IIRC, you can't get free legal representation for habeas actions?
So, firstly the prisoner needs to be very legally savvy and have access to things like pencils, paper, law library etc, which is no given, especially if they are in a county jail which is usually far more restrictive than prison.
Then I believe you would have to exhaust your state habeas first before you can file federal habeas. State county courts have judges who rarely know the law and will never have seen a habeas action. So when you file it, they'll probably spend a year pushing it down the docket (especially because you're in jail) before finding some random reason to dismiss it.
You'll get more educated responses from federal court, but filing there is a little bit harder and the cases take just as long.
Habeas could easily be a multi-year, perhaps up to a decade to litigate through to disposition, especially for someone acting without a lawyer.
So, firstly the prisoner needs to be very legally savvy and have access to things like pencils, paper, law library etc, which is no given, especially if they are in a county jail which is usually far more restrictive than prison.
Then I believe you would have to exhaust your state habeas first before you can file federal habeas. State county courts have judges who rarely know the law and will never have seen a habeas action. So when you file it, they'll probably spend a year pushing it down the docket (especially because you're in jail) before finding some random reason to dismiss it.
You'll get more educated responses from federal court, but filing there is a little bit harder and the cases take just as long.
Habeas could easily be a multi-year, perhaps up to a decade to litigate through to disposition, especially for someone acting without a lawyer.
source: lots of experience