Lonchar v. Thomas

This case asks us to decide whether a federal court may dismiss a first federal habeas petition for general “equitable” reasons beyond those embodied in the relevant statutes, Federal Habeas Corpus Rules, and prior precedents. We decide that the Court of Appeals erred in doing so in this case. The primary “equitable” consideration favoring dismissal of the “eleventh hour” petition before us is serious delay. A Federal Habeas Corpus Rule deals specifically with delay. See 28 U. S. C. § 2254 Rule 9(a) (permitting courts to dismiss a habeas petition when “it appears that the state ... has been…