(HC) Garcia v. The People of the State of California

District Court, E.D. California·Decided March 22, 2023·No. 2:15-cv-02441·Unknown

Opinion

ARMANDO JOSEPH GARCIA, No. 2:15-CV-2441 MCE AC Petitioner, v. FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Respondent. Petitioner is a California state prisoner proceeding pro se with an application for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. Petitioner was convicted in 2008 of receiving stolen property, and he received a 25 years to life sentence of imprisonment under California’s “three strikes” law. The instant petition challenges the 2013 denial of resentencing under the Three Strikes Reform Act, California Penal Code § 1170.126. ECF No. 1. Respondent has answered. ECF No. 18. Petitioner did not file a traverse. I. Proceedings In the Trial Court A. Conviction Sentence Petitioner was arrested in December 2007 in Shasta County and charged with first degree residential burglary, grand theft of a firearm, receiving stolen property, and related misdemeanors. He pled guilty to receiving stolen property and admitted prior strikes for a stipulated sentence of 25 years to life imprisonment. Judgement was imposed in 2008. B. Proceedings Pursuant to Penal Code § 1170.126 In 2012, California passed the Three Strikes Reform Act, California Penal Code § 1170.126, which provided in relevant part for the resentencing of certain “three strikes” inmates. Petitioner filed a motion to recall his sentence in February of 2013. The motion alleged that petitioner’s triggering offense did not satisfy the criteria for a “serious or violent felony,” and that his prior convictions did not exclude him from the recall provision. In superior court, the prosecution acknowledged that petitioner was statutorily eligible for relief under § 1170,126, but opposed resentencing on grounds that he posed an unreasonable risk of danger to the public and that resentencing would violate the 2008 plea bargain. A hearing was held in the superior court on July 10, 2013. Lodged Doc. 10 (Reporter’s Transcript) at 4-16. After hearing arguments and considering both petitioner’s criminal history and his positive adjustment in custody, the court concluded that petitioner posed an unreasonable risk of danger to public safety.1 The recall petition was therefore denied. Id. at 16. II. Post-Conviction Proceedings re Resentencing Petitioner timely appealed, and the California Court of Appeal affirmed the judgment of conviction on October 16, 2014. Lodged Doc. 4. The California Supreme Court denied review on January 21, 2015. Lodged Doc. 8. The instant federal petition followed. STANDARDS GOVERNING HABEAS RELIEF UNDER THE AEDPA 28 U.S.C. § 2254, as amended by the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (“AEDPA”), provides in relevant part as follows: (d) An application for a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of a person in custody pursuant to the judgment of a state court shall not be granted with respect to any claim that was adjudicated on the merits in State court proceedings unless the adjudication of the claim – (1) resulted in a decision that was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States; or 1 Petitioner’s background and criminal history are summarized by the California Court of Appeal at Lodged Doc. 4, pp. 2-4. (2) resulted in a decision that was based on an unreasonable determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented in the State court proceeding. The statute applies whenever the state court has denied a federal claim on its merits, whether or not the state court explained its reasons. Harrington v. Richter, 562 U.S. 86, 99 (2011). State court rejection of a federal claim will be presumed to have been on the merits absent any indication or state-law procedural principles to the contrary. Id. (citing Harris v. Reed, 489 U.S. 255, 265 (1989) (presumption of a merits determination when it is unclear whether a decision appearing to rest on federal grounds was decided on another basis)). “The presumption may be overcome when there is reason to think some other explanation for the state court's decision is more likely.” Id. at 99-100. The phrase “clearly established Federal law” in § 2254(d)(1) refers to the “governing legal principle or principles” previously articulated by the Supreme Court. Lockyer v. Andrade, 538 U.S. 63, 71-72 (2003). Only Supreme Court precedent may constitute “clearly established Federal law,” but courts may look to circuit law “to ascertain whether…the particular point in issue is clearly established by Supreme Court precedent.” Marshall v. Rodgers, 569 U.S. 58, 64 (2013). A state court decision is “contrary to” clearly established federal law if the decision “contradicts the governing law set forth in [the Supreme Court’s] cases.” Williams v. Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 405 (2000). A state court decision “unreasonably applies” federal law “if the state court identifies the correct rule from [the Supreme Court’s] cases but unreasonably applies it to the facts of the particular state prisoner’s case.” Id. at 407-08. It is not enough that the state court was incorrect in the view of the federal habeas court; the state court decision must be objectively unreasonable. Wiggins v. Smith, 539 U.S. 510, 520-21 (2003). Review under § 2254(d) is limited to the record that was before the state court. Cullen v. Pinholster, 563 U.S. 170, 180-181 (2011). The question at this stage is whether the state court reasonably applied clearly established federal law to the facts before it. Id. at 181-182. In other words, the focus of the § 2254(d) inquiry is “on what a state court knew and did.” Id. at 182. Where the state court’s adjudication is set forth in a reasoned opinion, §2254(d)(1) review is confined to “the state court’s actual reasoning” and “actual analysis.” Frantz v. Hazey, 533 F.3d 724, 738 (9th Cir. 2008) (en banc). A different rule applies where the state court rejects claims summarily, without a reasoned opinion. In Richter, supra, the Supreme Court held that when a state court denies a claim on the merits but without a reasoned opinion, the federal habeas court must determine what arguments or theories may have supported the state court’s decision, and subject those arguments or theories to § 2254(d) scrutiny. Richter, 563 U.S. at 102. I. Claim One: The “Three Strikes” Recall Statute Is Unconstitutionally Vague A. Petitioner’s Allegations and Pertinent Statutory Background As he did on direct appeal, petitioner contends that the California recall statute violates the federal constitutional guarantee of due process because the phrase “unreasonable risk of danger to public safety” is impermissibly vague. The Three Strikes Reform Act provides in relevant part that, if a petitioner satisfies the statutory criteria for eligibility, “the petitioner shall be resentenced… unless the court, in its discretion, determines that resentencing the petitioner would pose an unreasonable risk of danger to public safety.” Cal. Penal Code § 1170.126(f). The following guidance is then provided: (g) In exercising its discretion in subdivision (f), the court may consider: (1) The petitioner’s criminal conviction history, including the type of crimes committed, the extent of injury to victims, the length of prior prison commitments, and the remoteness of the crimes; (2) The petitioner’s disciplinary record and record of rehabilitation while incarcerated; and (3) Any other evidence the court, within its discretion, determines to be relevant in deciding whether a new sentence would result in an unreasonable risk of danger to public safety. (h) Under no circumstances ma

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(HC) Garcia v. The People of the State of California, (E.D. Cal. 2023).

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