Gary fuller/akbar v. Dexter Payne, Director, Arkansas Department of Correction, 628 S.W.3d 366

Gary Fuller (also "Akbar") was convicted by a Pulaski County jury of first‑degree murder in 1982 for the fatal shooting of Lawrence Goodson; this Court affirmed the conviction on direct appeal.
The jury announced verdict and sentence in April 1982; a judgment entry was entered nunc pro tunc in August 1982 as "now for then."
Fuller, pro se, filed a habeas‑corpus petition in the county where he is incarcerated under Ark. Code Ann. § 16‑112‑101, alleging jurisdictional and facial defects in his conviction and the underlying statutes, warrant, information, and judgment.
His claims included: that the first‑degree murder statute was enacted during an invalid 1976 legislative session; that no arrest warrant was issued/served; that the judgment was void because entered after the term and without his presence; and that the information failed to give adequate notice.
The circuit court dismissed the petition for failure to state any ground on which habeas relief could issue; Fuller appealed to the Arkansas Supreme Court.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Validity of murder statute / subject‑matter jurisdiction	Statute underlying conviction was adopted during an invalid 1976 session, so court lacked jurisdiction	The first‑degree murder statute was enacted in 1975; circuit court has jurisdiction over criminal statutes	Court held statute valid and trial court had subject‑matter jurisdiction
Personal jurisdiction / arrest warrant	No arrest warrant issued or served, so court lacked personal jurisdiction	Record (docket) shows an arrest warrant was served and returned	Court held personal jurisdiction existed; warrant was served
Validity of judgment entry (post‑term / defendant not present)	Judgment is void because entered after the term and Fuller was not present when entered	A court may enter a nunc pro tunc judgment to reflect the verdict announced earlier; defendant was present for the verdict	Court held nunc pro tunc entry valid; judgment not void
Defective information / notice of charges	Information was defective and failed to give adequate notice	Alleged defects are trial error; Fuller was arraigned, had counsel, and was tried by a jury	Court held defective‑information claims are not jurisdictional and are not grounds for habeas relief

Foreman v. State, 2019 Ark. 108, 571 S.W.3d 484 (habeas proper only for facially invalid judgment or lack of jurisdiction)
McArthur v. State, 2019 Ark. 220, 577 S.W.3d 385 (habeas review is limited to face of commitment order)
Fields v. Hobbs, 2013 Ark. 416 (no habeas relief absent lack of jurisdiction or facially invalid commitment)
Hobbs v. Gordon, 2014 Ark. 225, 434 S.W.3d 364 (standard of appellate review for habeas dismissal)
Love v. Kelley, 2018 Ark. 206, 548 S.W.3d 145 (circuit courts have subject‑matter jurisdiction over criminal statutes)
Anderson v. Kelley, 2020 Ark. 197, 600 S.W.3d 544 (circuit courts have personal jurisdiction over offenses committed in the county)
Rabion v. Kelley, 2020 Ark. 375 (defective information is trial error, not jurisdictional)
Philyaw v. Kelley, 2015 Ark. 465, 477 S.W.3d 503 (claims of insufficient notice are addressed by trial record and procedure)
Lovett v. State, 267 Ark. 912, 591 S.W.2d 683 (courts of record may enter nunc pro tunc judgments to make the record speak the truth)
Fuller v. State, 278 Ark. 450, 646 S.W.2d 700 (direct appeal affirming defendant's murder conviction)