Brownlee v. McDonald
Filing
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ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Gary S. Austin on 4/2/2012, CASE TRANSFERRRED to SACRAMENTO Division. New Case Number 2:12-cv-00847-GGH (HC). (Marrujo, C)
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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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TERRENCE BROWNLEE,
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1:12-cv-00407 GSA HC
Petitioner,
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ORDER TRANSFERRING CASE TO
THE SACRAMENTO DIVISION OF THE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR
THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF
CALIFORNIA
vs.
MIKE MCDONALD,
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Respondent.
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Petitioner, a state prisoner proceeding pro se, has filed a habeas corpus action pursuant to 28
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U.S.C. § 2254, in which he challenges a decision reached by the Board of Prison Terms regarding his
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suitability for parole.
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The federal venue statute requires that a civil action, other than one based on diversity
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jurisdiction, be brought only in “(1) a judicial district where any defendant resides, if all defendants
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reside in the same state, (2) a judicial district in which a substantial part of the events or omissions
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giving rise to the claim occurred, or a substantial part of the property that is the subject of the action
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is situated, or (3) a judicial district in which any defendant may be found, if there is no district in
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which the action may otherwise be brought.” 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b).
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In a habeas matter, venue is proper in either the district of conviction or the district of
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confinement. 28 U.S.C. § 2241(d). Where a petitioner attacks the execution of his sentence, the
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proper forum in which to review such a claim is the district of confinement. See Dunn v. Henman,
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875 F.2d 244, 249 (9th Cir. 1989) (stating, in a 28 U.S.C. § 2241 action, that "[t]he proper forum to
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challenge the execution of a sentence is the district where the prisoner is confined.").
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In this case, petitioner was sentenced in Fresno County Superior Court, which is located
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within the Eastern District of California. He is currently incarcerated at High Desert State Prison in
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Lassen County, which lies within the Sacramento Division of the Eastern District of California.
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Because the instant petition is premised on events relating to Petitioner's parole proceedings, the
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court construes it as a challenge to the execution of petitioner's sentence, as opposed to an attack on
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the conviction itself. Thus, this matter should be addressed in the forum where petitioner is
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confined. Therefore, the petition should have been filed in the Sacramento Division of the United
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States District Court for the Eastern District of California. In the interest of justice, a federal court
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may transfer a case filed in the wrong district to the correct district. See 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a);
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Starnes v. McGuire, 512 F.2d 918, 932 (D.C. Cir. 1974).
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Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that this matter is transferred to the Sacramento
Division of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
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Dated:
23ehd0
April 2, 2012
/s/ Gary S. Austin
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
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