habeas corpus where petitioner alleged he was improperly transferred to maximum 
security housing unit at prison because complaints relating to prison management and/or 
classification decisions are not subject to habeas corpus review); Evans v. Snyder, 2001 WL 
1586854, at *1 (Del. Dec. 7, 2001) (holding that petitioner’s challenges to his reclassification to 
maximum security housing unit and then to solitary confinement and restriction of privileges 
within prison were not subject to habeas corpus review).