Lawrence v. Ponce

Filing 11

MEMORANDUM and ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Allison Claire on 7/28/2017 ORDERING 1 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus is DENIED and the court declines to issue a certificate of appealability. CASE CLOSED. (Henshaw, R)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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RAYMOND LAWRENCE,

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Petitioner,

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No. 2:16-cv-1584-AC P

v.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

FELICIA PONCE, Warden,

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Respondent.

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Petitioner is a federal prisoner without counsel seeking a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to

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28 U.S.C. § 2241. He challenges a March 11, 2015 disciplinary conviction for violating Bureau

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of Prison (“BOP”) rules prohibiting possession of contraband. ECF No. 1 at 6. The government

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has responded (ECF No. 9) and petitioner has filed a traverse (ECF No. 10). The parties in this

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action have consented to proceed before a United States Magistrate Judge pursuant to 28 U.S.C.

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§ 636(c). ECF Nos. 3, 5. After review of the record and, for the reasons stated below, the

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petition will be denied.

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I.

Background

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On March 2, 2015, prison officials searched petitioner’s room at FCI Milan as part of a

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“shakedown.” ECF No. 9-1 at 53. Officials discovered a leafy green substance hidden in the

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room’s window frame. Id. The substance tested positive for marijuana. Id. at 41.

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Petitioner was provided with advance written notice of the charges against him when he

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was given a copy of the incident report on March 3, 2015. Id. at 37. He was provided with

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written notice of his disciplinary hearing rights on March 4, 2015. ECF No. 9-2 at 18. The

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disciplinary hearing was held on March 11, 2015. Id. at 20. Petitioner did not request staff

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assistance, request witnesses, or present documentary evidence in his defense. Id. The

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disciplinary hearing officer (“DHO”) relied on staff memorandum confirming that the contraband

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tested positive as marijuana, a photograph of the contraband, cell assignment records, and

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petitioner’s statements. Id. at 21. Petitioner was found guilty of the charged violation. Id. at

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20-21. As a result of the DHO’s finding, petitioner forfeited 41 days of good-time credit, lost

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commissary and phone privileges for 90 days, and was fined $50.00. Id. at 22.
Petitioner appealed and the disciplinary conviction was upheld. ECF No. 9-2 at 75; ECF
No. 9-1 at 21.

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II.

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A federal court may grant petition for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241

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if a federal prisoner can demonstrate that he “is in custody in violation of the Constitution or laws

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or treaties of the United States.” 28 U.S.C. § 2241(a), (c)(3).

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Legal Standards

A prisoner’s due process rights are implicated where he is deprived of good-time credits.

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See Sandin v. Conner, 515 U.S. 472, 477-478 (1995). With respect to prison disciplinary

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proceedings, a prisoner is entitled to: (1) written notice of the charges; (2) at least 24 hours

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between the time the prisoner receives written notice and the time of the hearing, so that the

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prisoner may prepare his defense; (3) a written statement by the fact finders of the evidence they

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rely on and reasons for taking disciplinary action; (4) the right of the prisoner to call witnesses in

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his defense, when permitting him to do so would not be unduly hazardous to institutional safety

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or correctional goals; and (5) legal assistance to the prisoner where the prisoner is illiterate or the

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issues presented are legally complex. Wolff v. McDonnell, 418 U.S. 539, 563-71 (1974). The

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Supreme Court has held that “requirements of due process are satisfied if some evidence supports

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the decision by the prison disciplinary board to revoke good time credits.” Superintendent v. Hill,

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472 U.S. 445, 455 (1985). “Ascertaining whether this standard is satisfied does not require
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examination of the entire record, independent assessment of the credibility of witnesses, or

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weighing of the evidence. Instead, the relevant question is whether there is any evidence in the

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record that could support the conclusion reached by the disciplinary board.” Id.

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III.

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Petitioner argues that his disciplinary should be expunged because his cellmate, Gregory

Analysis

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Hayes, took full responsibility for the contraband at issue. ECF No. 1 at 6. Petitioner argues that

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he was at his assigned work when Hayes hid the contraband and the cell was searched. Id. He

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claims that he had neither knowledge of the contraband nor an opportunity to ensure that his cell

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was free of prohibited items. Id.

