Chapter 6  Prison

When you arrive in prison you will be faced with two options, to fight your conviction or settle in and get used to it.  For heroes, fighters and the strong-willed there is only one choice.  To fight!  To accomplish this task you need to hook up with an unofficial legal club on the yard.  In almost every yard you'll find small groups of people gathering together to discuss law.  It is in these groups that you will obtain a tremendous amount of moral support as well as sound legal advice.  While some might disagree, I would personally take three legal eagles from a prison yard than some paid attorneys.  The more sources of information you have the better.  Be a good student with them.  Just like it was a school, you listen to who's speaking and then ask questions.  In a couple years you'll be doing the talking.  To encourage the free exchange of information always pass on to others the latest word along with whatever knowledge you have acquired so that others will be encouraged to do the same for you.

You need to start collecting case law citations like baseball cards and put them in a case law citation book.  In the beginning you need to collect only the case law relevant to your case.  Later you may wish to copy other people's case law books and add them to your own.

When you arrive at the prison you'll discover there is no legal library like there was at the jail.  At least there aren't in Arizona prisons.  The Arizona department of corrections interpreted the wording of law to say that keeping a fully functioning legal library could be eliminated if inmates had access to a paralegal.  So they got rid of the legal libraries and hired paralegals.  The only problem is that they hired one paralegal to handle four units, so access becomes a problem.  This would be bad enough if it wasn't for some other issues that developed with the paralegals.  Arizona department of corrections set criteria for the position of paralegal.  They had to have a college degree and a certificate from an accredited paralegal school.  Just as the power of the state habeas corpus was nullified by rule 32, so too was the federal habeas corpus emasculated by the antiterrorism and effective death penalty act.  Here is a copy of what it says.

The antiterrorism and effective death penalty act of 1996, pub. L. No. 104-132, 110 stat. 1214, (also known as AEDPA) is an act of congress signed into law on April 24, 1996 to "deter terrorism, provide justice for victims, provide for an effective death penalty, and for other purposes." it was passed with broad bipartisan support by congress (91-8-1 in the united states senate, 293-133-7 in the house of representatives) following the Oklahoma city bombing and signed into law by president Bill Clinton.

The AEDPA had a tremendous impact on the law of habeas corpus in the United States.  One provision of the AEDPA limits the power of federal judges to grant relief unless the state court's adjudication of the claim resulted in a decision that was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law as determined by the supreme court of the united states; or based on an unreasonable determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented in the state court proceeding.

While critics have charged that this limitation effectively forecloses the power of federal courts to remedy unjust convictions, federal judges have found ways to grant relief to prisoners in habeas cases despite the limitation.  One of AEDPA'S most controversial changes is the requirement that any constitutional right invoked to vacate a state court conviction rooted in a mistake of law by the state court must have "resulted in a decision that was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established federal law, as determined by the supreme court of the united states." thus, a U.S. court of appeals must ignore its own precedents and affirm a state court decision contrary to its precedents, if the U.S. supreme court has never squarely addressed a particular issue of federal law.

Other provisions of the AEDPA created entirely new statutory law. For example, before AEDPA the judicially created abuse of the writ doctrine restricted the presentation of new claims through subsequent habeas petitions. The AEDPA replaced this doctrine with an absolute bar on second or successive petitions. Petitioners who attempted to bring claims in federal habeas proceedings that have already been decided in a previous habeas petition would find those claims barred. Petitioners who had already filed a federal habeas petition were required to first secure authorization from the appropriate federal court of appeals. Furthermore, AEDPA took away from the supreme court the power to review a court of appeal's denial of that permission, thus placing final authority for the filing of second petitions in the hands of the federal courts of appeals.

In addition to the modifications that pertain to all habeas cases, AEDPA enacted special review provisions for capital cases from states that enacted quality controls for the performance of counsel in the state courts in the post-conviction phase in state court. States that enacted these quality controls would see strict time limitations enforced against their death-row inmates in federal habeas proceedings coupled with extremely deferential review to the determinations of their courts regarding issues of federal law. As of yet, only Arizona has qualified for these additional provisions, yet it has not been able to take advantage of them because it has not followed its own quality control procedures. More states may qualify for these additional provisions in the future because in 2005 congress took the power to determine whether a state had qualified away from the federal courts and gave it to the attorney general.

