Donald Dean Thurman v. United States

The District Court denied Appellant Thurman's motion to vacate judgment and sentence ( 28 U.S.C. § 2255 ).

In June, 1961, Thurman was indicted on two charges, conspiracy ( 18 U.S.C. § 371 ) and armed postal robbery with life in jeopardy ( 18 U.S.C. § 2114 ). After a jury trial, he was convicted and sentenced to five years on the conspiracy count and twenty-five years (mandatory) on the robbery count. The sentences were ordered to run concurrently. Subsequently, the conviction was reversed and a new trial ordered. Thurman v. United States, 316 F.2d 205 (9th Cir. 1963).

On August 8, 1963, Thurman was in Court with retained counsel. He withdrew his pleas of not guilty and entered pleas of guilty to both counts. On the following day, Thurman was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment on the conspiracy count and to twenty-five years’ imprisonment on the postal robbery count, to run consecutively, but the Court suspended execution of the twenty-five year sentence and placed him on probation for five years to commence on expiration of the five year sentence. The term of probation commenced on January 25, 1966 on Thurman’s release from prison. In 1968, Thurman was arrested as a probation…