Summary
The Nebraska Supreme Court held that a habeas corpus petitioner seeking relief from custody in a criminal case need not prepay filing fees or obtain in forma pauperis status under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2824. The court reversed the denial of the petitioner’s fee-postponement motion and remanded with instructions to file and review the habeas petition.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether the district court improperly treated Buggs's motion to postpone habeas filing fees as a motion to proceed in forma pauperis.
- Whether Nebraska law requires prepayment of fees or in forma pauperis status to file a habeas corpus petition based on custody arising from a criminal case.
- What review the district court must conduct after filing the habeas petition.
Holdings
- Under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2824, a person filing a habeas corpus petition seeking discharge from custody under color of criminal proceedings need not prepay filing fees and need not obtain in forma pauperis status.
- The district court erred by treating Buggs's motion to postpone fees as a motion for in forma pauperis status because Buggs did not seek that status and was not required to obtain it.
- Upon presentation of a habeas corpus petition, the district court must examine it to determine whether it states a cause of action and must deny the writ if it does not.
Key quotations
“Under § 29-2824, Buggs did not have to prepay the fees associated with the filing of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus, nor was IFP status required in order for Buggs to file that petition.” (434)
“It is the duty of the court on presentation of a petition for a writ of habeas corpus to examine it, and if it fails to state a cause of action, the court must enter an order denying the writ.” (435)
Factual background
Buggs was convicted in 2001 of second degree forgery with a habitual criminal enhancement and manslaughter. He received a 10-year sentence for forgery and a consecutive 20-to-20-year sentence for manslaughter, with his mandatory release and parole eligibility dates calculated for June 2021. In 2016, he sought postponement of fees while presenting a habeas corpus petition, and the district court treated the request as an in forma pauperis motion.
Procedural history
Buggs filed a motion seeking postponement of fees while presenting a petition for a writ of habeas corpus. The Lancaster County District Court treated the motion as an application for in forma pauperis status and denied it based on the purported frivolousness of the habeas petition. The Nebraska Supreme Court reversed and remanded with instructions to file the petition without prepayment of fees and conduct the required habeas review.
Remand instructions
If the habeas petition has not yet been filed, the district court must file it without requiring prepayment of fees. The court must then conduct its habeas corpus review and determine whether the petition states a cause of action, denying the writ if it does not.