Goguen v. Commissioner of Correction, 195 Conn.App. 502

On Sept. 6, 1996, Robert Goguen pleaded guilty to sexual assault in the second degree (§ 53a-71(a)(3)) and was sentenced to 10 years, execution suspended after 4 years, plus five years probation.
On Apr. 11, 2017, Goguen (self-represented) filed a habeas petition claiming his guilty plea was involuntary and counsel was ineffective in connection with the plea.
On Apr. 18, 2017, the habeas court declined to issue the writ under Practice Book § 23-24(a)(1) because Goguen was not in the custody of the Commissioner of Correction when he filed.
Goguen moved for reconsideration (Dec. 20, 2017); the court granted reconsideration but reaffirmed its original ruling declining the writ.
Goguen filed a petition for certification to appeal (Jan. 11, 2018); the habeas court denied certification and Goguen appealed to the Appellate Court.
The Appellate Court dismissed the appeal because Goguen failed to brief the threshold Simms issue (whether the denial of certification was an abuse of discretion), precluding appellate review of the underlying claims.

Issue	Goguen's Argument	Commissioner of Correction's Argument	Held
Whether the habeas court abused its discretion in denying certification to appeal (Simms two-prong test).	Goguen asserted his underlying claims (plea involuntariness; ineffective assistance) merit appellate review and that denial of certification was improper.	The Commissioner maintained Goguen failed to demonstrate an abuse of discretion; procedural threshold not met; denial proper.	Goguen failed to brief the Simms threshold; appeal dismissed for lack of entitlement to review.
Whether the habeas court properly declined to issue the writ because petitioner was not in custody at filing under Practice Book § 23-24(a)(1).	Goguen disputed the absence of a basis to deny relief on procedural grounds and sought merits review.	The Commissioner relied on Practice Book § 23-24(a)(1) and the lack of custody at filing to justify denial.	The habeas court declined the writ for lack of custody and, after reconsideration, reaffirmed that ruling; appellate review barred by failure to satisfy Simms.

Simms v. Warden, 229 Conn. 178, 640 A.2d 601 (1994) (establishing the two-pronged test for appellate review after denial of certification to appeal)
Simms v. Warden, 230 Conn. 608, 646 A.2d 126 (1994) (same two-pronged Simms framework reaffirmed)
Logan v. Commissioner of Correction, 125 Conn. App. 744, 9 A.3d 776 (2010) (describing the abuse-of-discretion standard under Simms)
Cordero v. Commissioner of Correction, 193 Conn. App. 902, 215 A.3d 1282 (2019) (refusing appellate review where petitioner failed to brief Simms threshold)
Thorpe v. Commissioner of Correction, 165 Conn. App. 731, 140 A.3d 319 (2016) (same)
Mitchell v. Commissioner of Correction, 68 Conn. App. 1, 790 A.2d 463 (2002) (same)
Reddick v. Commissioner of Correction, 51 Conn. App. 474, 722 A.2d 286 (1999) (same)