Bell v. State
Annotate this CaseAppellant Albert Bell was convicted for two counts of first-degree murder and was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences. Appellant subsequently filed a petition for postconviction relief, which was denied. Appellant later filed a petition for recall and for resentencing based on the U.S. Supreme Court's Graham v. Florida, wherein the Court held that the Eighth Amendment forbids a sentence of life imprisonment without parole for a juvenile offender who did not commit homicide. The circuit court denied the petition. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) because Appellant's petition must be treated as one for postconviction relief and Appellant did not demonstrate that his first postconviction relief petition was denied without prejudice, he was not allowed to file a subsequent petition under the rule; and (2) even if Appellant's petition were allowed, his argument failed because he was not convicted of a nonhomicide offense, and therefore, Graham was inapplicable.
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