Title: In Re Griffin's Petition
Citation: 382 P.2d 202
Docket Number: 20798
State: Colorado
Issuer: Colorado Supreme Court
Date: May 20, 1963

382 P.2d 202 (1963) Petition of Alexander GRIFFIN for leave to appear as a Poor Person and for Extension of Time for Issuance of Writ of Error. No. 20798. Supreme Court of Colorado. En Banc. May 20, 1963. *203 Petitioner, pro se. MOORE, Justice. April 9, 1963, the clerk of this court received from Alexander Griffin, a prisoner in the state penitentiary, a typewritten document entitled, "Notice of Appeal to the Supreme Court of the State of Colorado." Other documents under various captions also were received. The material lodged with the clerk of this court by Griffin in its entirety is wholly unintelligible and meaningless. About the only thing that is understandable is the statement that "Petitioner was convicted of the Crime of Conspiracy to commit Burglary, Larceny and Conspiracy to commit Larceny, * * *" and is at present confined in the penitentiary. We surmise from the other statements contained in the ten pages of typewritten jargon that Griffin seeks to be released and that he is without funds. We accordingly now order that he be permitted to proceed in this court as a poor person. We further elect to treat the unintelligible typewritten matter as an application for extension of time within which to proceed by writ of error. We direct the attention of Griffin to the very recent decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in Douglas v. California, 372 U.S. 353, 83 S. Ct. 814, 9 L. Ed. 2d 811, in which it was held that an indigent defendant is entitled to have counsel appointed to represent him in appellate proceedings following a conviction of crime in a trial court. April 24, 1963, the attorney general delivered a written opinion to a judge of the district court of the City and County of Denver, to the general effect that it is the duty of the court in which the conviction was had to appoint counsel on behalf of an indigent defendant to prosecute a writ of error, if grounds exist therefor and if application is made in apt time. For the benefit of the bench and bar of this state we quote from the opinion of the attorney general the following: "The man's request rests on the decision of the U. S. Supreme Court in Douglas v. California [372 U.S. 353, 83 S. Ct. 814], 9 L.ed 2d 811. This case involves a California rule which provides that, upon request of an indigent defendant for appointment of counsel, the appellate court shall make an investigation of the trial court record and, if the court is of the opinion that such appointment would be helpful, it shall appoint counsel. In the Douglas case, the appellate court determined that appointment would be of no value *204 to either the defendant or the court, and denied Douglas' request for counsel. As to this failure to appoint, the U. S. Supreme Court held: "We are aware of the apparent limitations of the Colorado Supreme Court's holding in Medberry v. People, 107 Colo. 15, 108 P. (2d) 243, and the provisions of 39-7-29. '53 CRS, and Rule 44 of the Colorado Rules of Criminal Procedure (as amended 11-1-61 and 12-20-52). The decision in Medberry, however, has been overruled by the court's decision in In Re Patterson, 136 Colo. 401, 317 P.2d 1041, *205 which was decided after Griffin v. Illinois, 351 U.S. 12 [76 S. Ct. 585, 100 L. Ed. 891]. See also Patterson v. Medberry, 10 Cir., 290 F.2d 275. As stated by the Colorado Supreme Court at page 404 (Colo.) [at page 1043 of 317 P.2d]: In view of the opinion of the Supreme Court of the United States in Douglas v. California, under which the right to counsel is provided, we will not consider unintelligible petitions and motions which have no legal significance and which do not meet the requirements of our established procedures in appellate practice. In the instant case the defendant is granted time until September 16, 1963, to file the record in this court and cause writ of error to issue. HALL, SUTTON and McWILLIAMS, JJ., dissent. McWILLIAMS, Justice (dissenting). I would grant that portion of Griffin's motion wherein he seeks leave to proceed in this Court in forma pauperis, but would deny the balance of his motion or petition, which the majority of this Court has characterized as being unintelligible. SUTTON and HALL, JJ., concur in this dissent.