Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: Right to Discovery in Habeas

Thank you for your inquiry, and the opportunity to serve you further.

The court file in your friend's matter, which should be a public record (unless this was a juvenile case), is accessible, and anyone has the right to get copies of certain court records from the file, including your friend, or his habeas attorney.

I hope this answers your question, but if you need any further information, please feel free to email me at [email protected]. It's my pleaure to assist in any way that I can.

Re: Right to Discovery in Habeas

He can get a copy of the court's file. Everything put on the record is there. Don't hold your breath about succeeding on this. Unless you can somehow magically PROVE actual misrepresentation, plea bargains are binding, that is their purpose. Having second thoughts is just too bad. His word that his attorney said something different doesn't carry much weight, since he had to represent to the court that he had read and initialed every term, and voluntarily signed the plea bargain documents. The sentence was spelled out in the papers.