Dixon v. The State of California, Superior Court of Santa Clara County et al

Filing 11

ORDER OF TRANSFER. Signed by Judge Jon S. Tigar on June 23, 2017. (Attachments: # 1 Blank habeas petition form, # 2 Certificate/Proof of Service) (wsn, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 6/23/2017)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILING A PETITION FOR A WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS
BY A PERSON IN STATE CUSTODY UNDER 28 U.S.C. § 2254

I.

SCOPE OF 28 U.S.C. § 2254

You may file a petition for a writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 if you are in custody pursuant
to the judgment of a state court in violation of the federal constitution or federal statutes. You may
challenge either the fact or duration of your state sentence.
Any challenge to violations of federal law that affect the conditions—as opposed to the fact or duration—
of your confinement should be brought in a civil rights complaint under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. If you wish to
file a civil rights complaint under § 1983, you may do so on the forms provided by the clerk. Ask for the
packet titled Instructions for Filing a Civil Rights Complaint by a Prisoner under 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
IMPORTANT NOTES




A petition for a writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 will not be granted unless you have
exhausted the remedies available in state court.



II.

If you previously filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in federal court that challenged the same
conviction or sentence you are challenging now and if that petition was denied or dismissed with
prejudice, you must first file a motion in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit for an order
authorizing this court to consider this petition. You may not file a second or successive federal habeas
petition without first obtaining such an order. 28 U.S.C. § 2244(b).

Only one sentence or conviction may be challenged in a single petition. If you challenge more than
one sentence or conviction, you must do so by separate petitions.

FILING A PETITION
A. Where to File

You should file in the Northern District if you were convicted and sentenced in one of these counties:
Alameda, Contra Costa, Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Monterey, Napa, San
Benito, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz or Sonoma. You also should file in this
district if you are challenging the manner in which your sentence is being executed, such as loss of goodtime credits, and you are confined in one of these counties. Habeas Corpus Local Rule 2254-3(a).
If you are challenging your conviction or sentence and you were not convicted and sentenced in one of the
above-named counties, your petition will likely be transferred to the federal district court for the district in
which the state court that convicted and sentenced you is located. If you are challenging the execution of
your sentence and you are not incarcerated in one of the counties listed above, your petition will likely be
transferred to the federal district court for the district that includes the institution where you are confined.
Habeas Corpus Local Rule 2254-3(b).

B. Whom to Name as Respondent
Name the person who has actual custody of you, which usually means the warden or jailor. Do not name the
state, a city, a county or a court. These are not proper respondents. If you are not presently in custody
pursuant to the judgment against which you seek relief but may be subject to such custody in the future (e.g.,
detainers), name the person in whose custody you are now and the Attorney General of the state in which the
FILING INSTRUCTIONS, PETITION FOR A WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (rev. 8/2015)
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judgment you seek to challenge was entered.
C. How to File
To file a habeas action, send the court the following items:


Your original, completed petition form
Your petition must be legibly handwritten or typewritten, and you must sign it and declare under
penalty of perjury that the facts stated in it are correct. Read the entire form and explanatory
comments that appear throughout it before you answer the questions. Complete all applicable
questions in the blanks provided; attach additional pages if you need more space for any of your
answers, clearly noting the question number to which any such continued answer refers.



A check or money order for $5 or a completed application to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP)
The fee for filing a petition for a writ of habeas corpus is $5. If you cannot afford to pay the fee
at the time you file your petition, you may apply to proceed IFP using the forms provided by the
clerk. Ask for the packet titled Instructions for Filing an Application to Proceed In Forma
Pauperis by a Prisoner under 28 U.S.C. § 1915.

Make copies for your records and mail the original copies of your completed forms to: Clerk, U.S. District
Court for the Northern District of California, 450 Golden Gate Avenue, Box 36060, San Francisco, CA 94102.

III.

MAGISTRATE JUDGE JURISDICTION

Magistrate judges are selected through a statutorily prescribed merit selection process and are appointed by the
judges of this court. The court encourages parties to consent to magistrate judge jurisdiction as it may result in
an earlier resolution of the matter; the rules and procedures used to decide your case will be the same regardless
of whether a district judge or a magistrate judge decides your case. But you are free to decline magistrate judge
jurisdiction and request that your case be decided by a district judge. Please indicate on the Consent or
Declination to Magistrate Judge Jurisdiction form provided by the clerk whether you consent or decline to
consent to magistrate judge jurisdiction.
IV.

AFTER YOUR PETITION IS FILED

The clerk will assign a case number and judge to your petition and mail you a copy of the first page, which will
have the case number and judge's initials stamped on it. Please retain this copy for your records and put the
case number on any case-related document you send to the court. If your petition is deficient in any way, the
clerk may send you a notice that will require your response. If your case is assigned to a magistrate judge
before you consented or declined to consent to magistrate judge jurisdiction, the clerk may send you a Consent
or Declination to Magistrate Judge Jurisdiction form that will require your response. Please note that it is your
responsibility to inform the court in writing without delay if your address changes. You will be notified at the
address the court has on record whenever the court issues an order. A failure to respond to notices or orders or
a failure to update your address may result in the dismissal of your case.
V.

INQUIRIES AND COPYING REQUESTS

Because of the large volume of cases filed in this court and limited court resources, the court will not answer
inquiries concerning the status of your case or provide copies of documents, except at a charge of fifty cents
($0.50) per page. It is therefore recommended that you make and keep a copy of every document you submit
to the court for your records.

