Castellanos v. Warden B Stroud et al

Filing 5

ORDER that 2 Motion to Appoint Counsel is DENIED. FURTHER ORDERED that the Clerk of Court is instructed to file the petition [ECF No. 1-1], add Adam Paul Laxalt, Attorney General for the State of Nevada, as counsel for respondents, and serve re spondents with a copy of the petition and this order. The Clerk of Court is further instructed to send Castellanos a copy of his petition. Counsel for respondents must enter a notice of appearance by July 29, 2016. FURTHER ORDERED that respondents will have 45 days from receipt of the petition to answer or otherwise respond. Signed by Judge Jennifer A. Dorsey on 7/15/16. (Copies have been distributed pursuant to the NEF - MMM)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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DISTRICT OF NEVADA

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Peter Castellanos,

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Petitioner

2:16-cv-00966-JAD-GWF
Order Screening and Filing Petition,
Ordering Response, and Denying
Motion for Appointment of Counsel

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v.

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Warden B. Stroud, et al.,
[ECF No. 2]

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Respondents

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I have screened Nevada state prisoner Peter Castellanos’s § 2554 petition under Rule 4 of the

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Rules Governing Section 2254 Cases in the United States District Courts and find that it warrants a

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response. I therefore direct the Clerk to file Castellanos’s petition and serve it on respondents for a

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response.
Castellanos has also filed a motion for appointment of counsel.1 There is no constitutional

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right to counsel in federal habeas corpus proceedings,2 but a court may appoint counsel to represent a

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financially eligible person when the interests of justice so require.3 To determine whether

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appointment of counsel is warranted, courts consider the likelihood of success on the merits and the

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petitioner’s ability to articulate his claims pro se in light of the complexity of the legal issues

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involved.4 The issues raised in this case are not so complex that appointment of counsel is

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warranted, so I deny Castellanos’s motion.

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Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Castellanos’s motion for appointment of
counsel [ECF No. 2] is DENIED.

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1

ECF No. 2.

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2

McCleskey v. Zant, 499 U.S. 467, 495 (1991).

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18 U.S.C. § 3006A(a)(2)(B).

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4

Weygandt v. Look, 718 F.2d 952 (9th Cir. 1983).

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Page 1 of 2

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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Clerk of Court is instructed to file the petition [ECF

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No. 1-1], add Adam Paul Laxalt, Attorney General for the State of Nevada, as counsel for

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respondents, and serve respondents with a copy of the petition and this order. The Clerk of Court is

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further instructed to send Castellanos a copy of his petition. Counsel for respondents must enter a

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notice of appearance by July 29, 2016.

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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that respondents will have 45 days from receipt of the petition

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to answer or otherwise respond. Respondents must raise all affirmative defenses in their initial

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responsive pleading, including untimeliness, lack of exhaustion, and procedural default. Successive

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dismissal motions will not be entertained. If respondents file and serve an answer, they must comply

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with Rule 5 of the Rules Governing Section 2254 Cases in the United States District Courts, and

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Castellanos will then have 45 days from receipt of the answer to file a reply. If respondents file a

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motion, the briefing schedule under Local Rule 7-2 will apply.

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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that any exhibits must be filed with a separate index of exhibits

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identifying each by number or letter. Any attachments filed in CM/ECF must be identified by the

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numbers or letters of the exhibit in the attachment. A hard copy of any state-court record exhibits

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must be forwarded to the staff attorneys in Las Vegas.

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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, from this point forward, Costellanos must serve on

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respondents (or if counsel has appeared for respondents, on respondents’ counsel) a copy of every

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pleading, motion, or other document filed in this case. Castellanos must include with the original

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paper submitted for filing a certificate stating the date that a true and correct copy of the document

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was mailed to respondents or their counsel. The court may disregard any filing that does not include

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a certificate of service.

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Dated this 15th day of June, 2016.
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________________________
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Jennifer A. Dorsey
nnifer A Dorsey
fe
e
rse
United States District Judge
ited States
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Judge
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