Rodriguez-Ziese v. Hennessy

Filing 16

ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS; VACATING HEARING ON PETITION SET FOR DECEMBER 7, 2017 AT 2:00 P.M. Signed by Judge Beth Labson Freeman on 12/6/2017. (blflc2S, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 12/6/2017)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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SAN JOSE DIVISION

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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CHRISTIAN RODRIGUEZ-ZIESE,
Plaintiff,

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Case No. 17-cv-06473-BLF

v.
VICKI HENNESSY,
Defendant.

ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR
WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS;
VACATING HEARING ON PETITION
SET FOR DECEMBER 7, 2017 AT 2:00
P.M.

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Petitioner Christian Rodriguez-Ziese (“Petitioner”) has filed an Emergency Petition for

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Writ of Habeas Corpus Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241. See ECF 10 (“Amended Petition”).

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Petitioner argues that his pre-trial detention in jail in San Francisco is unconstitutional because the

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state trial court required an unattainable $200,000 secured financial condition of release without

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making any inquiry into his ability to pay or considering any alternative, non-financial conditions

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of release. Id. ¶ 13; ECF 10-1 (“Mem.”) at 4. Petitioner has exhausted his state court remedies

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and requests that this Court issue an emergency writ of habeas corpus unless the state procures a

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constitutionally valid order of pretrial detention. See Mem. at 23.

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The Court set an expedited briefing schedule, ECF 11, and Respondent Vicki Hennessy
(“Respondent”), represented by the Office of the Attorney General of California, agreed that

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Petitioner did not receive constitutionally adequate process during the setting of bail, and that this

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petition for writ of habeas corpus should be granted. See ECF 14 (“Answer”). Petitioner filed a

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traverse only to “urge this Court to issue an opinion on the merits of his case” to provide guidance

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concerning the constitutional requirements of pretrial detention. See ECF 15 (“Traverse”).
For the reasons that follow, the Court GRANTS the petition for a writ of habeas corpus but

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STAYS this Order until and including December 8, 2017 to allow the state superior court to

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conduct a constitutionally adequate bail hearing. The hearing on the petition in this Court set for

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December 7, 2017 at 2:00 P.M. is hereby VACATED.

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I.

BACKGROUND
Petitioner was arrested in San Francisco on April 16, 2017, and charged with two counts of

United States District Court
Northern District of California

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carjacking with a firearm in violation of California Penal Code § 215(a), two counts of unlawful

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driving or taking of a vehicle under California Vehicle Code § 10851(a), and one count of

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receiving stolen property, motor vehicle, under California Penal Code § 469d(a). Amended

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Petition ¶ 11. At arraignment, the state court determined that Petitioner was unable to afford his

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own counsel and appointed the public defender. Id. ¶ 12. Petitioner requested release without

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financial conditions, or, in the alternative $100,000 money bail. Id. ¶ 12. The superior court

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denied Petitioner’s request and required a $200,000 secured financial condition of release. Id.

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¶ 13. Petitioner argues that the court’s statement that it was not willing to release Petitioner

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“based on the facts of this case,” and the imposition of money bail at $200,000, was a de facto

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detention order because it had the intent and effect of detaining Petitioner due to his inability to

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pay the amount required for his release. Id. Petitioner renewed his motion for release, and the

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state court held a hearing on July 24, 2017. Id. ¶ 15. Petitioner’s motion was again denied. The

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court stated that it would not disturb bail, which was appropriate “based upon community safety”

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and because the amount is a “scheduled bail for the City and County of San Francisco.” Id. ¶ 16.

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Petitioner unsuccessfully appealed this condition of his release to the California Court of

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Appeal, which summarily denied his petition on August 24, 2017. Id. ¶ 17. Petitioner then filed a

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petition for review in the Supreme Court of California raising the same claims. Id. ¶ 18. The

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Attorney General of California, representing Respondent, filed an Answer to the petition in the
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Supreme Court of California stating that Respondent “does not defend the magistrate’s decision in

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this case.” ECF 1-4 at 6. Nevertheless, on November 1, 2017 the Supreme Court of California

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summarily denied review of the petition. See ECF 1-5.
On November 7, 2017, Petitioner filed an Emergency Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus

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pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241, which was reassigned to this Court. After this Court issued an

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Order to Show Cause, ECF 9, Petitioner submitted an Amended Petition and requested an

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expedited briefing schedule. The petition is fully briefed, and the Court now GRANTS the

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petition.

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II.

LEGAL STANDARD
Because Petitioner has not been convicted of a crime and is not in custody “pursuant to the

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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judgment of a state court,” Petitioner correctly brings this Petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 and not

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§ 2254 which governs challenges to criminal convictions in state court. Pursuant to § 2241(c)(1),

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the writ of habeas corpus extends to a prisoner who is “in custody under or by color of the

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authority of the United States.” It is § 2241 that provides generally for the granting of writs of

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habeas corpus by federal courts, implementing “the general grant of habeas authority provided by

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the Constitution.” Frantz v. Hazey, 533 F.3d 724, 735 (9th Cir. 2008) (citing White v.

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Lambert, 370 F.3d 1002, 1006 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 543 U.S. 991 (2004)).

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III.

DISCUSSION
Petitioner challenges the constitutionality of his pre-trial detention on the grounds that the

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state trial court required an unattainable secured financial condition of pretrial release without

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making any inquiry into his ability to pay or considering alternative, non-financial conditions of

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release. See Mem. at 4. Respondent concedes that Petitioner did not receive constitutionally

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adequate process at his bail hearing, as bail was set without any factual finding that the financial

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condition was one that Petitioner could afford, or any consideration of alternative, non-financial

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conditions of release. Answer at 2.

