SCOTUS to Rule on Right to Counsel in Collateral Proceedings
Although the Supreme Court has long recognized that defendants have a right to counsel at the first level of direct appeal, the Court has thus far declined to extend this right to collateral post-conviction proceedings, such as habeas corpus. Earlier this week, however, the Court agreed to hear a case that will test how firm the distinction really is. Martinez v. Ryan (No. 10-1001) involves a state-court defendant’s attempt to litigate a claim in collateral proceedings that he was prohibited from raising on direct appeal. If he has no right to counsel in his collateral proceeding, then he has no right to counsel at all as to this issue.
Here’s what happened.