Opinion ID: 2971748
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: the michigan state courts

Text: During his trial in the Detroit Recorder’s Court1 on charges of first-degree felony murder and armed robbery, Defendant was represented by a retained attorney, Lawrence E. Schultz. Upon being convicted of both charges in 1995, Defendant was sentenced to concurrent terms of life imprisonment. He appealed to the Michigan Court of Appeals in January 1996. B. The Direct Appeal to the Michigan Court of Appeals In his direct appeal, Defendant was again represented by Attorney Lawrence E. Schultz. Mr. Schultz asserted just two claims on Defendant’s behalf: (1) the trial court erred in its determination concerning the voluntariness and admissibility of Defendant’s statement to the police; and (2) Defendant’s convictions and sentences for both felony murder and armed robbery violated the prohibitions against double jeopardy. The Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s decision concerning the admissibility of Defendant’s statement to the police and, accordingly, affirmed his conviction of felony murder. The Court of Appeals, however, agreed that the convictions of both felony murder and the underlying felony of armed robbery violated the federal and state prohibitions against double jeopardy. The Court of Appeals therefore vacated the conviction and sentence for the underlying felony of armed robbery. C. The Delayed Appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court In June 1997, Defendant filed a delayed application for leave to appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court. The leave to appeal was denied. D. The Post-Appeal Proceedings in the Michigan Courts
Subchapter 6.500 of Chapter 6, Criminal Procedure, Michigan Rules of Court (“MCR”), entitled “Post Appeal2 Relief,” establishes the procedure for post-appeal proceedings challenging criminal convictions. The request for relief from judgment must set forth, in addition to other information, the grounds for the relief requested and, if the grounds for relief were not raised before, the reasons they were not raised. MCR 6.502(c)(12) and (14). The motion must be presented to the judge to whom the case was assigned at the time of the defendant’s conviction. MCR 6.504(A). Appeals are by application to the Court of Appeals. MCR 6.509(A). 1 At the time of Defendant’s trial and conviction in 1995, the trial court was known as the Detroit Recorder’s Court. In 1997, legislation was passed to dissolve the Detroit Recorder’s Court and consolidate its operation under the newly-formed Third Circuit Court. As a result, proceedings in both state and federal courts refer to the trial court in this case as the Circuit Court. 2 The 1989 Staff Comment states, “[t]he rules are similar in structure to the federal rules governing proceedings under 28 U.S.C. 2255, though there are a number of differences in substance and language.” No. 03-1894 Whiting v. Burt Page 3 The critical rule governing the granting of relief is MCR 6.508. It provides, in pertinent part: (D) Entitlement to Relief. The defendant has the burden of establishing entitlement to the relief requested. The court may not grant relief to the defendant if the motion