Art. 930.8. Time limitations; exceptions; prejudicial delay
A. No application for post conviction relief, including applications which seek an
out-of-time appeal, shall be considered if it is filed more than two years after the judgment
of conviction and sentence has become final under the provisions of Article 914 or 922,
unless any of the following apply:
(1) The application alleges, and the petitioner proves or the state admits, that the
facts upon which the claim is predicated were not known to the petitioner or his prior
attorneys. Further, the petitioner shall prove that he exercised diligence in attempting to
discover any post conviction claims that may exist. "Diligence" for the purposes of this
Article is a subjective inquiry that shall take into account the circumstances of the petitioner.
Those circumstances shall include but are not limited to the educational background of the
petitioner, the petitioner's access to formally trained inmate counsel, the financial resources
of the petitioner, the age of the petitioner, the mental abilities of the petitioner, or whether
the interests of justice will be served by the consideration of new evidence. New facts
discovered pursuant to this exception shall be submitted to the court within two years of
discovery. If the petitioner pled guilty or nolo contendere to the offense of conviction and
is seeking relief pursuant to Article 926.2 and five years or more have elapsed since the
petitioner pled guilty or nolo contendere to the offense of conviction, the petitioner shall not
be eligible for the exception provided for by this Subparagraph.
(2) The claim asserted in the petition is based upon a final ruling of an appellate
court establishing a theretofore unknown interpretation of constitutional law and petitioner
establishes that this interpretation is retroactively applicable to his case, and the petition is
filed within one year of the finality of such ruling.
(3) The application would already be barred by the provisions of this Article, but the
application is filed on or before October 1, 2001, and the date on which the application was
filed is within three years after the judgment of conviction and sentence has become final.
(4) The person asserting the claim has been sentenced to death.
(5) The petitioner qualifies for the exception to timeliness in Article 926.1.
(6) The petitioner qualifies for the exception to timeliness in Article 926.2.
B. An application for post conviction relief which is timely filed, or which is allowed
under an exception to the time limitation as set forth in Paragraph A of this Article, shall be
dismissed upon a showing by the state of prejudice to its ability to respond to, negate, or
rebut the allegations of the petition caused by events not under the control of the state which
have transpired since the date of original conviction, if the court finds, after a hearing limited
to that issue, that the state's ability to respond to, negate, or rebut such allegations has been
materially prejudiced thereby.
C. At the time of sentencing, the trial court shall inform the defendant of the
prescriptive period for post-conviction relief either verbally or in writing. If a written waiver
of rights form is used during the acceptance of a guilty plea, the notice required by this
Paragraph may be included in the written waiver of rights.
D. Any attempt or request by a petitioner to supplement or amend the application
shall be subject to all of the limitations and restrictions as set forth in this Article.
E. All of the limitations set forth in this Article shall be jurisdictional and shall not
be waived or excused by the court or the district attorney.
Acts 1990, No. 1023, §1, eff. Oct. 1, 1990; Acts 1999, No. 1262, §1; Acts 2004, No.
401, §1; Acts 2013, No. 251, §1, eff. Aug. 1, 2014; Acts 2021, No. 104, §1; Acts 2024, 2nd
Ex. Sess., No. 10, §1, eff. Aug. 1, 2024.