Canales-Robles v. Laney

An untimely petition for post-conviction relief may be excused if, within the two-year limitation period the applicable law is established, and the petitioner could have reasonably asserted the applicable legal ground for relief.

Petitioner appealed the dismissal of his post-conviction relief petition. Petitioner asserted the trial court erred by not excepting his late filing under the statutory escape clause. Petitioner argued that he lacked the necessary resources while in confinement to reasonably file his petition within the statutory period. The State responded by asserting that Petitioner did in fact have access to resources necessary to file his petition, and at the least, it was unreasonable to wait 23 months to file his petition once the resources did become available. An untimely petition for post-conviction relief may be excused if, within the two-year limitation period the applicable law is established, and the Petitioner could have reasonably asserted the applicable legal ground for relief. The Court held that Petitioner’s petition was not untimely because the youth facility that Petitioner was confined at did not have available the resources necessary for him to file a timely petition. Furthermore, the record was unclear if Petitioner was made aware that the necessary resources did become available during his confinement. The Court further held that the statutory period to file was tolled during the time that the necessary resources were unavailable to Petitioner. Petitioner’s filing 23 months after acquiring the necessary resources was not untimely. Reversed and remanded.