Estes v. Tabor

Filing 23

ORDER ADOPTING 21 REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS in full, and the Petition for Habeas Relief pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254 1 is DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE. Signed by Honorable Timothy L. Brooks on March 10, 2025. (tmc)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS
FORT SMITH DIVISION
SHAUN JERMAINE ESTES
V.

PLAINTIFF/PETITIONER
CASE NO.: 2:24-CV-2073

DEXTER PAYNE, Director,
Arkansas Department of Correction

DEFENDANT/RESPONDENT
ORDER

Before the Court is the Report and Recommendation (“R&R”) (Doc. 21) of the
Honorable Mark E. Ford, United States Magistrate Judge for the Western District of
Arkansas, regarding Shaun Jermaine Estes’s Petition for Habeas Relief pursuant to 28
U.S.C. § 2254. The Magistrate Judge recommends denying the Petition.
On March 5, 2025, Mr. Estes filed Objections to the R&R (Doc. 22), which
prompted the Court to conduct a de novo review of the record as required by 28 U.S.C.
§ 636(b)(1)(C). It is clear to the Court that Mr. Estes’s Objections fail to engage with the
R&R’s legal reasoning in any respect. As the R&R correctly concluded, the claims for
federal habeas relief were never presented to the appropriate state courts, thereby
depriving the state courts of the opportunity to address those claims in the first instance.
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Objections are OVERRULED, the R&R is
ADOPTED in full, and the Petition for Habeas Relief pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (Doc.
1) is DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE. The Clerk is directed to close the case.
IT IS SO ORDERED on this 10th day of March, 2025.
/s/ Timothy L. Brooks
TIMOTHY L. BROOKS
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE