¶11 The DOC asserts that the statutory warrant requirement is jurisdictional and that noncompliance deprives the court of the authority to act on the petition. To support its position, the DOC relies on Evans v. District Court , 194 Colo. 299, 572 P.2d 811, 813 (1977). Evans is the fourth case in a line of cases discussing the warrant requirement.
First, the court held that since a copy of the petitioner's warrant of commitment was not attached to the petition, as required by section 13-45-101(1), 6A C.R.S. (1987), the petition would be dismissed. Evans v. District Court, 194 Colo. 299, 302, 572 P.2d 811, 813 (1977) (if petition for writ of habeas corpus is not accompanied by warrant of commitment as mandated by section 13-45-101(1), petition should be summarily denied since warrant is jurisdictional requirement). This defect in and of itself is sufficient to uphold the district court's dismissal of the petition.
1987). The Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure regulate habeas corpus proceedings when not inconsistent or in conflict with the provisions of the Habeas Corpus Act. E.g., Calyer, 736 P.2d at 1207; Evans v. District Court, 194 Colo. 299, 302, 572 P.2d 811, 813 (1977). The applicable rule governing proper service provides:
In Colorado, filing the mittimus is jurisdictional. Evans v. Dist. Court, 572 P.2d 811, 813 (Colo. 1977). An improperly filed postconviction motion does not toll the limitations period.
Moreover, most states with statutory requirements similar to § 29–2801 do not treat compliance with such requirements as jurisdictional. See, Nguyen v. State, 282 Ga. 483, 651 S.E.2d 681 (2007), overruled on other grounds, Brown v. Crawford, 289 Ga. 722, 715 S.E.2d 132 (2011); State ex rel. v. Adult Parole, 80 Ohio St.3d 639, 687 N.E.2d 761 (1998); People ex rel. Negron v. Herold, 33 A.D.2d 1076, 307 N.Y.S.2d 710 (1970); State ex rel. Hansen v. Utecht, 230 Minn. 579, 40 N.W.2d 441 (1950); State ex rel. Chase v. Calvird, 324 Mo. 429, 24 S.W.2d 111 (1930); In the Matter of Beard, 4 Ark. 9 (1842); In re Spates, No. 14–14–00524–CV, 2014 WL 3051311 (Tex.App. July 3, 2014) (unpublished). But see Evans v. Dist. Ct., 194 Colo. 299, 572 P.2d 811 (1977). Consequently, we conclude that the failure to attach a copy of the relevant commitment order to a petition for a writ of habeas corpus does not prevent a court from exercising jurisdiction over that petition.
¶54 "[C]onsistent with specific venue provisions, courts should attempt to accommodate the litigants and their witnesses to the greatest extent possible." Evans v. Dist. Court, 194 Colo. 299, 303, 572 P.2d 811, 814 (1977). Still, courts must do so within established parameters.
¶ 54 “[C]onsistent with specific venue provisions, courts should attempt to accommodate the litigants and their witnesses to the greatest extent possible.” Evans v. Dist. Court, 194 Colo. 299, 303, 572 P.2d 811, 814 (1977). Still, courts must do so within established parameters.
Furthermore, we have recognized that the legislature can prescribe the procedural mechanisms for the exercise of rights guaranteed by the constitutional habeas corpus provision and that it may also impose reasonable procedural requirements as conditions to the availability of habeas corpus relief. See Zaborski v. Colorado Dep't of Corrections, 812 P.2d 236, 237-38 (Colo. 1991) (recognizing need for compliance with provisions of Habeas Corpus Act in order to obtain habeas corpus remedy); Evans v. District Court, 194 Colo. 299, 302, 572 P.2d 811, 813 (1977) (same); Stilley v. Tinsley, 153 Colo. 66, 86-88, 385 P.2d 677, 688-89 (1963) (recognizing that statutes can impose procedural requirements on applications for habeas corpus); Wyse, 180 Colo. at 92, 503 P.2d at 156 ("Although the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus is constitutionally guaranteed, the procedural mechanism for its exercise may change.").
"Because a habeas corpus petition filed pursuant to the [Habeas Corpus] Act initiates a special statutory proceeding, the Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure govern the proceeding insofar as they are consistent with the procedures delineated in the Act." Calyer, 736 P.2d at 1207; see Evans v. District Court, 194 Colo. 299, 302, 572 P.2d 811, 813 (1977) (stating converse of foregoing proposition); Wright v. Tinsley, 148 Colo. 258, 260-61, 365 P.2d 691, 692 (1961) (same). The Habeas Corpus Act, however, contemplates a less structured and more abbreviated hearing procedure than that utilized in other civil proceedings.
Evansv. District Court, 194 Colo. 299, 302, 572 P.2d 811, 813 (1977). The purpose of an action in habeas corpus is to determine whether the person instituting the proceeding is being unlawfully detained by the respondent who is holding him in custody.