Opinion
OP 23-0603
12-12-2023
DONALD W. PULST, Petitioner, v. STATE OF MONTANA, Respondent.
ORDER
Donald W. Pulst has filed a "Reply for Reconsideration" of this court's October 31, 2023 Order denying his petition for a writ of habeas corpus. He states that we put forth two errors: (1) his first name was wrongly stated in the Order, and (2) he is not entitled to good time credit. We deem his pleading a Petition for Rehearing, pursuant to M. R. App. P. 20(1).
M. R. App. P. 20(1) provides criteria for rehearing. "Absent clearly demonstrated exceptional circumstances, the supreme court will not grant petitions for rehearing of its orders disposing of motions or petitions for extraordinary writs." M. R. App. P. 20(1)(d).
Pulst points out that his first name is Donald and not Daniel Wayne, as this Court mistakenly included ip the Order. We acknowledge that while we had the incorrect first name, Pulst did receive a copy of our Order. We also stated that "Pulst is not entitled to good time credit because he committed his offenses well after 1995." Pulst v. State, No. OP 23-0603, Order (Mont. Oct. 31, 2023). Pulst includes copies of the charging document for his underlying 2012 criminal-ease and has highlighted the dates of the offenses, which reflect 1993 and 1994, respectively. Pulst did not include this Information when he originally filed his Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus in October 2023.
We conclude that extraordinary circumstances exist to grant rehearing of this proceeding for Pulst's two claims. M. R. App. P. 20(1)(d). We deem it appropriate to require a response to Pulst's claim that he is entitled to good time credit, based on the dates of the offenses, as reflected in his attached Information, and under Montana law. Therefore, IT IS ORDERED that Pulst's Petition for Rehearing is GRANTED and that this Court's October 31,2023 Order is RESCINDED as to his claim about good time credit and the incorrect reference to his first name.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Attorney General or counsel for the DOC is GRANTED thirty days from the date of this Order in which to prepare, file, and serve a written response along with any supplementary documentation or sentence calculation.
The Clerk is directed to provide a copy of this Order to counsel of record and to Donald W. Pulst personally.