Wilbur Harlow Stuart v. Walter E. Craven, Warden

The critical issue is whether the appellant Stuart’s Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial has been infringed.

In February, 1968, the District Attorney of Los Angeles County, California, filed a criminal complaint charging Stuart with robbery. Shortly thereafter, Stuart was arrested in Butte County, California, the basis for the arrest being an outstanding warrant issued in Los Angeles after the complaint was filed. While being held pending the arrival of Los Angeles County authorities, Stuart was charged with an unrelated felony which he had allegedly committed in Butte County. He was convicted of that charge on May 31, 1968 and was subsequently transferred to a state penal institution. While imprisoned, but before any effort was made to obtain jurisdiction over him in Los Angeles, Stuart made a written demand, pursuant to § 1381 of the California Penal Code, that he be brought to trial within 90 days. The demand was received by the Los Angeles District Attorney on July 23, 1968.

After a number of unexplained administrative delays in the District Attorney’s office, Stuart was finally transported to Los Angeles on September 6, 1968. He was arraigned on September '8. A…