Douglas v. State
Annotate this CaseThis appeal presented the Court of Appeals with its first opportunity to interpret Md. Code Ann. Crim. P. 8-301, which provided for petitions for writs of actual innocence based on newly discovered evidence. The two Appellants in these consolidated cases were serving their respective sentences when section 8-301 went into effect. Both Appellants filed pro se petitions for writs of actual innocence, which the circuit court denied without a hearing. The Court of Appeals reversed the order denying one Appellant's petition and affirmed the order denying the other Appellant's petition, holding (1) the denial of a petition for writ of actual innocence is an immediately appealable order, regardless of whether the trial court held a hearing before denying the petition; and (2) section 8-301 imposes a burden of pleading such that a petitioner is entitled to a hearing on the merits of the petition provided the petition sufficiently pleads grounds for relief under the statute, includes a request for a hearing, and complies with the filing requirements of section 8-301(b).
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