Kranz v. State

Jurisdiction under the Maryland Uniform Postconviction Procedure Act (UPPA), Md. Code Ann., Crim. Proc. 7-101 to -109, is determined upon the filing of a petition for postconviction relief and, barring a procedural default, is not defeated upon the petitioner’s release from custody prior to completion of full review of the case, including any appellate review.After Petitioner filed an application for leave to appeal the denial of his petition for postconviction relief, Petitioner completed his sentence, including a three-year probationary period. The Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal, concluding that it lost jurisdiction to entertain the appeal once Petitioner was no longer in custody. The Court of Appeals vacated the Court of Appeals’ judgment and remanded to that court to consider the merits of Petitioner’s appeal, holding that whenever a timely petition for postconviction relief is filed, absent the petitioner’s procedural default, Maryland courts retain jurisdiction throughout consideration of the petition, including appellate review, despite any intervening release from custody. View "Kranz v. State" on Justia Law