FILED

December 17, 1997

Cecil W. Crowson

Appellate Court Clerk

IN THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OF TENNESSEE

AT NASHVILLE

NOVEMBER 1997 SESSION

DONNIE CARPENTER, )

) C.C.A. NO. 01C01-9703-CC-00114

Appellant, )

) MAURY COUNTY

VS. )

) HON. JAMES L. WEATHERFORD,

STATE OF TENNESSEE, ) JUDGE

)

Appellee. ) (Post-conviction)

FOR THE APPELLANT: FOR THE APPELLEE:

SHARA FLACY JOHN KNOX WALKUP

Public Defender Attorney General & Reporter

WILLIAM C. BRIGHT CLINTON J. MORGAN

Asst. Public Defender Counsel for the State

P.O. Box 1208 450 James Robertson Pkwy.

Pulaski, TN 38478 Nashville, TN 37243-0493

MIKE BOTTOMS

District Attorney General

ROBERT C. SANDERS

Asst. District Attorney General

P.O. Box 1619

Columbia, TN 38401

OPINION FILED:____________________

AFFIRMED

JOHN H. PEAY,

Judge
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As of M ay 10, 199 5, the tim ing for filing su ch a pe tition was re duced to one yea r from the date

the convic tion became final.

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O P I N I O N

The petitioner pled guilty to first-degree murder on September 23, 1986.

He received a sentence of life imprisonment. On August 21, 1991, he filed a petition for

post-conviction relief. Counsel was appointed and an amended petition was filed on

November 20, 1996. The petition was dismissed the following day because it was filed

outside the statute of limitations. The petitioner now appeals and argues that the postconviction court erred when it dismissed his petition. We disagree and affirm the

judgment of the court below.

In his post-conviction petition, the petitioner alleges that his trial counsel

was ineffective and that his guilty plea was not entered freely and voluntarily. He alleged

in his petition that his counsel told him he would be out of prison in six years when in

actuality, he would have to serve seventeen years before becoming eligible for parole.

He further alleged that because he only has a seventh grade education, he was unaware

that he had to bring these complaints before the court within three years of his conviction

becoming final. Thus, he argues that his petition should not be barred for falling outside

the statute of limitations.

At the time the petitioner was convicted, he had three years from the date

his conviction became final to file his post-conviction petition. T.C.A. § 40-30-102

(1990).1 His petition was filed nearly five years after he pled guilty; thus he is clearly

outside the limitations period. However, the petitioner urges this Court to dispense with

the timing requirement because the petitioner was ill-educated and was unable to hire an

attorney to help him understand the legal process. This Court has previously held that
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ignorance of the statute of limitations is not an excuse for failing to timely file a postconviction petition. Brown v. State, 928 S.W.2d 453, 456 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1996). We

have also held that the statute of limitations is not affected by when a petitioner “learns”

that his constitutional rights might have been violated. Passarella v. State, 891 S.W.2d

619, 625 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1994). As this Court has previously stated, 

The Post-Conviction Procedure Act is not a constitutionally

mandated procedure and this Court has repeatedly held that

the legislature could properly impose limitations upon the

time in which the cause of action arising under the act must

be brought. There is nothing in the act to indicate that the

legislature intended for this provision to apply only to certain

petitioners. For this Court to now attempt to carve

exceptions would defeat the purpose of the act. We are not

prepared to hold that the facts alleged by the petitioner tolled

the running of the three year limitation.

Melvin Douglas Boyle v. State, No, 02C01-9201-CC-00003, Fayette County (Tenn. Crim.

App. filed Nov. 18, 1992, at Jackson).

Thus, we affirm the trial court’s dismissal of the petition due to its having

been filed outside the statute of limitations.

_________________________________

 JOHN H. PEAY, Judge

CONCUR:

______________________________

JOSEPH M. TIPTON, Judge

______________________________ 

DAVID H. WELLES, Judge 
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