Habeas Corpus, in the Federal Court, is a petition that claims that you are being detained against your US constitutional rights. On August 26, 1983, Franklin filed his pro se petition for habeas corpus.Issues which may be raised on habeas corpus; timeliness requirements for filing the writ; format and specific Sixth District's procedures. The district court characterized three of these actions as habeas corpus petitions. The remainder are civil rights actions brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Since federal prisoners are concentrated in a few locations, the district courts in those areas were inundated with habeas petitions. Any prisoner, or another person acting on their behalf, may petition the court, or a judge, for a writ of habeas corpus. Completing the Habeas Corpus Petition. Complete the habeas corpus petition according to the directions on the form which is enclosed in this packet. Virginia Rules of Evidence.