Roybal v. Woodford, et al
Filing
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ORDER Granting Respondent's 290 Motion to Stay Court's Order Granting Writ of Habeas Corpus Pending Appeal. Respondent's motion for a stay of the Courts 12/2/2015 Order to retry or re-sentence Petitioner is Granted. Pursuant to Local Rule HC.3(g)(6), the Court's order of a stay of execution remains in effect pending appellate court action on that stay or on the appeal. Signed by Judge Jeffrey T. Miller on 1/28/2016. (rlu)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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RUDOLPH ROYBAL,
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CASE NO. 99cv2152 JM (KSC)
DEATH PENALTY CASE
Petitioner,
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v.
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ORDER GRANTING
RESPONDENT’S MOTION
TO STAY COURT’S ORDER
GRANTING WRIT OF
HABEAS CORPUS PENDING
APPEAL
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RON DAVIS, Warden of San Quentin
State Prison,
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Respondent.
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On December 2, 2015, the Court issued an Order Granting in Part and Denying
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in Part the Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus, granting penalty phase relief on claims
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of prosecutorial misconduct, ineffective assistance of counsel and cumulative error.
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(ECF No. 284 at 99-113, 175-80, 222-25.) In a separate Order also issued on
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December 2, 2015, the Court ordered the State “to either grant Petitioner a new penalty
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phase trial or to vacate the sentence of death and re-sentence Petitioner to life in prison
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without parole, within 120 days of the date of this Order.” (ECF No. 285.) On
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December 2, 2015, the Clerk entered judgment in accordance with the Court’s Orders.
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(ECF No. 286.)
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On December 23, 2015, Respondent filed a notice of appeal.1 (ECF No. 289.)
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On December 23, 2015, Respondent also filed a motion [“Mot.”] to stay the Court’s
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December 2, 2015 Order granting habeas relief and judgment under Federal Rule of
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Appellate Procedure 8(a), pending appeal. (ECF No. 290.) On January 13, 2016,
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Petitioner filed an Opposition [“Opp.”] to the motion. (ECF No. 296.) Respondent did
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not file a reply. Based on a review of the motion, opposition, and relevant law, the
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Court GRANTS Respondent’s motion for a stay pending appeal.
DISCUSSION
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The parties agree that there are four factors to consider in determining whether
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to stay an order granting habeas relief pending appeal, including: “(1) whether the stay
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applicant has made a strong showing that he is likely to succeed on the merits; (2)
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whether the applicant will be irreparably injured absent a stay; (3) whether issuance of
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the stay will substantially injure the other parties interested in the proceeding; and (4)
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where the public interest lies.” Hilton v. Braunskill, 481 U.S. 770, 776 (1987).
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1.
Likelihood of Success on the Merits
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Respondent contends that “[t]he State is likely to succeed on appeal because this
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Court did not undertake proper review of Roybal’s claims arising from the prosecutor’s
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biblical reference,” and asserts that the Court failed to properly apply Harrington v.
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Richter, 562 U.S. 86 (2011), AEDPA, and Brecht v. Abrahamson, 507 U.S. 619 (1993)
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to Petitioner’s case. (Mot. at 2-5.) Respondent argues that “this Court never
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articulated that no reasonable jurist could agree with the state court,” and that “this
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Court’s decision indicates no more than its disagreement with the state court and that
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on de novo review, it would have reached a different outcome.” (Id. at 2.)
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Contrary to Respondent’s contentions, the Court conducted a thorough review
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of this claim under AEDPA, concluding that the California Supreme Court’s
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adjudication of his claim of error involved an unreasonable application of clearly
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The Court also notes that Respondent and Petitioner have each separately
appealed the Court’s adjudication of the federal Petition, and have been assigned Ninth
Circuit case numbers 15-99016 and 15-99017, respectively. (See ECF No. 293.)
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established federal law, and did not simply indicate “disagreement” with the state
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court’s conclusion. (See ECF No. 286 at 101-06.) The Court concluded that “[i]n light
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of the requirement that such misconduct be reviewed in the context of the entire trial,
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the California Supreme Court’s cursory analysis and conclusory rejection of this error
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as harmless was not merely erroneous, it was objectively unreasonable,” and explicitly
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found that Petitioner had satisfied section 2254(d). (Id. at 105.) Only after finding
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Petitioner had satisfied AEDPA did the Court conduct a harmlessness review,
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acknowledging that “[e]ven though Petitioner has satisfied AEDPA, the Court must
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still apply the Brecht test to determine if this error was prejudicial.” (Id. at 108-13.)
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Yet, the Court acknowledges that Respondent’s position is not without basis, as
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the Court issued a certificate of appealability on several claims in the federal Petition,
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including the claim of prosecutorial misconduct and the related claim of ineffective
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assistance of counsel. (See id. at 220-21.) Accordingly, while unpersuaded that
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Respondent has demonstrated a “strong showing” of likely success on the merits
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sufficient to weigh the first factor in his favor, Respondent presents a claim worthy of
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appellate consideration.
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2.
Injury to Respondent
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Respondent notes that “[t]he Court gave the prosecution 120 days to reinstitute
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criminal proceedings related to the penalty phase for a murder that occurred 26 years
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ago. The prosecution must therefore expend substantial effort and resources to locate
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witnesses and exhibits that may be difficult to find after the original penalty phase
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proceedings in 1992, and then prepare for and conduct a capital trial.” (Mot. at 5.)