Soon after it was enacted, AEDPA endured a critical test in the supreme court. The basis of the challenge was that the provisions limiting the ability of persons to file successive habeas petitions violated article I, section 9, clause 2 of the us constitution, the suspension clause. The Supreme Court held unanimously in Felker v.Turpin, 518 U.S. 651 (1997), that these limitations did not unconstitutionally suspend the writ.

In 2005, the ninth circuit indicated that it was willing to consider a challenge to the constitutionality of AEDPA on separation of powers grounds under city of Boerne v.Flores and Marbury v.Madison, but has since decided that the issue was foreclosed by circuit precedent.

The AEDPA allows for the filing of one federal habeas corpus per crime and you have one year from the exhaustion of state remedies to file.  The legal libraries were removed before the AEDPA became law.  The paralegals never informed inmates of the change.  Consequently inmates filing on their own, had no idea they had only one chance or that there were time limits to filing.  This meant the quantity of federal habeas filings never changed and as a result they have been denied by the truckload.  Ultimately this raised a question about what the paralegals were actually doing, which led to the investigation of the paralegal's that revealed some underhanded business with regard to their qualifications.  The paralegals were found to not possess a college degree and/or a certificate from an accredited paralegal school.  One of them had actually tried cases in the Superior Court of Safford, Arizona as a defense attorney, using a Phoenix attorneys' state bar number.  All of this is as illegal is hell.  I myself requested paralegal Ullaberry to provide mean a copy of State v.Pool.  I included the full case law citation number.  She reported back to me that she was unable to find it.  Gee, I wonder why?  Could it be she doesn't know how to find it because she's really not a paralegal?  The paralegal and the library Nazi of Meadows unit work as a team to hinder inmate’s access to courts by, reading the documents they intend to put before the court, removing pages and exhibits from those proceedings, and declaring that DOC regulations prohibit the copying of them.  As a result of their efforts I’ve had to call my attorney to demand my exhibits be copied and have had to resort to my father to get some materials copied because the library Nazi of Meadows unit wouldn't copy them.  Keep in mind it made no difference to her that I was paying for the copies out of my own money, or that they were part of a legal document, or covered legal issues.  It also didn't matter that hundreds of complaints have been filed against the library Nazi of Meadows unit.  She seems to have immunity from a higher source in the administration which wreaks of conspiracy.  I will have an entire chapter devoted to the library Nazi of meadows unit in my upcoming book, "Letters From Prison".  The purpose of all this is to inform you of what and who you can count on for help.  The added stigma of being an S.O. allows the Arizona Department of Corrections to create special conditions for us that don't exist for GP inmates, all with the intention of slowing our legal work down or interfering with our access to courts.

One of the first groups of people you'll be exposed to are the sovereignty people.  These folks believe that maritime law and that being recognized as sovereign citizens will get you out of prison.  This position is flawed because it was the law that put you in prison and only the law can get you out.  I'm not denying that some of the points of the sovereignty people are valid.  It's just that in two years not one of them I know has gotten out and in the same amount of time I have.  It seems that with these folks there is always the next document that will free them.  Don't waste your time and effort on this when it can be better used to attack your case by using their own law against them.

Many people when they arrive in prison and have had their faith in the judicial system destroyed decide to do it on their own.  I know one man who did this and only received partial results.  He now has an attorney working for him.  When his attorney first took over his case he showed her a document he had drafted with the intention of overturning his conviction.  The courts denied review of it.  When his attorney read the document she was so impressed with it she filed at as her own, with no changes, except for her name, bar number and address at the top of the document.  The court granted him review.  The point of the story is that I have read the many inmate created document from inmates representing themselves, that had very clear arguments, supported by valid case law, only to get turned down by the courts.  It always made me wonder if it wasn't due to the fact that an attorney didn't write them.  This incident tends to support that conclusion and you would be wise to find an attorney willing to work with your ideas and research.  It worked for me and my friend.  It will work for you too.  If you decide to do your own appeal it is very important that you include a statement affirming that you are not guilty.  Steve Karban’s rule 31 appeal was done by an attorney who failed to include a statement like this and his appeal was shot down for the lack of it.

