Opinion
OP 21-0486
10-19-2021
CHELSEA MARTIN, Petitioner, v. CAPTAIN JACK KOWALSKI, Respondent.
ORDER
Representing herself, Chelsea Martin has filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus, indicating that her sentence is illegal because it violates the right to be free from double jeopardy. She contends her incarceration is illegal. Martin explains that she is a Navy Veteran, who has a traumatic brain injury with other physical complaints and suffers from severe PTSD. She adds that she has been in jail for five months and has not had proper help with her legal proceedings because she claims she was "tricked" into signing a plea agreement. She provides that she has an open bed date for treatment in New York but that "they would not allow [her] to go." Martin briefly notes a "PTR" or, petition to revoke, in her Petition. She requests assistance to see her dying father and because she is "about to lose everything." Martin was detained in the Missoula County Detention Facility. Martin does not provide any supporting documentation. We have no underlying cause number and must assume, because she has referenced a petition to revoke, that Martin is raising her claim pursuant to a sentence imposed following revocation.
We requested copies of the court's docket and recent sentencing judgment from the Missoula County District Court. The register of actions reflects that the State filed two petitions to revoke. The first petition resulted in a judgment on December 4, 2019, revoking her sentence. On January 17, 2020, the court issued an order discharging probation and closing file. The State then petitioned for another revocation on May 7, 2021, yet a notice was filed informing the court that Martin was accepted into a VA Domiciliary Program on July 26, 2021. According to the last entry, the District Court issued an order to dismiss this matter on September 9, 2021.
Not only was Martin sentenced upon revocation which precludes her from seeking habeas corpus relief under § 46-22-101(2), MCA, it appears that her claims are moot with the court's dismissal. There is no controversy to decide. Cape v. Crossroads Corr. Ctr., 2004 MT 265, ¶ 25, 323 Mont. 140, 99 P.3d 171. Therefore, IT IS ORDERED that Martin's Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus is DENIED and DISMISSED.
The Clerk is directed to provide a copy of this Order to counsel of record and to Chelsea Martin personally.