Petition for writ of certiorari from state courts to U.S. Supreme Court

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Mississippi


I'm having trouble getting an answer to this.

In a criminal case that was appealed to the supreme court of a U.S. state, but where the state supreme court did not grant a writ of certiorari, can the case be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, or does that require that the state supreme court granted cert., heard the case, and affirmed? The state court of appeals heard the case, only because they were required to, and affirmed the lower court ruling, but only did so by ignoring the U.S constitution, and even directly and explicity contradicting a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, as well as rulings by several other state supreme courts and court of appeals.

I'm trying to figure out of the only avenue for such an appeal is for a writ of habeas corpus to a Federal Court of Appeals, or if a petition for writ of certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court is the best next step.

That, or any other advice on what to do when the courts of a state, including the state court of appeals and state supreme court, are deliberately ignoring rulings of the Supreme Court and other Federal courts, and allowing constitutional rights to repeatedly be violated.

justmore, what is the name of your state?

quincy said:

justmore, what is the name of your state?

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I added it anyway, but state doesn't matter, my query is in general, from any supreme court of a U.S. state.

I realize the state question is asked repeatedly on here, but there is nothing about state law that applies here.

I'm asking if a petition for writ of certiorari can be filed with the U.S. Supreme Court when the supreme court of a U.S. state (ANY U.S. state) doesn't grant a petition for certiorari, and so therefore never hears the case or issues a ruling. The state court of appeals of course heard the case and affirmed the lower court's ruling.

Barring answers to that, what action can be taken when a court flat out ignores the U.S Constitution and/or pretends a (deliberately misinterpreted) state law trumps Constitutional rights and Supreme Court rulings?

If the U.S. Constitution or a Supreme Court holding is being violated, go to federal court.

tranquility said:

If the U.S. Constitution or a Supreme Court holding is being violated, go to federal court.

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That's what I'm looking to do, but I'm trying to figure out if this should/can go to the Supreme Court first, and have them direct it to a Federal Court of Appeals, or if it should/can go directly to a Federal Court of Appeals via habeas corpus. The party isn't incarcerated, so not sure if habeas corpus will apply.

justmore said:

That's what I'm looking to do, but I'm trying to figure out if this should/can go to the Supreme Court first, and have them direct it to a Federal Court of Appeals, or if it should/can go directly to a Federal Court of Appeals via habeas corpus. The party isn't incarcerated, so not sure if habeas corpus will apply.

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Unfortunately, I think that your question is possibly beyond the scope of an internet forum.

LdiJ said:

Unfortunately, I think that your question is possibly beyond the scope of an internet forum.

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That particular question may be, but my original, hopefully easier to answer, question still stands.

In a criminal case that was appealed to the supreme court of a U.S. state, but where the state supreme court did not grant a writ of certiorari, can the case be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, or does that require that the state supreme court granted cert., heard the case, and affirmed?

I've seen cases that only made it to a state court of appeals get accepted to the Supreme Court, because the Court determined that the state court of appeals was the highest court in the state that particular case could go to, but I've seen nothing on what happens for an appeal when a state supreme court just outright denies cert on a case with constitutional violations and implications.

Yes, I realize the whole point of the court denying cert was to avoid addressing the issue at all, but I'm hoping a Federal Court of Appeals won't do the same.

justmore said:

That particular question may be, but my original, hopefully easier to answer, question still stands.

In a criminal case that was appealed to the supreme court of a U.S. state, but where the state supreme court did not grant a writ of certiorari, can the case be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, or does that require that the state supreme court granted cert., heard the case, and affirmed?

I've seen cases that only made it to a state court of appeals get accepted to the Supreme Court, because the Court determined that the state court of appeals was the highest court in the state that particular case could go to, but I've seen nothing on what happens for an appeal when a state supreme court just outright denies cert on a case with constitutional violations and implications.

Yes, I realize the whole point of the court denying cert was to avoid addressing the issue at all, but I'm hoping a Federal Court of Appeals won't do the same.

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No, its your original question that I think might be beyond the scope of an internet forum. I think that the question needs to be posed to an appeals attorney in your state.

LdiJ said:

No, its your original question that I think might be beyond the scope of an internet forum. I think that the question needs to be posed to an appeals attorney in your state.

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Perhaps it's not obvious from my original inquiry, but I have already spoken with several appeals attorneys and law professors, and all confess they have no clue on this particular issue, hence why I'm expanding my search for answers to the internet. Or, rather, several of the lawyers and professors are sure that while it is possible to appeal any case to the U.S. Supreme Court (and promptly be denied), they aren't sure if it would technically be an improperly filed appeal if the case was never heard in a state supreme court. Calling the U.S. Supreme Court clerks and asking such a question just gets one the standard "we cannot give legal advice" canned reply.

I'm aware I can gamble, and hope that the Supreme Court just finds that petitioning the state supreme court for cert, even with cert being denied, fulfills the requirement that a case make it all the way to the highest court of a state before it can be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. I'm just looking for something definitive that shows this is proper, legally accepted procedure for an appeal rather than just guessing.

justmore said:

I added it anyway, but state doesn't matter, my query is in general, from any supreme court of a U.S. state.

