Judson White, Petitioner Below, Appellant v. William Haines

Summary

The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia affirmed the Kanawha County Circuit Court's order denying Judson White's second petition for a writ of habeas corpus challenging his 1986 forgery and uttering convictions. The court held the circuit court erred in denying the petition under the 'concurrent sentence rule,' because under State ex rel. Blake v. Chafin a defendant is entitled to a ruling on the merits even if another sentence keeps him confined, but it affirmed on the alternative ground that White received adequate due process on mental competency before his 1986 guilty plea, given a pre-plea psychological evaluation finding competency and a Call v. McKenzie plea colloquy, despite the absence of a written competency finding under W.Va. Code, 27-6A-1(d). Justice McGraw, concurring separately, agreed with the affirmance and wrote only to highlight White's 'total lack of ability to stay out of trouble' as a cautionary tale about repeat offenders.