Hale v. Hobbs (Majority)
Annotate this CaseIn 1978, Appellant entered negotiated pleas of guilty in circuit court to one count of first-degree murder, four counts of aggravated robbery, and one count of first-degree battery. Appellant received concurrent sentences of life imprisonment for the first-degree murder charge and each of the aggravated-robbery charges. The sentencing orders for each charge stated that Appellant was to serve one-third of the sentences before becoming eligible for parole. In 2013, Appellant filed a pro se petition for writ of habeas corpus, alleging, inter alia, that the sentencing orders were facially invalid and that his life sentences for aggravated robbery and first-degree murder were unconstitutional. The circuit court denied the petition. The Supreme Court reversed and issued a writ of habeas corpus, holding that the sentencing orders entered in this case were facially invalid because the circuit court exceeded its statutory authority by sentencing Defendant to terms of imprisonment of life with the possibility of parole for Class A felonies.
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