Preview:

****************************************************** The ``officially released'' date that appears near the beginning of each opinion is the date the opinion will be published in the Connecticut Law Journal or the date it was released as a slip opinion. The operative date for the beginning of all time periods for filing postopinion motions and petitions for certification is the ``officially released'' date appearing in the opinion. In no event will any such motions be accepted before the ``officially released'' date. All opinions are subject to modification and technical correction prior to official publication in the Connecticut Reports and Connecticut Appellate Reports. In the event of discrepancies between the electronic version of an opinion and the print version appearing in the Connecticut Law Journal and subsequently in the Connecticut Reports or Connecticut Appellate Reports, the latest print version is to be considered authoritative. The syllabus and procedural history accompanying the opinion as it appears on the Commission on Official Legal Publications Electronic Bulletin Board Service and in the Connecticut Law Journal and bound volumes of official reports are copyrighted by the Secretary of the State, State of Connecticut, and may not be reproduced and distributed without the express written permission of the Commission on Official Legal Publications, Judicial Branch, State of Connecticut. ******************************************************

JEFFREY M. SKELLY v. COMMISSIONER OF CORRECTION (AC 28349)
DiPentima, C. J., and Robinson and Sullivan, Js. Argued January 20--officially released April 5, 2011

(Appeal from Superior Court, judicial district of Tolland, Swords, J.) Jeffrey M. Skelly, pro se, the appellant (petitioner). Adam E. Mattei, special deputy assistant state's attorney, with whom, on the brief, were John C. Smriga, state's attorney, and Gerard P. Eisenman, senior assistant state's attorney, for the appellee (respondent).

Opinion

PER CURIAM. The petitioner, Jeffrey M. Skelly, appeals following the habeas court's denial of his petition for certification to appeal from that court's denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus. On appeal, the petitioner claims that the court (1) abused its discretion in denying his petition for certification to appeal and (2) improperly concluded that he had not been subject to double jeopardy in his criminal trial. Upon careful review of the record and briefs, and in fully considering the oral arguments of the parties, we conclude that the petitioner failed to demonstrate that the court abused its discretion in denying his petition for certification to appeal. ``Faced with a habeas court's denial of a petition for certification to appeal, a petitioner can obtain appellate review of the dismissal of his petition for habeas corpus only by satisfying the two-pronged test enunciated by our Supreme Court in Simms v. Warden, 229 Conn. 178, 640 A.2d 601 (1994), and adopted in Simms v. Warden, 230 Conn. 608, 612, 646 A.2d 126 (1994). First, he must demonstrate that the denial of his petition for certification constituted an abuse of discretion. . . . Second, if the petitioner can show an abuse of discretion, he must then prove that the decision of the habeas court should be reversed on its merits. . . . ``To prove an abuse of discretion, the petitioner must demonstrate that the [resolution of the underlying claim involves issues that] are debatable among jurists of reason; that a court could resolve the issues [in a different manner]; or that the questions are adequate to deserve encouragement to proceed further.'' (Internal quotation marks omitted.) Petty v. Commissioner of Correction, 125 Conn. App. 185, 187, 7 A.3d 411 (2010), cert. denied, 300 Conn. 903, 12 A.3d 573 (2011). The petitioner has not shown that the issues raised on appeal are debatable among jurists of reason, that they could be resolved in a different manner or that they deserve encouragement to proceed further. The appeal is dismissed.



Download Skelly v. Commissioner of Correction.pdf

Connecticut Law