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Respondent points out that “[i]f the Court’s order is ultimately reversed on appeal, the
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prosecution will be released from the burden of a new trial.” (Id. at 5-6, citing Franklin
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v. Duncan, 891 F.Supp. 516, 520 (N.D. Cal. 1995) (“It makes little sense for the State
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to be required to immediately conduct a murder trial if there is any possibility the trial
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could be mooted by a reversal of this Court’s order on appeal.”)). Here, both parties
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have appealed the Court’s adjudication of the federal Petition, and as in Franklin, it is
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“highly unlikely” that the Ninth Circuit will resolve the matters pending prior to the
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expiration of the 120 day period set forth in the Court’s December 2, 2015 Order. See
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id. at 520-21.
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Petitioner maintains that mounting a retrial would not be “an onerous task,” and
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notes that the evidence is available, as counsel for Petitioner recently examined the trial
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exhibits, the original trial prosecutor remains employed at the district attorney’s office,
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and Respondent has not specifically shown that locating witnesses will be difficult.
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(Opp. at 4-5.)
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However, the penalty phase proceedings in this case took place in 1992, well
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over 20 years ago, and it is evident that a retrial of those proceedings presents a
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substantial undertaking. In light of the fact that Respondent and Petitioner have each
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sought appellate review of the Court’s December 2, 2015 Order, which places both the
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conviction and sentence at issue, requiring the prosecution to pursue a penalty phase
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retrial at this stage would result in irreparable injury to the State given the possibility
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of reversal. This factor weighs in favor of a stay.
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3.
Injury to Other Parties
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Respondent asserts that “issuance of a stay would not prejudice Roybal because
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he would essentially be in the same position as now- facing a retrial of the penalty
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phase.” (Mot. at 6.) Petitioner argues that: “It is in the interest of justice that his
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penalty phase trial commence without the delay inherent in waiting for the appeals
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process. Continuing his status as a condemned prisoner would not only constitute
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injury in terms of the physical and emotional stress of facing execution, but would
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extend the constitutional violation flowing from the prosecutor’s misconduct during
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closing argument.” (Opp. at 6.)
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Because the habeas relief granted was limited to the penalty phase alone and the
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Court denied relief with respect to the conviction and special circumstances finding,
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it appears, release is not contemplated regardless of this Court’s decision on the instant
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motion. See Cal. Const. Art. 1 § 12 (“A person shall be released on bail by sufficient
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sureties, except for: (a) Capital crimes when the facts are evident or the presumption
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great; . . .”) Indeed, the Court’s December 2, 2015 Order gave the State of California
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the option of either retrying Petitioner’s penalty phase or re-sentencing him to life in
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prison without parole. (See ECF No. 285.) While the Court is cognizant of the fact
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that Petitioner remains on death row, it is clear that Petitioner was convicted of grave
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crimes and would not be entitled to release regardless of the Court’s decision on this
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matter. Accordingly, the Court finds that in this instance, issuance of a stay would not
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“substantially injure” other parties to the habeas proceedings.
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4.
Public Interest
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Respondent argues that the State and its citizenry have a public interest in both
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the effectiveness of state courts and in being protected from criminals convicted of
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capital murder and argue that “[t]he public interest favors preserving the status quo
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while California pursues its rights in the Court of Appeals.” (Mot. at 6.) Petitioner,
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meanwhile, asserts that “there is at least an ‘equally strong public interest in ensuring
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that no man be denied of his liberty without a trial that meets constitutional standards
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and observes his constitutional rights.’” (Opp. at 7, quoting Griffin v. Harrington, 2013
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WL 3873958, at *5 (C.D. Cal. 2013).) Again, as discussed above, the habeas relief
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granted was limited to the penalty phase and Petitioner would not be entitled to release
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regardless of whether the stay is granted or denied. As such, neither parties’ arguments
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concerning liberty interests or protection from convicted criminals are implicated in
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this matter. The Court agrees, however, that public interest weighs in favor of not
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expending considerable effort and expense to retry a decades-old criminal proceeding
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that could ultimately be nullified on appeal. This last factor weighs in favor of a stay.
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CONCLUSION
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The Court concludes that the factors outlined in Hilton weigh in favor of
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granting the stay in this case. See Hilton, 481 U.S. at 776. As an additional matter,
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Petitioner requests that “[i]f this Court grants the motion for a stay, Petitioner asks that
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the portion of the judgment ordering a stay of execution continue in full effect until the
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appellate courts [sic] acts upon the appeal or the order of stay remain in effect.” (Opp.
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at 7.) Local rules provide for a stay of execution pending appeal, the Court issued the
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stay in the December 2, 2015 Order, and the case has since been appealed to the Ninth
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Circuit. The stay of execution will remain in place pending appeal.
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Based on the considerations discussed above, Respondent’s motion for a stay of
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the Court’s December 2, 2015 Order to retry or re-sentence Petitioner is GRANTED.
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Pursuant to Local Rule HC.3(g)(6), the Court’s order of a stay of execution remains in
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effect pending appellate court action on that stay or on the appeal.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
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DATED: January 28, 2016
Hon. Jeffrey T. Miller
United States District Judge
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