There will be a few people get together so they can talk law, share information and plan strategy.  You need to get to know all of these people as well as you can.  If a family member can do case law research on the internet for you, offer that up to a couple people as a way to break the ice.  Internet assistance is a highly prized commodity in prison and it is something Arizona prisoners are forbidden by law in Arizona.  Forget that nearly all business both government and private is conducted on the net today, Arizona doesn't care.  The thing that really pisses me off the most is that the library Nazi of Meadows unit once refused to make copies of something I had and told me to print them up from the internet.  She's either very stupid or very cruel.  I haven't figured out which.

Without getting into advice about how to survive prison life which is a work yet to come, I have covered all the topics about fighting your case from prison.  The prison chapter is very short for a reason.  There’s not much that happens there and there's nothing you can do about it.  Prison is a waiting room and everybody leaves one way or another.  Which I think is the most important thing to remember.  Although the department of corrections has become quite adept at throwing obstacles on the path to release, the resourcefulness of the inmates is a tribute to their ingenuity and indomitable desire to be free.  It leaves me in awe.

Up until this point you have been keeping a record of everything that took place before trial, including names, dates and places.  Now you're going to add to that document, a complete transcript analysis.  The first thing that you have to do is obtain a copy of your trial transcripts.  The law says that you are entitled to one free copy.  However that one free copy is going to go to your appellate attorney.  If you want one for yourself you're going to have to pay for it.  Unfortunately that's just the way things are.  When you receive your trial transcripts you need to break out a notepad and pen and begin reading your transcripts from the beginning.  When you encounter a statement of fact by a witness you write down the day of trial, the page number and line the statement occurs on.  Then you continue reading.  As is often the case you will find later on in the witness’s testimony that they contradict their earlier statement.  When this happens you write down the contradictory statement with the word perjury at the end and then cross-reference the location of the two statements with each other.  By doing it this way the two statements become linked so that when they are encountered they can be reference in two directions, both forward and backward.  You should also reference the violations of state statutes that occurred during trial.  This is how a professional attorney does a trial analysis.  By doing this in advance of your second trial you are insuring that any attorney who comes after this document is completed will be able to read it and get up to speed with the issues of your case as quickly as possible.  Because this document is composed of your pretrial and post-trial notes, along with your trial analysis I have referred to this document as a, “Frankenstein Document.”  A document put together from a bunch of dead parts and brought back to life.  Just as creating Frankenstein, the dead were brought back to life, creating a Frankenstien Document will bring you back to life.

Another thing that is very important is to obtain a copy of your record on appeal (ROA).  Most attorneys don't spend a lot of time talking to their clients.  Consequently this leaves many clients to believe their attorneys aren't doing anything for them.  Once you get a copy of your record on appeal you'll discover that your attorney submitted many documents that you were never even told about.  You may discover documents that you never knew existed.  You may discover that there were records that were sealed by the court that you never knew about.  One thing is for certain, the index of records on appeal is the most important document you can get hold of from your trial, other than the trial transcripts themselves.  You'll see your case in a whole new light.  I cannot advise strongly enough to get a copy of the record on appeal.

After your trial is over there will be many trial events that transpired that you believe are wrong or unfair.  You may discover through your legal research that there are violations of state law in regard to these issues.  If such is the case, you need to make these arguments part of your appeal, so the prosecutor will not be able to do them to you a second time.  If you are unable to win the first time around, you want to use the appeal process to restrict the prosecutor's ability to attack you in the second trial, or the third trial, or the fourth trial etc.  Until eventually the prosecutor has no more avenues left to proceed against you.  This is how you win in today's judicial system.  Who determines when the fat lady sings?  You do!

While you are waiting for your appeal one of the things that you will have to wait for is the production of the court transcripts. Depending on the caseload of the court reporters this can take no more than a few days or it can take a year or more. If it appears to the Court of Appeals that the court reporters are dragging their feet, the Court of Appeals will begin to find the court reporter’s $50 a day until the transcripts have been completed. This money comes out of their bond so it doesn’t really affect them that much. Several things to remember while you are waiting for the transcripts to be produced is that while you have a right to a speedy trial you do not have a right to a speedy appeal. In addition to this, as the appellant, technically you have the responsibility to provide the Court of Appeals with a record, although there is not much you can do when the transcripts are late except asked the court to tell the court reporter to get the transcript delivered. It is the appellant’s responsibility to ensure that the record on appeal is complete and the Court of Appeals presumes any missing documents support the Superior Court’s decision. See: State v. Rivera, 168 Ariz.102, 103, 811 P.2d  354, 355 (App. 1990). Don’t even think about filing a  motion for dismissal before the Court of Appeals. What you have to realize is that the appeal is an action that is brought about by you and not the state. Therefore the Court of Appeals would be all too happy to dismiss your case before them and leave you sitting exactly where you are because it would reduce their workload. When the action is brought by you a  motion for dismissal is a statement that says, “I’m happy with the verdict that I got and I don’t want to proceed with any further action.” I personally had to wait a year before the court reporters finally produced the court transcripts and there was nothing that I could do about it.

