Jackson v. State
Jackson v. State
Opinion of the Court
In this postconviction proceeding we consider whether the postconviction court abused its discretion when it denied appellant Prentis Cordell Jackson's petition for postconviction relief without holding an evidentiary hearing. Because the petition was filed more than 2 years after the disposition of his direct appeal and the facts alleged in the postconviction petition, if proven, would not have satisfied any exception to the 2-year statute of limitations, we affirm the postconviction court's decision.
FACTS
Following a jury trial in November 2006, Jackson was convicted of first-degree premeditated murder for fatally shooting Michael Anthony Bluntson, Jr.
*905Jackson filed his first petition for postconviction relief in January 2013, asserting two claims. First, he sought a new trial because an eyewitness allegedly recanted his trial testimony. Jackson v. State (Jackson II ),
Jackson filed his current petition for postconviction relief on February 12, 2018, asserting three claims of ineffective assistance of counsel during his trial and direct appeal. First, Jackson claims that his trial counsel was ineffective during plea negotiations. He alleges that, on the cusp of trial, the State offered him a plea deal that would have resulted in a sentence of 30 years in prison with the possibility of release after 20 years. He further alleges that his trial counsel advised him that the State would be unable to prove premeditation because the murder occurred in the "heat of passion." Based on this advice, Jackson rejected the State's offer. Second, Jackson claims that his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to request a jury instruction on lesser-included offenses. Third, Jackson claims that his appellate counsel was ineffective on direct appeal for failing to raise his trial counsel's ineffectiveness as grounds for reversing his conviction. The postconviction court denied the claims without holding an evidentiary hearing, concluding that Jackson's claims were time-barred under the 2-year statute of limitations.
ANALYSIS
We review the postconviction court's decision to summarily deny a petition for postconviction relief for an abuse of discretion. Campbell v. State ,
A postconviction court must hold an evidentiary hearing unless "the petition and the files and records of the proceeding conclusively show that the petitioner is entitled to no relief."
The statute of limitations governing postconviction claims requires a petition to be filed within 2 years of "an appellate court's disposition of petitioner's direct appeal."
*906
A postconviction court may hear an untimely petition, however, if the petitioner has alleged facts that, if true, would meet one of the five exceptions to the 2-year statute of limitations. A petition invoking one of the exceptions "must be filed within two years of the date the claim arises."
Jackson invokes the third and fifth exceptions in the postconviction statute. They are:
(3) the petitioner asserts a new interpretation of federal or state constitutional or statutory law by either the United States Supreme Court or a Minnesota appellate court and the petitioner establishes that this interpretation is retroactively applicable to the petitioner's case;
...
(5) the petitioner establishes to the satisfaction of the court that the petition is not frivolous and is in the interests of justice.
Jackson maintains that the facts alleged concerning his first claim are sufficient to invoke the "new interpretation of constitutional law" exception of Minnesota Statutes section 590.01, subdivision 4(b)(3).
Jackson's first claim alleges that trial counsel was ineffective when he provided Jackson inaccurate legal advice regarding the State's plea offer. According to Jackson, the Supreme Court's decision in Lafler v. Cooper announced a new interpretation of constitutional law that is relevant to his first claim, namely: "[t]he fact that [the defendant] is guilty does not mean he was not entitled by the Sixth Amendment to effective assistance or that he suffered no prejudice from his attorney's deficient performance during plea bargaining."
Jackson also asserts that the facts alleged in his petition are sufficient to invoke the interests-of-justice exception of Minnesota Statutes section 590.01, subdivision 4(b)(5). This assertion lacks merit.
To invoke the interests-of-justice exception, the claim must relate to "an injustice that caused the petitioner to miss the primary deadline in subdivision 4(a), not the substance of the petition." Sanchez ,
In sum, we conclude that the postconviction court did not abuse its discretion in summarily denying appellant's claims of ineffective assistance of counsel; the petition was filed more than 2 years after Jackson's direct appeal, and the facts alleged in the postconviction petition, even if proven at an evidentiary hearing, would not have satisfied any exception to the 2-year statute of limitations.
CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, we affirm the decision of the postconviction court.
Affirmed.
The underlying facts of Jackson's crime are not relevant to the claims asserted in this postconviction petition. A full factual summary can be found in our earlier decisions in Jackson's case. See State v. Jackson (Jackson I ),
The postconviction court also concluded that Jackson's claims were procedurally barred under State v. Knaffla ,
If no direct appeal is filed, the statute of limitations begins to run when the judgment of conviction or sentence is entered.
Jackson's second and third claims are based on well-established law. See, e.g. , Sullivan v. State ,
Although we need not decide whether Lafler announced a new interpretation of constitutional law, we observe that in Pearson v. State ,
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Prentis Cordell JACKSON v. STATE of Minnesota
- Status
- Published