I realize the state question is asked repeatedly on here, but there is nothing about state law that applies here.

I'm asking if a petition for writ of certiorari can be filed with the U.S. Supreme Court when the supreme court of a U.S. state (ANY U.S. state) doesn't grant a petition for certiorari, and so therefore never hears the case or issues a ruling. The state court of appeals of course heard the case and affirmed the lower court's ruling.

Barring answers to that, what action can be taken when a court flat out ignores the U.S Constitution and/or pretends a (deliberately misinterpreted) state law trumps Constitutional rights and Supreme Court rulings?

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Thank you for providing your state name, justmore. States matter.

As a note, New York's highest state court is the Court of Appeals. They have 62 Supreme Courts, which are the state's main trial courts.

quincy said:

Thank you for providing your state name, justmore. States matter.

As a note, New York's highest state court is the Court of Appeals. They have 62 Supreme Courts, which are the state's main trial courts.

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Yes, I realize NY's court of appeals should be it's supreme court, and it's 'supreme courts' should be named something else, but that's really semantics.

The relevant language states that a case can be appealed to the Supreme Court once it has reached the highest court in a state, (which is usually the state supreme court, whatever else NY may want to call it).

NY's court naming notwithstanding, my original question still stands, does a case that was denied cert in the highest court in a state meet the requirement for a case to reach the highest court in a U.S. state for filing a petition for certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court?

justmore said:

Yes, I realize NY's court of appeals should be it's supreme court, and it's 'supreme courts' should be named something else, but that's really semantics.

The relevant language states that a case can be appealed to the Supreme Court once it has reached the highest court in a state, (which is usually the state supreme court, whatever else NY may want to call it).

NY's court naming notwithstanding, my original question still stands, does a case that was denied cert in the highest court in a state meet the requirement for a case to reach the highest court in a U.S. state for filing a petition for certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court?

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I have read both of your threads. Rather than go into a rather lengthy class on civil procedure and defining terms for you, the previous poster is correct: Your problems are beyond the scope of an internet forum. I suggest that if you want to pursue this, you should speak with a local attorney.

DC

debtcollector` said:

I have read both of your threads. Rather than go into a rather lengthy class on civil procedure and defining terms for you, the previous poster is correct: Your problems are beyond the scope of an internet forum. I suggest that if you want to pursue this, you should speak with a local attorney.

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That's some pretty horrible advice. A 'local attorney' isn't going to have the first clue about anything to do with Federal appeals procedure.

In any case, I have contacted several attorneys and am working with them, but in addition, I am also trying to find out specific information on my own, since even very experienced appeals attorneys don't seem to have run into this particular issue before and don't have all the answers, and thankfully aren't claiming to know something they don't.

If you don't know something, that's fine too, but just constantly posting that something is beyond the scope of an internet forum and to speak with an attorney defeats the entire purpose of this board. If this board is only here to provide common, easily available legal information, that's pretty useless.

If you don't know something, perhaps it is best to let others post who do.

justmore;3293238]That's some pretty horrible advice. A 'local attorney' isn't going to have the first clue about anything to do with Federal appeals procedure.

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Really? All attorneys are local to someplace. The point was speak with an attorney local to you. Of course you would want to consult with one experienced in the area of law you have a need for. I think that should be understood without having to say it.

In any case, I have contacted several attorneys and am working with them, but in addition, I am also trying to find out specific information on my own, since even very experienced appeals attorneys don't seem to have run into this particular issue before and don't have all the answers, and thankfully aren't claiming to know something they don't.

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read the rules of the SCOTUS. Believe it or not most of your answers are right there in black and white.

If you don't know something, that's fine too, but just constantly posting that something is beyond the scope of an internet forum and to speak with an attorney defeats the entire purpose of this board. If this board is only here to provide common, easily available legal information, that's pretty useless.

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an internet forum is not intended to substitute for a consultation with an attorney. Maybe you need to read the important notice at the bottom of the page.

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justmore said:

That's some pretty horrible advice. A 'local attorney' isn't going to have the first clue about anything to do with Federal appeals procedure.

In any case, I have contacted several attorneys and am working with them, but in addition, I am also trying to find out specific information on my own, since even very experienced appeals attorneys don't seem to have run into this particular issue before and don't have all the answers, and thankfully aren't claiming to know something they don't.

If you don't know something, that's fine too, but just constantly posting that something is beyond the scope of an internet forum and to speak with an attorney defeats the entire purpose of this board. If this board is only here to provide common, easily available legal information, that's pretty useless.

If you don't know something, perhaps it is best to let others post who do.

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It depends on your locality whether a local attorney will know anything about federal appeals procedure. There are numerous attorneys in my locality that do.

Check out 28 USC §1291 and 28 USC §1257 and USSC Rule 10. The USSC hears a variety of cases but I am getting the idea from your postings that yours is not one that will make the grade.

So, all of the many law professors and experienced attorneys you have spoken with seem stymied by your questions? Really? Perhaps you might look at how you are addressing them. If your attitude toward them is anything like the attitude you've displayed here, they are probably too smart to answer without getting paid first.