Evans v. State

I

For at least two decades the writ of error coram nobis has been a post-conviction form of action through which prisoners of the state have filed constitutional challenges to their convictions and sentences. We have venerated this writ, for it fulfills our felt obligation to assure that no person experiences the sting of the state's penal sanctions inconsistent with the constitution.

Secondary but also important is our federalism context. When Mississippi's prisoners have been admonished that their complaints may not be heard in federal court until all viable state remedies have been…