Daryl K. Burford v. State Tennessee

In this case, the only issue presented for our review is whether the petitioners claim for post-conviction relief is barred by the three-year statute of limitations contained in Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-30-102. Clearly, the post-conviction claim here was filed more than three years after the "final action of the states highest appellate court" and ordinarily would have been barred under the plain language of the statute. However, the grounds for relief (earlier enhancing convictions were declared void) occurred after the "states highest appellate court" action, and the question arose as to the effect of the later arising grounds on the statute of limitations period. The trial court found that the petitioners claim was barred and dismissed the petition. The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed. We conclude that, while the statute of limitations is not unconstitutional on its face, it is unconstitutional as applied in petitioners case because it denies him due process under the state and federal constitutions. Therefore, we hold that the petition is not barred by the statute of limitations. As a result, we reverse the Court of Criminal Appeals judgment dismissing the petition and remand for an evidentiary hearing.