Opinion ID: 1345171
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The District Court's Calculations

Text: The district court considered the limitations period to begin running upon the expiration of the 90-day period during which Saunders could have filed for direct review of his conviction, pursuant to this Court's decision in Williams v. Artuz, 237 F.3d 147 (2d Cir. 2001), which held that direct review of a state criminal conviction includes review by the Supreme Court of the United States and that the limitations period for state prisoners therefore begins to run only after the denial of certiorari or the expiration of time for seeking certiorari. Id. at 151. The court thus concluded that the limitations period began to run on February 16, 2000, 90 days after the New York State Court of Appeals denied leave to appeal on November 18, 1999. The limitations period would have expired on February 16, 2001, but Saunders on February 13, 2001 filed a motion in state court pursuant to New York Criminal Procedure Law § 440.10, which had the effect of tolling the limitations period until the New York Court of Appeals denied the motion and denied leave to appeal its denial of the motion, on May 20, 2003. The limitations period then began running again, according to the district court, and expired on May 23, 2003, four days before Saunders filed his petition for habeas corpus.