Stepp v. Black

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO EASTERN DIVISION BRIAN T. STEPP, ) CASE NO. 1:21 CV 1147 ) Petitioner, ) JUDGE DAN AARON POLSTER ) vs. ) ) MEMORANDUM OF OPINION OHIO PAROLE BOARD, ) AND ORDER ) Respondent. ) Pro se Petitioner Brian Stepp, an inmate in state custody at the Richland Correctional Institution in Mansfield, Ohio, brings this action for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. Petitioner challenges the judgment of conviction entered by the Butler County Court of Common Pleas. Butler County is within Ohio’s southern federal judicial district. The Richland Correctional Institution is located within Ohio’s northern federal judicial district. Because Petitioner challenges the conviction of a state court within the Southern District of Ohio, but is in custody in the Northern District of Ohio, both districts have concurrent jurisdiction over the action. 28 U.S.C. § 2241(d). This court has the discretion to transfer this action to the Southern District for hearing and determination. Id. A transfer to the Southern District is appropriate in this case, because it is the more convenient forum and the evidence is more readily accessible in the district where Petitioner was convicted. See, Bell v. Watkins, 692 F.2d 999, 1013 (5th Cir. 1982), cert. denied, 464 U.S. 843 (1983); see also, Braden v. 30th Judicial Circuit Court of Ky., 410 U.S. 484, 497 n.13 (1973). Accordingly, this action is hereby TRANSFERRED to the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. IT IS SO ORDERED. ys Le fee. 10/6/2021 DAN AARON POLSTER UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE