IN THE SUPREME COURT OF ALABAMA

March 22, 2002

ORDER

IT IS ORDERED that Rule 32.1, Alabama Rules of Criminal Procedure, is amended to read as follows:

"RULE 32.1 SCOPE OF REMEDY

"Subject to the limitations of Rule 32.2, any defendant who has been convicted of a criminal offense may institute a proceeding in the court of original conviction to secure appropriate relief on the ground that:

"(a) The constitution of the United States or of the State of Alabama requires a new trial, a new sentence proceeding, or other relief.

"(b) The court was without jurisdiction to render judgment or to impose sentence.

"(c) The sentence imposed exceeds the maximum authorized by law or is otherwise not authorized by law.

"(d) The petitioner is being held in custody after the petitioner's sentence has expired.

"(e) Newly discovered material facts exist which require that the conviction or sentence be vacated by the court, because:

"(1) The facts relied upon were not known by the petitioner or the petitioner's counsel at the time of trial or sentencing or in time to file a posttrial motion pursuant to Rule 24, or in time to be included in any previous collateral proceeding and could not have been discovered by any of those times through the exercise of reasonable diligence;

"(2) The facts are not merely cumulative to other facts that were known;

"(3) The facts do not merely amount to impeachment evidence;

"(4) If the facts had been known at the time of trial or of sentencing, the result probably would have been different; and

"(5) The facts establish that the petitioner is innocent of the crime for which the petitioner was convicted or should not have received the sentence that the petitioner received.

"(f) The petitioner failed to appeal within the prescribed time and that failure was without fault on the petitioner's part.

"A petition that challenges multiple judgments entered in more than a single trial or guilty-plea proceeding shall be dismissed without prejudice."

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the amendment shall be effective August 1, 2002.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the following note from the reporter of decisions be added to follow Rule 32.1:

"Note from the reporter of decisions: The order amending Rule 32.1, effective August 1, 2002, is published in that volume of Alabama Reporter that contains Alabama cases from ___ So. 2d."

Moore, C.J., and Houston, See, Lyons, Brown, Johnstone, Harwood, Woodall, and Stuart, JJ., concur.