Court Opinion

ID: 9466471
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 01:16:48.537801+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:39:45.184170
License: Public Domain

WARREN L. JONES, Circuit Judge,
dissenting:
Among his claims the appellant attacks the prison disciplinary proceeding on the ground that he was unable to exercise his right to appeal because he was held in solitary confinement after the hearing, lacking both knowledge of his right to appeal and writing materials with which to draft his appeal. The majority rejects this claim because state administrative remedies were not exhausted by an appeal to the Director of the Texas Department of Corrections. Reliance is placed upon Lerma v. Estelle, 5th Cir. 1978, 585 F.2d 1297, for the proposition that “A federal court may not grant habeas corpus relief to a petitioner who has failed to exhaust all administrative remedies, including an appeal to the Director of Corrections.” But Lerma v. Estelle was not a case where the habeas corpus petitioner alleged that he was denied his right to an administrative appeal. Lerma failed to file an administrative appeal. Although Lerma challenged the constitutionality of prison disciplinary proceedings, denial of the right to an administrative appeal was not one of his claims. I would reach the merits of Baxter’s claims with respect to the prison disciplinary proceeding.
The majority invokes the doctrine of laches. It cites Lewellyn v. Wainwright, 5th Cir. 1979, 593 F.2d 15; Hudson v. Alabama, 5th Cir. 1974, 493 F.2d 171; Goodwin v. Smith, 5th Cir. 1971, 439 F.2d 1180; Hamilton v. Watkins, 5th Cir. 1970, 436 F.2d 1323; and Jackson v. Estelle, 5th Cir. 1978, 570 F.2d 546. In each of these cases an attack was made on an old conviction and the doctrine of enhancement was not involved.
In my view this case should be decided under the principles stated in Sand v. Estelle, 5th Cir. 1977, 551 F.2d 49, which is cited in passing by the majority, and Davis v. Estelle, 5th Cir. 1974, 502 F.2d 523, appeal after remand, 1976, 529 F.2d 437; Mitchell v. United States, 5th Cir. 1973, 482 F.2d 289; Craig v. Beto, 5th Cir. 1972, 458 F.2d 1131; Jackson v. Louisiana, 5th Cir. 1971, 452 F.2d 451, none of which are discussed or cited by the majority. Factually the present case is like these cases. They involve direct attacks on recent convictions and concomitant indirect attacks on earlier convictions. Each case involves a direct attack on a recent conviction and, because prior convictions were used to enhance the petitioner’s sentence, an indirect attack on one or more prior convictions. In each of these cases there was no significant delay between the recent conviction and the petitioner’s collateral challenge. None of these cases suggests that the difficulty of proof *1037should bar investigation into the validity of the old, prior convictions which were used for enhancement. On the contrary, in Craig v. Beto, supra, the Court recognized that difficulty of proof existed but the Court did not allow that fact to prevent remand. In this case the Court said,
“We cognize the practical problems in producing in Texas records and witnesses of events that occurred in Oklahoma over twenty years ago. However, we think that Texas should bear this burden, if necessary, in support of the validity of Craig’s 1951 conviction because it has imposed the life sentence in Texas, and is presently confining Craig under that sentence, all based upon the theory that the Oklahoma conviction is valid.” 458 F.2d 1131, 1134.
The Court held that the State of Texas had the burden of demonstrating the validity of the old conviction which it had used for enhancement.
In Davis v. Estelle, supra, the Court did not refer to the difficulty of proof when it said: “All of the actors in that Waco hearing are now dead except that the prosecutor is still living in Canyon, Texas. He may be able even at this late date to throw some light on this matter.” 502 F.2d at 525.
I would vacate and remand that portion of the district court’s judgment which denied Baxter’s claim of ineffective assistance of counsel in the 1975 Harris County case. I would authorize the district court to take further evidence and conduct additional proceedings as may be necessary to resolve this issue.