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In United States v. Salerno, the Supreme Court recognized that although an individual has

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a “strong interest in liberty” that is important and fundamental in nature, “this right may, in

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circumstances where the government’s interest is sufficiently weighty, be subordinated to the
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greater needs of society.” 481 U.S. 739, 750-51 (1987). Salerno upheld the constitutionality of the

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Bail Reform Act under the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause and the Eighth Amendment’s

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Excessive Bail Clause. Id. at 752. The Court applied heightened scrutiny due to the statute’s

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implication of a fundamental right. Lopez-Valenzuela v. Arpaio, 770 F.3d 772, 780 (9th Cir.

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2014) (“If there was any doubt about the level of scrutiny applied in Salerno, it has been resolved

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in subsequent Supreme Court decisions, which have confirmed that Salerno involved a

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fundamental liberty interest and applied heightened scrutiny.”) Thus, any deprivation of that

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fundamental liberty interest must be narrowly tailored to advance a compelling government

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interest. Although liberty is the norm in our society, the Supreme Court explained that “detention
prior to trial or without trial is the carefully limited exception” and the Bail Reform Act’s

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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provisions regarding pretrial detention fall within that exception due to its numerous procedural

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safeguards. 481 U.S. at 755.

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California law, too, provides for certain procedural safeguards governing the setting of bail

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that Petitioner was entitled to at his bail hearing. Specifically, Penal Code section 1270.1(c)

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mandates that the court making the bail determination consider “any evidence offered by the

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detained person regarding his or her ties to the community and his or her ability to post bond.”

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The magistrate must also make a record of the reasons for decision if bail is set “in an amount that

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is either more or less than the amount contained in the schedule of bail for the offense.” Penal

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Code section 1270.1(d).

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The record in this case clearly shows that the magistrate failed to consider Petitioner’s

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ability to pay the bail amount, and the magistrate did not consider whether nonmonetary

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alternatives could serve the same purposes as the financial condition of release. Therefore, this

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Court finds that as conducted, the hearing was inconsistent with section 1270.1(c), and further it

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does not withstand the heightened scrutiny required by Salerno in order to deprive Petitioner of his

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liberty. Respondent agrees that the setting of bail in this case was constitutionally inadequate, and

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that “the federal Constitution does not permit detaining a defendant before trial solely because that

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defendant cannot afford to post a set amount of money bail.” See Answer at 2-3.

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Although the Parties agree that Petitioner’s bail hearing was constitutionally inadequate in
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this case, they appear to disagree as to the appropriate procedural safeguards required to obtain a

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constitutionally valid pre-trial detention order. According to Petitioner, Salerno and subsequent

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cases make clear that before detaining an individual, the government must provide a full-blown

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adversarial hearing with counsel, notice and an opportunity to be heard concerning the legal and

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factual questions involving danger, a heightened evidentiary standard, and findings on the record

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by a neutral decision-maker. See Mem. at 22. Respondent does not address these requirements,

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but expresses her view that (1) California law permits pretrial detention if a court determines,

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subject to appropriate procedural safeguards, that no reasonably available conditions of release

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will be sufficient to satisfy the public interests in protecting public safety and ensuring appearance

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(citing California Constitution Article I, §§ 12, 28(f)(3)); and (2) under the federal Constitution, a

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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defendant may not be detained before trial solely because that defendant cannot afford a set

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amount of money bail. See Answer at 2-3.

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Petitioner asks this Court to expressly describe the procedural safeguards required for a

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constitutionally permissible bail hearing, but the Court declines Petitioner’s invitation to issue an

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advisory opinion to the state trial court. In order to grant the writ requested in this instance, the

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Court need only determine that the procedures received by Petitioner at the challenged bail hearing

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were constitutionally inadequate. As Respondent concedes the constitutional inadequacy of the

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state court’s procedures at that hearing, the Court’s inquiry is straightforward.

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As explained above, the Court finds that the state court did not provide a constitutionally

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adequate basis on which to detain Petitioner because it failed to consider Petitioner’s ability to pay

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in conjunction with non-monetary alternative conditions of release. Therefore, a writ of habeas

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corpus shall issue ordering Petitioner’s release unless the state procures a valid order of pretrial

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detention that is “narrowly tailored to serve a compelling state interest.” Lopez-Valenzuela, 770

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F.3d at 780. At a minimum, the state court’s determination shall consider alternatives to

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detention, including release on constitutionally permissible conditions, that could reasonably

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satisfy the state’s interest in ensuring public safety and Petitioner’s presence at trial. See Reem v.

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Hennessy, Case No. 17-cv-6628, Order Denying Motion to Dismiss and Granting Petition for

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Habeas Corpus, ECF 13-1.
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The Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus is GRANTED. However, this Order is STAYED

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until and including December 8, 2017 to allow for the superior court to conduct an evidentiary

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hearing to consider appropriate bail, detention, or release under the circumstances of Petitioner’s

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case as outlined above, and to make a determination as to whether its detention of Rodriguez-Ziese

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is “narrowly tailored to serve a compelling state interest.” Lopez-Valenzuela, 770 F.3d at 780.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Dated: December 6, 2017
______________________________________
BETH LABSON FREEMAN
United States District Judge

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