And finally a word about how much study and work is going to be required to beat this.  If you are not spending every waking moment researching your case, then there's a problem with your motivation.  You are only going to get out of it what you put into it.  You need to eat, sleep and breathe the law.  I personally know of people who put in 16 hours a day working on their case.  I was one of them.

I can't throw everything I’ve learned in two years of study about the law into this book, which is not the intention of the author.  I'm trying to provide an overview of the most common mistakes, the ones I made and one's others made.  I also want you to know when someone's lying to you and the common tactics a lot of people fall for.  The reference books I’ve mentioned previously will provide you with the details along with the statutes and case law in this book.

WRITING A PLEADING

Before beginning this rather technical discourse on the formulation of legal pleadings one point should be made clear. Pleading guilty is out! Never plead guilty unless the evidence against you is overwhelming. It is a legal fact that 94% of the people charged get 'sifted out' of the system before a jury verdict is rendered. Individuals make deals, plead out, agree to testify, cop a plea, or throw themselves on the mercy of the court to avoid the chance of being found guilty, always to their detriment, as when they short circuit the system by pleading out they effectively isolate themselves from that multitude of rights, privileges and constitutional protections the law provides. Unless you are caught "Dead Bang", always fight your case. You might be found guilty but you'll have the appellate court system working for you and odds are you'll end up doing substantially less time than the individual who plead out. With that thought in mind lets get our feet wet.  Examples of the following types of documents can be found in your state revised statutes and some of them are in the download section.

Defining a legal document/pleading/brief/motion is an inexact science at best. A better definition would be to place it under the heading of art. Lets commence with the basics and that is the types of documents you will, in all likelihood, be working with:

1. Complaint or Petition ‑ A pleading by which the plaintiff or petitioner sets out the cause of action and invokes the jurisdiction of the court.
2. Brief ‑ A concise and brief statement of authorities addressing the issues and questions involved as they appear from the pleadings. Briefs may oppose or support a point of view and may be presented at any time of the judicial process.
3. Motion ‑ An application made to the court or judge for the purpose of obtaining an order or rule directing something to be done in favor of the applicant.
4. Habeas Corpus ‑ Meaning, literally, "To produce the body." A writ of ancient origin utilized to liberate those who may be imprisoned without sufficient cause and to deliver them from unlawful custody, or, to obtain proper custody of persons illegally detained from the control of those who are entitled to their custody.
5. Judgment or Order ‑ A document prepared by the applicant which, if signed by the court or judge, directs the parties involved to perform a specific action.
6. Affidavit ‑ Any voluntary ex parte statement reduced to writing in which someone swears to certain facts. These are usually notarized but in some courts, including federal court, they can be sworn to under penalty of perjury. See 28 U.S.C.A.§ 1746.

Before dissecting all of the above it is critical that one has a basic understanding of some terms utilized by the courts.

Jurisdiction ‑ Confers upon a specific court the power to hear the subject matter of a particular legal matter. Simply put; the power to hear, determine and adjudicate. There are two types of jurisdiction; 1) Exclusive Jurisdiction means that the matter can be legally heard in only one court; and 2) Concurrent Jurisdiction; when the matter can be heard in more than one court. At times this term (jurisdiction) also refers to the power or authority of administrative or executive agencies. When you are formulating your complaint you must invoke the jurisdiction‑of the court by citing the relevant statutes.

Venue ‑ Is not to be confused with jurisdiction since jurisdiction may not be conferred by consent or waiver, whereas he venue of an action may be changed by the consent of the litigating parties. Venue is simply the county or district where the cause is to be tried. A geographical location if you prefer.

Plaintiff or Petitioner ‑ This is the person or party(s) seeking relief from the court. A person who brings a suit, action, bill or complaint. A complaint is filed by a plaintiff, while a petition (usually habeas corpus) is filed by a petitioner. A petition may also be a formal request in writing, directed to one in a position of authority, or to a body such as a municipal counsel. This type of petition is usually signed by a number of person.

