A prison inmate sentenced to 900 months in prison would not be able to prove that his sentence was excessive, the Arkansas Supreme Court said Thursday.
Anthony Reed, who was sentenced after being convicted as an habitual offender of aggravated robbery, theft of property, and two counts of second-degree battery in 2000 and is currently serving his sentence at a prison in Jefferson County.
Reed filed a petition asking Circuit Judge Jodi Dennis to set aside the conviction but Dennis refused and Reed appealed her decision to the supreme court.
In addition to claiming that the 900 months was excessive, Reed also said the judgment order signed by the court was invalid because a box on the order indicating that he was sentenced as an habitual offender was not checked.
The supreme court said the jury in the Reed trial was told that he had nine previous felony convictions, and the jury instructions also reflected that he was a habitual offender.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
“Appellant did not demonstrate that the mere failure to check the box on the judgment to reflect that he was sentenced as an habitual offender was more than a clerical error,” the court ruling said. “It is well settled that clerical errors do not entitle a petitioner to a writ of habeas corpus.”
Regarding the claim that the 900 month sentence was excessive, the supreme court said an habitual offender convicted of aggravated robbery was subject to a sentence of 10 years to life in prison.
“The jury returned a sentence of 900 months imprisonment, which was within statutory range and not illegal,” the ruling said.