White v. Butterworth

Timothy White, a Florida prisoner, appeals the dismissal of his § 2254 habeas petition and the denial of his motion for reconsideration of the dismissal. The district court dis missed the petition after concluding that White did not satisfy § 2254’s jurisdictional “in custody” requirement because he was attacking an “expired” sentence. Upon review of the record, we determine that the court erred in finding that White was not “in custody” and therefore reverse the order dismissing the petition and remand for further proceedings.

In 1985, White pled guilty to a crime in Florida and received five…