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The evidence provided by respondent establishes that petitioner was afforded all the

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procedural protections demanded by Wolff. He received notice of the charges against him on

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March 3, 2015 – well before the March 11 hearing. ECF No. 9-1 at 37. Petitioner was afforded

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opportunities to call witnesses and present documentary evidence, but declined both. ECF

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No. 9-2 at 20; ECF No. 9-1 at 39. The DHO presiding at the hearing was impartial insofar as he

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was not involved in the investigation of the incident. ECF No. 9-2 at 3 ¶ 6. Petitioner declined

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staff assistance (ECF No. 9-1 at 39) and was given a copy of the DHO report after the hearing (id.

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at 36). Petitioner does not appear to dispute that he was afforded the Wolff procedural

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safeguards.

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Next, the court finds that “some evidence” supported the decision to revoke petitioner’s

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good-time credits. The DHO relied on an officer’s report, a supporting memorandum, and a

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photograph of the contraband. Id. at 35-36. This was sufficient. See Hill, 472 U.S. at 456-57

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(holding that statement of officer involved and his written report constituted “some evidence” for

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purposes of a prison disciplinary proceeding); Bostic v. Carlson, 884 F.2d 1267, 1271 (9th Cir.

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1989) (“The reporting officer's testimony constituted sufficient evidence to support the finding of

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guilty.”); McPherson v. McBride, 188 F.3d 784, 786 (7th Cir. 1999) (incident report provides

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some evidence to support disciplining inmate).

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Petitioner’s argument that his conviction must be overturned because his cellmate
accepted responsibility is unpersuasive. Other courts in this circuit have rejected identical
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arguments. See Givens v. McComber, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 142572, 2015 WL 6167660, at *6

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(E.D. Cal. Oct. 20, 2015) (“Petitioner's denial of responsibility, and his cellmate's acceptance of

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responsibility for the contraband do[] not require that the prison disciplinary [decision] be

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overturned.”). Nothing requires the DHO responsible for deciding credibility issues to accept as

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true a cellmate’s claim of sole responsibility. See Kiefer v. Hedgpeth, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS

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4505, 2011 WL 97732, at *3 (N.D. Cal. Jan. 12, 2011) ( “the fact that an inmate offered a defense

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did not mean that the hearing officer had to accept it as true,” and “[t]he fact that the cellmate

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admitted possession of the [contraband] did not logically eliminate liability for [petitioner], as

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both may have constructively possessed the [contraband].” ); Castodio v. Grounds, 2013 U.S.

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Dist. LEXIS 102263, 2013 WL 3815664, at *3 (N.D. Cal. July 21, 2013) (“the cellmate's

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admitted possession of the [contraband] did not logically eliminate liability for [petitioner], as

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both could have constructively possessed the [contraband].”). In his traverse, petitioner argues

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that there was no finding of intent or evidence that he brought contraband into the cell or had

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prior knowledge of the contraband. ECF No. 10 at 3. No such finding was required, however.

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As noted above, this court is limited to asking only whether “some evidence” supported

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the conviction. “Revocation of good time credits is not comparable to a criminal conviction and

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neither the amount of evidence necessary to support such a conviction, nor any other standard

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greater than some evidence applies in this context.” Hill, 472 U.S. at 456 (internal citations

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omitted). Petitioner’s version of events – that his cellmate was solely responsible and he had no

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knowledge of the drugs – is not implausible. Nevertheless, “[t]he Federal Constitution does not

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require evidence that logically precludes any conclusion but the one reached by the disciplinary

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board.” Id. at 457.

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IV.

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Based on the foregoing, it is ORDERED that:

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1.

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The petition for writ of habeas corpus (ECF No. 1) is DENIED; and

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Conclusion

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The court declines to issue a certificate of appealability because reasonable jurists

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would not find this court’s assessment of petitioner’s claims debatable or wrong and these claims

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do not warrant encouragement to proceed further.

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DATED: July 28, 2017.

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