Defendant or Respondent ‑ The person against whom an action or proceeding is brought. Identify the defendant/respondent by both proper name and the title of the office they hold. If there is a relationship between the defendants/respondents specify exactly what that relationship is. Remember, the court doesn't know you from Adam so you've got to lay it all out in clear, concise terms. Usually, but not always, a defendant refers to a criminal action while a respondent is 'responding' to a civil action.

COMPLAINTS AND PETITIONS

Don't panic at the thought of formulating and filing a complaint. When all the smoke blows away all you're really doing is writing a letter to the court. Be brief, to the point, follow some basic rules and always (ALWAYS!) be honest with the court. Format is important but content is CRITICAL! A splendid example of the above is BOAG V MacDOUGALL, 454 US 364, 70 LEd2d 551, 102 SCt 700 (1982) in which Boag was incarcerated in punitive segregation without access to even the basic necessities such as paper.  He scribbled an appeal on toilet paper to the United States Supreme certiorari was granted and relief was issued from the inhumane conditions he was being held under.

A caption containing the court's name and circuit is placed prominently at the top and center. Directly under this heading place the parties involved on the left margin with a space directly opposite for the case number which will be assigned by the clerk of the court.

There is an advantage to the breaking up of allegations or facts it requires the other side to respond in detail which is to your advantage. The facts they admit too will not have to be proved in court. The more detailed your complaint is the more they will have to admit or deny. Moreover, if your opponent fails to respond to your claims by not denying or admitting them they are deemed to have been admitted by the court. It's a no‑lose situation.

Another item not to be overlooked is the exhaustion of administrative remedies. This is especially true if you are suing either a state or government agency as in order to present your claim you'll almost surely have to demonstrate that you've exhausted your administrative remedies. Once you have fought your way thru the labyrinth of administrative appeals you'll be eligible to file with the court system. Like everything else, there is an exception to this rule and that is if you're filing a civil rights complaint against the state system in federal courts under 42 U.S.C. §1983 you are not required to exhaust your administrative remedies, but, you should demonstrate that you have exhausted your administrative remedies in state court.

Moving back to the main argument again there are a multitude of ways to attack your opponents argument but when all the smoke blows away they break down to one or more of the categories listed below:

1. DIRECT AUTHORITY ‑ You demonstrate how a case cite, statute or other authority directly supports your position.

2. ANALOGOUS AUTHORITY ‑ You demonstrate how a case cite, statute or other authority applies to a case or situation which is comparable to the one your presenting. Your argument here would be that since the other case is so similar to yours that the law which applies to it should apply to your case.

3. DISTINGUISHING AUTHORITY ‑ If your attempting to make a legal point and are having a hard time finding supporting case law you can use adverse cases then "distinguish" your case by showing how you situation is opposite from the one cited or how it could not apply to your case. Distinguishing authority is the reverse of Analogous Authority. If an adverse point of law is thrown at you the last action you want to take is no action as both the state and federal systems will deny you relief on that issue if you do not address it in your brief (see Appeals).

4. LEGISLATIVE INTENT ‑ If there is no case law supporting your stance you can rely on a constitutional provision, statute, administrative provision or court rule and argue that the drafters of that rule intended to include your situation. Your argument should show that the language, spirit and purpose or the rule support your position.

5. MISCARRIAGE of JUSTICE ‑ This type of attack is independent of case law, either supportive or adverse, and instead rests on basic fairness. You must show how, if the court renders an adverse decision, it will work an unfair hardship on you or your client.  It is basically a moral question so don't get 'greasy' with the court when you initially present it; a little sympathy from the court will not hurt your position.

6. UNDESERVED REWARD ‑ You can demonstrate to the court how, if it grants relief to the opposing party, they will receive an undeserved reward or windfall. This point of attack is especially apropos in liability cases where someone is asking an outrageous amount for a minor injury.

7. FORKED TONGUE ‑ If your lost on an issue or not sure how the court is going to rule you can aver that you should win no matter how the court rules on the issue. If the court rejects the issue it will automatically accept another. This can get a little 'tricky' but the results are worth the effort. By making one argument on one side of an issue and another argument on the other side it becomes a no lose situation.

8. ABSURDITY ‑ Show how, if the court renders an adverse decision in your case, the results will be illogical, absurd or ridiculous. This type of attack can be used more often than not but requires an issue that is borderline.

