Habeas Corpus – AEDPA — equitable tolling

By: WISCONSIN LAW JOURNAL STAFF//August 15, 2014//

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U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit

Criminal

Habeas Corpus – AEDPA — equitable tolling

Where a prisoner was wrongfully denied access to his file, the statute of limitations under the AEDPA must be tolled.

“Equitable tolling is rare, but so are the facts of this case. Based on Socha’s repeated efforts to obtain an unjustifiably withheld file, the minimal time he had in which to complete a petition afterward, and the initial judicial determination that tolling was appropriate, we conclude that it was an abuse of discretion to deny tolling of the AEDPA deadline. We reach this conclusion using the flexible, fact-specific standard described by the Supreme Court in Holland. In light of all the circumstances, Socha is entitled to equitable tolling of the one-year deadline for his habeas corpus petition.” Reversed and Remanded.

12-1598 Socha v. Boughton

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Randa, J., Wood, J.

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