Louis Taylor freed after 42 years in prison

Recently, a man who spent 42 years in prison was finally released from custody. The man was convicted at the age of 16 of starting a fire that killed over 20 people. New evidence, however, convinced the government that it might not be such a bad idea to let him go. See "After 42 Years in Jail, Conviction Overturned in Case of Deadly Fire": Louis Taylor was a teenager when he was convicted of murder for supposedly starting a fire that killed 29 people. Now 58, Taylor has been released from an Arizona prison after new information cast doubt on the evidence he committed arson. The problem with so many people who are in custody that it is very difficult to get them out even if new evidence is discovered. Arizona has a procedure called a petition for post conviction relief, more commonly known as Rule 32. This procedure is most commonly used when a defendant claims his lawyer was ineffective. That's why is known as a petition for ineffective assistance of counsel. It is usually only available if the defendant went to a trial and lost. While it can be used if the defendant pled guilty, it is rare for it to be successful. The main problem with the rule 32 petition is that it goes to the same trial judge who heard the defendant's trial. As one may imagine any trial judge is unlikely to overturn a conviction that happened in his or her court. The defendant has what is called a petition as a matter of right for the first rule 32 and that's is filed. That means the court must consider the petition. If the defendant files in a later rule 32 petitions, the court does not have to actually consider the petition. If somebody has exhausted all state court remedies, which means appeal and a rule 32 petition, then they could go to federal court even though the conviction is in state court. If somebody is still in custody they can do what is called a petition of habeas corpus. If they are out of custody but still facing civil sanction, they can do another procedure called a petition for writ of error coram nobis. The problem with any petition in federal court is that a federal judge is unlikely to overturn a state court conviction. And the simple fact of the matter is when somebody has been convicted of a crime they are more than likely to stay convicted of a crime whether or not they were truly guilty. Image may be NSFW.
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