AEDPA Statute of Limitations: Is It Tolled When the United States Supreme Court Is Asked to Review a Judgment from a State Post-Conviction Proceeding

This thirty-seven word provision [the tolling provision in the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act] has been construed by the United States Supreme Court three times since 1996, and yet several questions remain unanswered. One such unanswered question is whether tolling occurs when a petitioner files a petition for writ of certiorari to the United State Supreme Court from the state court postconviction decision. In other words, does seeking the United States Supreme Court\u27s review from a state court\u27s final decision on an application for State post-conviction or other collateral review keep the state post-conviction application pending? That is the question this article will address, and ultimately answer in the affirmative