Taylor v. State

LONG, Presiding Judge.

The appellant, James Hubert Taylor, Jr., appeals from the circuit court’s summary denial of his second Rule 32, Ala. R.Crim.P., petition,1 in which he contested his 1996 conviction for theft of property in the first degree and his resulting sentence of life imprisonment under the Habitual Felony Offender Act. A recapitulation of the procedural history of this case is necessary to understand the posture of this appeal.

Proceedings Relating to Taylor’s Direct Appeal

On April 9, 1996, Taylor was convicted of theft of property in the first degree; that same date, he was…