|
|
Article: Defendants' Writ Dates to Magna Carta
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- June 8, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
|
A writ of habeas corpus is a way for federal judges to determine
whether a defendant has been wrongly imprisoned. The phrase is Latin
for "you have the body." Prisoners can apply for a writ on the ground
that their conviction is unconstitutional -- for example, that their
right to a fair trial was violated. Inmates seek the federal writ
only after they have exhausted all of their direct appeals under
state law.
The history of the "Great Writ," as it is known, dates at least to
the Magna Carta (1215). While the writ became part of early American
common law, Congress in 1867 formally enacted a habeas ...