Schmid v. McCauley, No. 14-2974 (7th Cir. 2016)
Annotate this CaseSchmid was convicted of murdering her boyfriend. She testified that she had heard a voice telling her that she is the Messiah and that the boyfriend had sexually abused her daughter. The jury found her guilty but mentally ill. Her conviction and sentence of 55 years were affirmed in 2004. Schmid unsuccessfully sought Indiana state court collateral review, after which, appointed counsel stopped representing her. Federal law gives state prisoners one year to commence proceedings under 28 U.S.C. 2254, with time suspended while state collateral proceedings are pending. When Schmid sought state collateral review, 178 days remained in the one-year period. Schmid filed a federal petition 15 months after state proceedings ended. Schmid, representing herself, contended that equitable tolling was justified, given her mental problems and delay by former counsel in turning over legal papers. The court denied Schmid’s petition as untimely, stating that Schmid failed to explain which documents she needed in order to file or why she needed them, and did not address Schmid’s claim of mental disability. The Seventh Circuit vacated. The court’s first step should have been to appoint counsel for Schmid under 18 U.S.C. 3006A(a)(2)(B). Counsel could have investigated Schmid’s mental condition and explored the contents of prior counsel’s files, formulating an explanation for delay satisfactory to the judge.
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