Howell v. State

Summary

The Montana Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal of Joseph A. Howell’s petition for postconviction relief as untimely. The court held that the petition, filed nearly thirteen years after judgment and sentence, was barred by the five-year limitation period in effect at the time of his conviction, and rejected Howell’s related arguments concerning waiver and his Eighth Amendment claim.

Holdings

1. The District Court properly dismissed the petition as untimely without first ordering a responsive pleading because the petition was plainly filed outside the applicable five-year limitations period.
2. The court rejected Howell's attempt to avoid the limitations bar by characterizing his sentence as an ongoing Eighth Amendment violation and affirmed dismissal of the petition as untimely.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the District Court could dismiss Howell's postconviction-relief petition as untimely without ordering the State to file a responsive pleading.
2. Whether Howell's Eighth Amendment challenge to his 60-year sentence without parole could be raised at any time and therefore was not subject to the applicable five-year postconviction statute of limitations.

Disposition

affirmed