Application for a Writ of Habeas Corpus of Wesley v. Schneckloth

Joseph Joe Wesley was charged in the superior court with grand larceny committed in Yakima county, Washington. Having waived counsel and pleaded guilty, he was sentenced to the state penitentiary for a period of not more than fifteen years. Nothing in the record indicates that Mr. Wesley’s status as an enrolled member of the Yakima Indian tribe was ever brought to the attention of the trial court; nor does it appear that the trial court was advised that the offense was committed in “Indian country,” as that term is defined in 18 U. S. C. (1952 ed.) § 1151. No jurisdictional issue was raised…