Calvin L. Waldon v. The State of Iowa

The District Court refused appellant leave to file a suit for a declaratory judgment in forma pauperis and thus in effect made denial of his complaint. Reversal is sought of the Court’s order.

Appellant is an inmate of the Iowa State Penitentiary. He sought, by his declaratory judgment suit, to have it decreed that the State of Iowa had fraudulently deprived him of an appeal from his conviction and sentence and thereby violated his constitutional rights, and that he was in consequence entitled “to post-conviction judicial remedy in the form of criminal appeal”.

A state prisoner is not entitled…