Motton v. Lee

Filing 16

ORDER OF DISMISSAL. Signed by Judge Charles R. Breyer on 10/20/2011. (Attachments: # 1 Certificate of Service)(beS, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 10/25/2011)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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For the Northern District of California

United States District Court

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FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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EDWARD MOTTON,
Petitioner,

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vs.

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KATHLEEN ALLISON, Warden,
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Respondent.
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No. C 10-3804 CRB (PR)
ORDER OF DISMISSAL

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Petitioner, a state prisoner incarcerated at the California Substance Abuse

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Treatment Facility in Corcoran, California, has filed a pro se amended petition for a

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writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 challenging a 1986 second degree

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murder conviction from Alameda County Superior Court.

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The sole claim petitioner raises in his operative petition (docket # 12) is that

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the murder weapon should have been suppressed under the Fourth Amendment. In

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support, he alludes to the Supreme Court’s statement in Katz v. United States, 389

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U.S. 347, 351 (1967), that “the Fourth Amendment protects people, not places.”

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Petitioner’s claim is not cognizable under § 2254 and must be dismissed.

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Petitioner’s claim is barred by Stone v. Powell, 428 U.S. 465, 481-82, 494

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(1976), which bars federal habeas review of Fourth Amendment claims unless the

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state did not provide an opportunity for full and fair litigation of those claims. Here,

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even if the state courts’ determination of petitioner’s Fourth Amendment claim is

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improper, it cannot be remedied in federal habeas because petitioner was provided a

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full and fair opportunity to litigate the issues in the state courts. See Locks v.

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Sumner, 703 F.2d 403, 408 (9th Cir. 1983).

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DISMISSED.
The clerk shall enter judgment in favor of respondent, terminate all pending

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For the Northern District of California

United States District Court

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For the foregoing reasons, the petition for a writ of habeas corpus is

motions as moot, and close the file.

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DATED: October 20, 2011
CHARLES R. BREYER
United States District Judge

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G:\PRO-SE\CRB\HC.10\Motton, E.10-3804.dismissal.wpd

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