Resper v. Dept. of Pub. Saf. & Corr. Servs.

Circuit Court for Allegany County Case No. 01-C-12-036780 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF MARYLAND Petition No. 293 September Term, 2023 WAYNE RESPER v. SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES Fader, C.J., Watts, Hotten, Booth, Biran, Gould, Eaves, JJ. PER CURIAM ORDER Pursuant to the Maryland Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act (§§ 10-1601 et seq. of the State Government Article) this document is authentic. Filed: March 25, 2024 2024.03.25 14:03:19 '00'04- Gregory Hilton, Clerk * IN THE * WAYNE RESPER SUPREME COURT * OF MARYLAND v. * Petition No. 293 * September Term, 2023 SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND * (No. 1732, Sept. Term, 2023 CORRECTIONAL SERVICES Appellate Court of Maryland) * (Cir. Ct. No. 01-C-12-036780) * ORDER In the Circuit Court for Allegany County, the petitioner, Wayne Resper, filed a motion to set aside a prior order that required him to seek leave of court before filing new papers. When that motion was denied in an order dated September 23, 2023, Mr. Resper simultaneously filed documents titled “Notice of Appeal” and “Application for Leave to Appeal.” Both documents were directed toward the circuit court’s September 23, 2023 order.

Because the petition could proceed only pursuant to an application for leave to appeal in this action, this Court will address the combined filing as an application for leave to appeal. The circuit court then entered an order, dated November 3, 2023, in which the court: (1) noted Mr. Resper’s filing; (2) stated that Mr. Resper, having been found to be a frivolous filer pursuant to § 5-1005(a) of the Courts & Judicial Proceedings Article, was not permitted to “file any further civil actions without leave of court” (quoting Md. Code Ann., Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 5-1005 (c)(1)); and (3) stated that the court “declines to grant leave in this action.” The Appellate Court treated the circuit court’s November 3 order as effectively striking the petitioner’s application for leave to appeal. Accordingly, the Clerk of the Appellate Court issued an order administratively closing the case.

Mr. Resper then sought review in this Court pursuant to a petition for writ of certiorari. After initial consideration of the petition, the Court requested that the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services respond to the following question: “Whether the Court should issue a writ of certiorari on the question of whether Md. Code Ann., Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 5-1005 applies to notices of