Clayton v. Jones, No. 11-7000 (10th Cir. 2012)
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State prisoner James Clayton filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus contending he received ineffective assistance of counsel when his attorney ignored his repeated instructions to file an appeal after he pled guilty. The magistrate judge found that Mr. Clayton’s attorney disregarded his request to file an appeal and recommended that the district court conditionally grant the writ and order that Mr. Clayton be allowed to withdraw his guilty plea within 120 days. The district court agreed. On appeal, the State contended the district court’s finding was clearly erroneous. It argued alternatively that even if habeas relief was warranted, the district court should have only allowed Mr. Clayton an out of time direct appeal, rather than the right to withdraw his guilty plea. Upon review, the Tenth Circuit affirmed the district court's finding that Mr. Clayton received ineffective assistance of counsel on appeal. The Court ordered a limited remand to the district court to allow it to supplement the record with its reasons for ordering as the remedy that Mr. Clayton be permitted to withdraw his guilty plea. The Court retained jurisdiction over the appeal while the district court supplemented the record.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on February 26, 2013.
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