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Raymond Johnson v. Michael Kemna
Citations: 451 F.3d 938; 2006 U.S. App. LEXIS 16280; 2006 WL 1766616Docket: 05-1041
Court: Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit; June 29, 2006; Federal Appellate Court
Raymond Johnson appeals the dismissal of his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 petition for a writ of habeas corpus by the district court, which ruled the petition was filed untimely under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA). The district court determined Johnson's filing was over one month past the deadline specified by AEDPA, which requires state prisoners to file within one year after their state convictions become final. However, the court clarified that the limitations period is tolled while a properly filed application for state post-conviction review is pending. Citing the Eighth Circuit's decision in Payne v. Kemna, the court noted that under Missouri law, an application for post-conviction relief remains pending until the mandate is issued. After considering the timeline, it was established that only 358 days elapsed between the issuance of the mandate on June 2, 2003, and Johnson's federal habeas filing on May 5, 2004. Therefore, Johnson's petition was deemed timely. The appellate court reversed the district court's judgment regarding the untimeliness of the petition and remanded the case for further proceedings.