Hodge v. Commissioner of Correction

Citations

• 216 Conn. App. 616

Syllabus

The petitioner, who had been convicted of manslaughter in the second degree and evading responsibility in the operation of a motor vehicle, sought a writ of habeas corpus, claiming, inter alia, that certain changes to a risk reduction earned credit program had been improperly applied to him by the respondent, the Commissioner of Correction. The habeas court, sua sponte and without providing the petitioner with prior notice or an opportunity to be heard, dismissed the petitioner's amended peti- tion pursuant to the rule of practice (§ 23-29), concluding that it lacked subject matter jurisdiction over that petition and that the amended petition failed to state a claim on which habeas corpus relief could be granted. On the granting of certification, the petitioner appealed from the habeas court's judgment to this court. Held that, in light of our Supreme Court's recent decisions in Brown v. Commissioner of Correc- tion (345 Conn. 1), and Boria v. Commissioner of Correction (345 Conn. 39), this court concluded that, although the habeas court was not obligated to conduct a hearing before dismissing the amended petition, it was required to provide to the petitioner prior notice of its intention to dismiss, on its own motion, the amended petition and an opportunity to submit a brief or a written response addressing the proposed basis for dismissal, which it did not do; accordingly, on remand, should the habeas court again elect to exercise its discretion to dismiss the amended petition, or any subsequent amended petition properly filed by the peti- tioner, on its own motion pursuant to Practice Book § 23-29, the court must comply with Brown and Boria by providing the petitioner with prior notice and an opportunity to submit a brief or written response addressing the proposed basis for dismissal. Argued September 19—officially released November 22, 2022