The Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals has affirmed the dismissal of a post-conviction relief petition filed by Jacquiz McBee. The court ruled that the petition, which challenged McBee’s 2017 guilty plea and subsequent sentence, was filed outside the one-year statute of limitations and that due process did not warrant an exception.
The Background of the Case
In 2017, McBee pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and was placed on judicial diversion. This meant he was allowed to avoid serving a prison sentence, as long as he met certain conditions during a period of supervision. However, in April 2022, McBee was convicted of first-degree murder in an unrelated case. This led the trial court to revoke McBee’s diversion and impose a three-year sentence for the aggravated assault conviction. The court also ordered that the life sentence for the murder conviction be served after the aggravated assault sentence. McBee did not appeal the revocation of his diversion.
The Post-Conviction Petition
McBee filed a petition for post-conviction relief in September 2024, more than two years after the one-year statute of limitations had expired. He argued that his guilty plea in 2017 was invalid and that he received ineffective assistance of counsel. He also claimed the state breached the plea agreement. McBee acknowledged that his petition was filed outside the one-year deadline but argued that due process required the court to overlook the delay. He claimed the state breached his plea agreement when it reimposed his three-year sentence after the sentence had already expired.
The Lower Court’s Decision
The post-conviction court dismissed McBee’s petition without a hearing, stating it was filed “well beyond” the statute of limitations. The court determined the judgment of conviction was entered on April 9, 2021, and became final on May 9, 2021, because no appeal was filed. Thus, the court ruled McBee had until May 9, 2022, to file the petition.
The Court of Appeals’ Analysis
The Court of Criminal Appeals reviewed the lower court’s decision. The court explained that the law provides an avenue for post-conviction relief when a conviction or sentence violates rights guaranteed by the Constitution. However, the court emphasized that such petitions must be filed within one year of the judgment becoming final.
The Timeliness Issue
The appeals court agreed with the lower court that McBee’s petition was untimely. The court noted that because McBee did not file a direct appeal, his judgment became final 30 days after it was entered. The court calculated that McBee’s petition was filed more than two years after the deadline.
The Due Process Argument
The court then addressed McBee’s argument that due process required the statute of limitations to be “tolled,” or paused, due to the state’s alleged breach of the plea agreement. The court explained that due process tolling is a narrow exception, only applicable when extraordinary circumstances beyond the petitioner’s control prevented a timely filing. The court cited previous rulings, stating that a petitioner must show they were diligently pursuing their rights and that some external factor prevented them from filing on time.
No Extraordinary Circumstances Found
The court found that McBee’s case did not meet the criteria for due process tolling. The court noted that McBee did not claim his claims arose only after the limitations period expired, nor did he allege he was mentally incompetent or that attorney misconduct prevented him from filing. Instead, McBee argued that the ongoing effects of the state’s alleged breach of the plea agreement justified tolling. The court rejected this argument, stating that the continuing effects of a conviction generally do not justify tolling. The court concluded that McBee had not shown that circumstances beyond his control prevented him from filing a timely petition.
The Court’s Conclusion
The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the lower court’s decision. The court held that McBee’s petition was untimely and that due process did not require the statute of limitations to be tolled.