9. GENERAL PRACTICE or PUBLIC POLICY ‑ You can argue that the court should rule in your favor for the public benefit. A showing of adverse public opinion or reaction if it doesn't rule in your favor, or the good which will result from your rule is always a good move on your part. There is always some individual or group in the media crusading for this or that cause; work your point‑of‑view in with this blossoming media stampede and ride the crest of public opinion to victory.

10. UNSUPPORTED POSITIONS ‑ In this attack you have a relatively weak position, but, so does your opponent. There is no authority supporting your position or your opponents. If you elect this form of attack you can also zero in on ancillary issues such as the record does not support your opponent’s position and that his argument is fatally flawed.

To add a touch of class you can close with a line which reads "AFFIANT FURTHER SAYETH NAUGHT." Sign the complaint, place your name, address and phone number (if applicable), and date it. Finally you should have it notarized or add a "Statement Under Penalty of Perjury" which comes under 28 U.S.C.A. §1746.

BRIEFS

During World War II Winston Churchill had a cardinal rule which was broken only one time any paperwork placed in front of him was to be double spaced and not over a half page in length. He firmly believed that if you can't get your point across in 2 hundred or so words something was wrong. Factually, the sole time this 'rule' was broken was when he was presented with a report on the atom bomb. That very same ra66nal still holds true for legal "briefs" in that the key word here is BRIEF. If you want to lose someone's attention present them with a lengthy, dry reading document and watch the frown form on their previously smiling faces Although a brief can be of any length they are sometimes limited by court rules; such as briefs to the federal appellate courts (55 pages). Yes, you can petition the court to file a longer 'brief' but you will be defeating your original purpose of keeping this critical pleading "brief."

Always check with the court your filing in to see if there are any special requirements before filing a brief with that court. This is one of the few instances when the federal court system loses it continuity as each district and appellate court have there own 'pet peeves' and court rules. It is up to the individual filing the brief to check on and comply with said rules. Another idiosyncrasy of the federal courts is the requirement for a "Statement of the Case" which delineates the procedural history of the action.

As said before, all you’re really doing is writing a sophisticated letter to the court, but, keep it as simple and legible as possible. A sage action here would be to pass along your brief to someone who is not familiar with your case, then, after she or he has read your brief, question them regarding its content. If they can't understand what your trying to say the courts aren't going to have much more luck with it. Keep your language simple and easy to read.  If you don't know the exact meaning of a word don't use it; you'll avoid an embarrassing mistake and look better in the eyes of the court.  When writing your brief never infer that the judge is biased, unfair or lazy even if they are.

Heaving insults at the judiciary will secure you nothing but trouble and take the focus of the court off the relief you seek. Use neutral terms and never accuse anyone of misconduct unless you've got the facts in a safe deposit box and are prepared to "go to the wall" with them or present them to the States Attorney's office. If the court makes an adverse decision take it to the appellate court with the aversion that "the lower courts conclusions are unsupported by either the record or the facts of the case" then proceed to dissect the lower courts opinion with facts: not allegations. Never let your emotions take control of your writing or computer keyboard.  Ever!

If the court directs you to file your brief before your opponent you may face a thorny proposition and that is deciding whether to respond to an argument you think your opponent may address in his brief.  There is an 'opportunity' here you don't want to focus your oppositions attention on an issue they may not address, however, if your dead‑bang sure they are going to hammer it, you should hit it first, hard and at the earliest opportunity.  Writing a brief is never easy but with practice, patience and old fashioned stick‑to‑it‑tiveness the pieces will fall in place.

When writing Briefs and Motions a convention has been developed to help you write them in a standardized way. It’s called the F.I.R.A.C. method and here is how it works. When briefing a case, your goal is to reduce the information from the case into a format that will provide you with a helpful reference in class and for review. Most importantly, by “briefing” a case, you will grasp the problem the court faced (the issue); the relevant law the court used to solve it (the rule); how the court applied the rule to the facts (the application or “analysis”); and the outcome (the conclusion). You will then be ready to not only discuss the case, but to compare and contrast it to other cases involving a similar issue.

