Order
Public Court Documents
September 1, 1983
Cite this item
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Case Files, Bozeman v. Lambert and Wilder v. Lambert Court Documents. Order, 1983. fb529140-ed92-ee11-be37-6045bdeb8873. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/03b8649a-9a0d-483e-a4d3-58fd98f753bf/order. Accessed November 03, 2025.
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IN Ti{E TINITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF AI-ABA]"1A
NORTHERN DIVISlON
FILED
SEP 1 1s83
THOMAS C, R,
c'i
JULIA P. iITILDER
. Petitioner
vs.
EALON M. LAI"IBERT; et al
Respondents
CIVIL ACTION NO. 83-H-5 -N
ORDER
This cause is before the. Court on respondents' motion
to dismiss the petition for habeas corpus. Petitioner, who is
now on parole, has attacked hei conviction for voter fraud on
numerous constitutional gror:nds. She clains that no rational
jury could have found her guilty based on the evidence Dresented
at trial; that the indictment failed to provide her with
adequate notice of the charges; that she was convicted of
engaging in conduct protected by the Constitution and the
Voting Rights Act; that the jury instructions created ex post
facto liability; that the use of out-of-court statements violated
her Sixth Amendment rights; and that she was selectively and
discriminatorily prosecuted. Resoondents have moved to disrniss
for failure to exhaust state remedies. Petitioner asserts that
no state corrective process is available. 28 U.S.C. S 2254(b).
This Court agrees.
The Alabama writ of error coram nobis is unavailable
to petitioner because the Alabama courts clearly perrnit use of
the writ only to raise facts that becone knoinm after trial .
The office of writ of error coram ncbis, under
Alabana 1aw, is to bring to the attention of the
court an error of fact, unknovrn to the court or
the affected party at the time of trial, which
had it been knovm, would have prevented thejudgnent challenged; indeed, the writ is in effect
a motion for new trial on the ground of newly
discovered evidence.
Vaughn v. State , 3g5 So.2d 95, 96 (Ala . 1979); see Thigoen v.
Srate, 372 So.2d 385, 386-87 (AIa. Cr. App. 1979); Sr.rmmers v.
State, 366 So.2d 336, 339 (A1a. Cr. App. 1978). None of
petitioner's clains raises the ground of newry discovered
evidence; rather, all relate to the conduct of the trial. The
writ also lies to raise a claim of ineffective assistance of
cor.:nsel , Sr:smers v. State , sup_ra , at 34L , but petitioner has
raised no such cIaim.
The state writ of habeas corDus also is r:navailable to
petitioner, because she is a parolee. I.rIiIlians v. State, 155
So.2d 322 (AIa. App.), cert. denied, 155 So.2d 323 (1963), held
that habeas is available only to a petitioner who is r:nder
"actual or physical restraint." The court characterized parole
as "Bere moral restraint." Id. at 323; accord, State v.
l-lcCurlev, 4L2 So.2d L233, L235 (AIa. Cr. App.), cert. denied,
4L2 So.2d L236 (1981), cert. denied, 456 U.S. 1006 (1983).
Petitioner need not go through the motions of attempting to
persuade the state courts to overrule Willians. Blackledge v.
Perry, 4L7 U.S. 2l , 24 (L974); see Galtieri v. Irrainwright,
582 F.2d 348, 354-55 n.l3 (5rh Cir. 1978). Thus, neirher
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Alabama writ is available to petitioner, and she satisfies the
exhaustion requirement. Accordingly, it is
ORDERED that the motion to dismiss is denied.
Respondents are ORDERED to cornply with this Court's Order
of June 28,1983, to show cause why the writ should not issue,
on or before tvrenty days from the date of this order
Respondents at that time also should file any resDonse they
may have t.o petitioner's ootion to furnish transcripts. Said
motion will be deemed submitted _to the Court t\denty days from
the date of this order, and may be decided at any time ttrereafter.
DONE this lst day of Septeuber, 1983.'6,^^
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U*T'EO STATES DISTRICT JITDGE
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