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Alabama Code Rules of Criminal Procedure RCRP Rule 32.1

Current as of December 30, 2022 | Updated by FindLaw Staff

Subject to the limitations of Rule 32.2, any defendant who has been convicted of a criminal offense may institute a proceeding in the court of original conviction to secure appropriate relief on the ground that:

(a) The constitution of the United States or of the State of Alabama requires a new trial, a new sentence proceeding, or other relief.

(b) The court was without jurisdiction to render judgment or to impose sentence.

(c) The sentence imposed exceeds the maximum authorized by law or is otherwise not authorized by law.

(d) The petitioner is being held in custody after the petitioner's sentence has expired.

(e) Newly discovered material facts exist which require that the conviction or sentence be vacated by the court, because:

(1) The facts relied upon were not known by the petitioner or the petitioner's counsel at the time of trial or sentencing or in time to file a posttrial motion pursuant to Rule 24, or in time to be included in any previous collateral proceeding and could not have been discovered by any of those times through the exercise of reasonable diligence;

(2) The facts are not merely cumulative to other facts that were known;

(3) The facts do not merely amount to impeachment evidence;

(4) If the facts had been known at the time of trial or of sentencing, the result probably would have been different;  and

(5) The facts establish that the petitioner is innocent of the crime for which the petitioner was convicted or should not have received the sentence that the petitioner received.

(f) The petitioner failed to appeal within the prescribed time from the conviction or sentence itself or from the dismissal or denial of a petition previously filed pursuant to this rule and that failure was without fault on the petitioner's part.

A petition that challenges multiple judgments entered in more than a single trial or guilty-plea proceeding shall be dismissed without prejudice.

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Cite this article: FindLaw.com - Alabama Code Rules of Criminal Procedure RCRP Rule 32.1 - last updated December 30, 2022 | https://codes.findlaw.com/al/alabama-rules-of-criminal-procedure/al-code-rcrp-rule-32-1/

Read this complete Alabama Code Rules of Criminal Procedure RCRP Rule 32.1 on Westlaw

FindLaw Codes may not reflect the most recent version of the law in your jurisdiction. Please verify the status of the code you are researching with the state legislature or via Westlaw before relying on it for your legal needs.

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