Before attempting to “brief” a case, read the case at least once.
Follow the “FIRAC” method in briefing cases:

Facts
Write a brief summary of the facts as the court found them to be. Eliminate facts that are not relevant to the court’s analysis. For example, a business’s street address is probably not relevant to the court’s decision of the issue of whether the business that sold a defective product is liable for the resulting injuries to the plaintiff. However, suppose a customer who was assaulted as she left its store is suing the business. The customer claims that her injuries were the reasonably foreseeable result of the business’s failure to provide security patrols. If the business is located in an upscale neighborhood, then perhaps it could argue that its failure to provide security patrols is reasonable. If the business is located in a crime-ridden area, then perhaps the customer is right. Instead of including the street address in the case brief, you may want to simply describe the type of neighborhood in which it is located. (Note: the time of day would be another relevant factor in this case, among others).

Procedural History
The procedural history should be included with the fact section and contains the relevant historical information about the case as it was tried.

Issue
What is the question presented to the court? Sometimes, only one issue may be discussed, but often there will be more. Issues are what you are asking the court to decide and is usually presented in the form of a question.

Rules
Determine what the relevant rules of law are that the court uses to make its decision. These rules will be identified by you and discussed by the court. There may be more than one relevant rule of law to a case and rules are not just statutes, but case law as well.

Application/Analysis:
This may be the most important portion of the brief because this is the section where you explain how the rules relate to the facts and the issues, which leads to the outcome you are looking for. The court will have examined the facts in light of the rule, and probably considered all “sides” and arguments presented to it. How courts apply the rule to the facts and analyze the case must be understood in order to properly predict outcomes in future cases involving the same issue. What does the court consider to be a relevant fact given the rule of law? How does the court interpret the rule? Resist the temptation to merely repeat what the court said in analyzing the facts: what does it mean to you? Summarize the court’s rationale in your own words. If you encounter a word that you do not know, use a dictionary to find its meaning.

Conclusion
What was the final outcome of the case? In one or two sentences, state what should be the court’s ultimate finding and why.
Note: “Case briefing” is a skill that you will develop. Practice will help you develop this skill.

MOTIONS

Simply put a "Motion" is a request submitted to the court moving them to perform a favorable action on your part. A motion can be for a court order, the return of property, an extension in time to file a pleading, change of address, or one of a numberless housekeeping items the courts are continually dealing with. If you get caught up in litigation this legal vehicle will surely become familiar to you; and quickly. Never hesitate to formulate a motion. State what you want, what the law is and make sure the court can grant it. You should also check to see if there is a local court rule governing motions. If there is have the clerk of court send you a copy of the rules for future reference. As with every court in this country you must send a copy of the motion to all parties of the litigation. Don't forget to add a Certificate of Service and have it notarized if required by the court.

A motion is actually a miniature suit in that it uses the same format: a header, style, case number, a title plainly stating what the motion is about, an argument, closing and certificate of mailing. The only difference is that it is usually a few pages in length versus scores of pages for a suit.  If the other side files a motion, or response to one of your motions, you have the option of filing and in another motion in opposition to their motion.  Basically, you are legally arguing with the opposing party which, can, at times, turn into a literal volley of motions. The same rules apply to motions as to all other legal pleadings; keep it to the short, to the point and address only the issues raised.

HABEAS CORPUS

You file a writ of habeas corpus to either obtain immediate relief from confinement or speedily resolve issues concerning the length of a sentence. It is the one writ which really 'works.' By that we mean the court will usually render a decision in a matter of days or weeks versus months and years for other litigation.

If your fighting your conviction, confinement, length of sentence, the sentence itself, attempting to shorten your sentence, contesting a good time loss, addressing your parole eligibility date, or seeking release you are REQUIRED to utilize this writ. If your a state prisoner there are a couple cadets; you must first exhaust your state remedies and, when you file your writ with the federal courts, there must be a federal question involved. Filing a writ of habeas corpus is governed under 28 U.S.C. §2241 et seq. with state prisoners specifically coming under 28 U.S.C. §2254. Treatment by state prison officials and challenges to their conditions of confinement should be brought under § 1983 and not via a writ of habeas corpus.

It has long been written in concrete that a federal court action cannot be used as a substitute for a state court appeal. Federal court have long been suspicious of prisoners filing habeas actions which are based on facts from their state conviction because they have this thought running around in the back of their minds that state prisoners are attempting to use a federal vehicle to bypass normal state appeal procedures. Attempt this avenue of relief without first exhausting your state remedies and you will find out exactly how hard that federal 'concrete' really is. Exhaust your state remedies first then have a go at it if you must.

