Recent Development: Jackson v. State: Successive Post-Conviction Petitions Are Not Barred by the Doctrine of Res Judicata or Maryland Rule 4-704; A Petition for DNA Testing Will Be Denied if the Evidentiary Threshold for a Wrongful Conviction Claim is Not Met.

The Court of Appeals of Maryland held that the doctrine of res judicata and Maryland Rule 4-704 do not bar successive DNA petitions. Jackson v. State, 448 Md. 387, 406, 139 A.3d 976, 987 (2016). The court further held that denying Jackson’s petition for DNA testing without a hearing under Maryland Rule 4-709 was proper, because none of his assertions would have produced exculpatory evidence. Id. at 411, 139 A.3d at 990