FILING INSTRUCTIONS, PETITION FOR A WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (rev. 8/2015)
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PETITION FOR A WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS BY A PERSON IN STATE CUSTODY
Name:
LAST

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FIRST

MIDDLE INITIAL

Prisoner Number:
Institutional Address:

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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Petitioner,

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vs.

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Respondent(s).
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)
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Case Number:
(Provided by the clerk upon filing)

PETITION FOR A WRIT
OF HABEAS CORPUS

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I. INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR CONVICTION AND SENTENCE
A. What sentence are you challenging in this petition?
1. Name and location of court that imposed sentence (for example: Alameda County
Superior Court, Oakland):

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2. Court

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3. Location

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4. Case number, if known

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5. Date and terms of sentence

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6. Are you now in custody serving this term? (“In custody” means in jail, on parole or

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probation, etc.) ..................................................................................... YES

PETITION FOR A WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (rev. 8/2015)
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NO

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If yes, provide name and address of institution:

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B. For what crime were you given this sentence?

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Note: If your petition challenges a sentence for more than one crime, list each crime separately
using California Penal Code numbers, if known. If you are challenging more than one sentence,
you should file a different petition for each sentence.

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C. Did you have any of the following proceedings?

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Arraignment: ............................................................................................. YES

NO

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Preliminary Hearing:................................................................................. YES

NO

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Motion to Suppress: .................................................................................. YES

NO

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D. How did you plead? ................................. Guilty

Not Guilty

Nolo Contendere

Any other plea (specify)
E. If you went to trial, what kind of trial did you have?
Jury

Judge alone

Judge alone on a transcript

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F. Did you testify at your trial? ..................................................................... YES

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NO

G. Did you have an attorney at the following proceedings:

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1. Arraignment ........................................................................................ YES

NO

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2. Preliminary hearing............................................................................. YES

NO

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3. Time of plea ........................................................................................ YES

NO

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4. Trial..................................................................................................... YES

NO

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5. Sentencing........................................................................................... YES

NO

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6. Appeal ................................................................................................. YES

NO

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7. Other post-conviction proceeding....................................................... YES

NO

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H. Did you appeal your conviction? .............................................................. YES

NO

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1. If you appealed, to what court(s) did you appeal?

PETITION FOR A WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (rev. 8/2015)
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Court of Appeal.............................................................. YES

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Result:

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Supreme Court of California.......................................... YES

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Result:

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Any other court ............................................................... YES

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Year:

NO

Year:

NO

Year:

NO

Result:

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2. If you appealed, were the grounds the same as those that you are raising in this

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petition?............................................................................................... YES

NO

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3. Did the court issue an opinion?........................................................... YES

NO

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4. Did you seek permission to file a late appeal under Rule 31(a)?........ YES

NO

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If you did, give the name of the court and the result:

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I. Other than appeals, have you previously filed any petitions, applications or motions with
respect to this conviction in any court, state or federal? ........................... YES

Note: If you previously filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in federal court challenging the
same conviction you are challenging now and if that petition was denied or dismissed with
prejudice, you must first file a motion in the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
for an order authorizing this court to consider this petition. You may not file a second or
successive federal habeas petition without first obtaining such an order from the Ninth Circuit.
28 U.S.C. § 2244(b).

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If you sought relief in any proceeding other than an appeal, answer the following

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questions for each proceeding. Attach extra paper if you need more space.

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1. Name of court:

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Type of proceeding:

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Grounds raised (be brief but specific):

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a.

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b.

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c.

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d.

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Result:

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NO

Date of result:

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2. Name of court:

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Type of proceeding:

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Grounds raised (be brief but specific):

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a.

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b.

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c.

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d.

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Result:

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Date of result:

3. Name of court:

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Type of proceeding:

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Grounds raised (be brief but specific):

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a.

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b.

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c.

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d.

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Result:

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Date of result:

4. Name of court:

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Type of proceeding:

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Grounds raised (be brief but specific):

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a.

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b.

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c.

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d.

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Result:

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Date of result:

J. Is any petition, appeal or other post-conviction proceeding now pending in any court?

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................................................................................................................... YES

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Name and location of court:

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PETITION FOR A WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (rev. 8/2015)
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NO

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II.

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State briefly every reason why you believe you are being confined unlawfully. Give facts to

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support each claim. For example, what right or privilege were you denied? What happened?

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Who made the error? Avoid legal arguments with numerous case citations. Attach extra paper if

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you need more space. Answer the same questions for each claim.

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GROUNDS FOR RELIEF

Note: You must present ALL your claims in your first federal habeas petition. Subsequent petitions
may be dismissed without review on the merits. 28 USC § 2244(b); McCleskey v. Zant, 499 U.S.
467, 111 S. Ct. 1454, 113 L. Ed. 2d 517 (1991).

Claim One:

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Supporting facts:

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Claim Two:

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Supporting facts:

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Claim Three:

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Supporting facts:

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If any of these grounds was not previously presented to any other court, state briefly which

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grounds were not presented and why:

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List, by name and citation only, any cases that you think are close factually to yours so that they

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are an example of the error you believe occurred in your case. Do not discuss the holding or

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reasoning of these cases:

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Do you have an attorney for this petition?............................................................ YES

NO

If you do, give the name and address of your attorney:

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WHEREFORE, petitioner prays that the court grant him/her the relief to which he/she may be

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entitled in this action. I verify under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.

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Executed on:

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Date

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PETITION FOR A WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (rev. 8/2015)
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Signature of Petitioner