If you’re a federal prisoner you will also have to exhaust your administrative remedies before proceeding into court. If you think your federal conviction was in violation of the statutes, unlawfully obtained, or imposed in an unlawful manner you must first appeal and raise all the issues you feel relief can be granted on. Not only is a direct appeal your best shot at obtaining relief, but with the conservative trend of all the courts, it is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain post conviction thru the habeas corpus vehicle. If you elect to proceed with a writ of habeas corpus after appeal you will be restricted to issues of jurisdiction or errors of a fundamental nature which were almost surely raised and addressed by the appellate court. The 'bright spot' here, if there is one, is if your challenging the way your sentence is being carried, sentence computation, parole procedures, or the loss of good time thru disciplinary actions you've got a good chance of securing relief via a writ of habeas corpus. Remember that a writ of habeas corpus must be filed in the district where the prisoner is currently being held. There is also a provision under the Bureau of Prisons Program Statements (5100.1) which prohibits the moving of an inmate from the institution till the habeas issue has been resolved, but that rule only exists if the prison staff are made aware that you have filed a habeas action. This is usually accomplished via the United States Marshals within 7 days as that is how long it takes to serve a summons on the warden. If your not happy with this set‑up you can send the warden a certified letter notifying him that you have filed a habeas corpus action and would invoke the provisions of Program Statement 5 100. 1.

There is another advantage of a habeas action and that is the courts cast a somewhat more lenient eye on habeas actions which is accompanied by a matching liberal authority to appoint counsel. If your a prisoner filing a civil suit you will be extremely lucky to secure an attorney, try this with a habeas action of a meritorious nature and the odds are almost exactly opposite in your favor.

JUDGMENTS & ORDERS

When you type or write out a proposed judgment or order that is exactly what it is until it is signed: PROPOSED. A judgment or order does not take on any official meaning until someone with the proper authority puts their "John Hancock" on it. If the order is of a minor, very minor, nature it is possible that a clerk of court will sign it, but, this is the exception not the rule. Anytime you file a legal pleading with the court asking for relief you may submit an order with it which rewards you with the relief you seek. When an order is issued, either orally or in writing, you can bet it will require someone, somewhere to do something or authorize someone, somewhere to do something.

Judgments are a specialized type of order in that they put forth in writing the final resolution of the case as determined by the court. When you have the opportunity to write your own order do so as that is the only way you can be sure of the proper relief being granted. Some judges will not sign judgments for any number of reasons but this should not stop you from placing it on his desk for finalization ‑ whether he signs it or not ‑ as that‑way he will know what relief your seeking and (hopefully) have a format to go by. Both judgments and orders follow the normal formatting of legal forms as outlined previously in this Of course with the sole exception being that when you commence writing the section which contains the relief you seek you must start the first paragraph with "IT IS ORDERED then follow up further paragraphs with "IT IS FURTHER ORDERED In addition to leaving a spot for the judges signature also leave one for the clerk of court to affirm the judges signature.

AFFIDAVITS

The person making the statement or affidavit is technically known as the affiant or deponent. If you give an affidavit to anyone for anything you should be aware of a few facts i.e. 1) you should only make statements which you can swear to in a court of law or have personally observed; 2) if you did not personally observe it you can still place this into the affidavit but add that it is on your "information and belief;" and 3) making false statements will subject you to criminal prosecution for false swearing, perjury, fraud and possible contempt of court.  If you’re going to use affidavits to prove some critical point in your suit get as many individuals as possible to give you an affidavit.  Where the court might give only passing credence to one or two affidavits they will stand up and pay attention if buried with 10 or 20. Make your point with all the legal force possible.

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE;  THE S.O. COMBAT MANUAL IS ALSO AVAILABLE ON THE WEB AT WWW.SOCOMBATMANUAL.INFO.  THERE YOU CAN DOWNLOAD TEMPLATES IN MICROSOFT WORD FOR PRODUCING MOST OF THE COURT DOCUMENTS YOU WILL NEED, ALONG WITH FULL VERSIONS OF THE U.S. AND ARIZONA CONSTITIONS, AMICUS CURIAE BRIEFS FROM IMPORTANT CASES AND OTHER INDISPENSABLE DOCUMENTS TO HELP YOU.  ALL FREE, SO YOU CAN BE!!!

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