Romero v. Warden Chillicothe Correctional Institution

Filing 21

ORDER ADOPTING and AFFIRMING the REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION 17 in that the 8 Motion to Dismiss filed by Warden Chillicothe Correctional Institution is GRANTED and Petitioner's Motion to Strike the Motion to Dismiss is DENIED.. Signed by Judge James L. Graham on 3/9/17. (sem)(This document has been sent by regular mail to the party(ies) listed in the NEF that did not receive electronic notification.)

Download PDF
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO EASTERN DIVISION FRANCISCO ROMERO, CASE NO. 2:16-CV-00600 JUDGE JAMES L. GRAHAM Magistrate Judge Kimberly A. Jolson Petitioner, v. WARDEN, CHILLICOTHE CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION, Respondent. OPINION AND ORDER On January 23, 2017, the Magistrate Judge issued an Order and Report and Recommendation denying Petitioner’s motion to strike the Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 9), and recommending that Respondent’s Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 8) be granted and that this action be dismissed. (ECF No. 17.) Petitioner has filed an Objection to the Magistrate Judge’s Report and Recommendation. (ECF No. 20.) Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b), this Court has conducted a de novo review. For the reasons that follow, Petitioner’s Objection (ECF No. 20) is OVERRULED. The Order and Report and Recommendation (ECF No. 17) is ADOPTED and AFFIRMED. Petitioner’s motion to strike the Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 9) is DENIED. Respondent’s Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 8) is GRANTED and this action is hereby DISMISSED. Petitioner challenges his convictions after a jury trial in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas on two counts of gross sexual imposition. He asserts that the evidence is constitutionally insufficient to sustain his convictions and that his convictions are against the manifest weight of the evidence; and that he was improperly convicted based on inadmissible hearsay, victim-impact testimony, and cumulative error. The Magistrate Judge recommended dismissal of Petitioner’s claims as procedurally defaulted and without merit. Petitioner objects to the Magistrate Judge’s recommendation of dismissal of this action. Petitioner again raises all of the arguments he previously presented. He claims that the trial judge was biased and prejudiced against him, and that the proceeding against him were fundamentally unfair. Petitioner further contends that the Ohio Supreme Court in State v. Williams, -- Ohio St.3d --, 2016 WL 6646162 (Ohio Nov. 10, 2016), substantially limited application of Ohio’s doctrine of res judicata, such that his procedural default of his claims does not preclude federal habeas corpus review. Petitioner’s arguments are not persuasive. The Ohio Supreme Court in Williams held that, where the trial court improperly imposes separate sentences for allied offenses of similar import, such sentences are void, and res judicata does not preclude a court from correcting such sentences after direct appeal. Id. at *1. Such are not the circumstances here. Petitioner waived his claims of insufficiency of the evidence and his claim that his sentences are against the manifest weight of the evidence by failing to establish cause and prejudice for his failure to raise such claims on direct appeal. Further, as noted by the Magistrate Judge, a claim that a conviction is against the manifest weight of the evidence is not cognizable on federal habeas review. See Williams v. Jenkins, No. 1:15-cv-00567, 2016 WL 2583803, at *7 (N.D. Ohio Feb. 22, 2016)(citing Nash v. Eberlin, 258 Fed.Appx. 761, 765 n. 4 (6th Cir. 2007)). Further, the record fails to reflect that the state court’s evidentiary rulings constitute a basis for federal habeas corpus relief. To the extent that Petitioner now claims prejudice or bias on the part of the state trial court, Petitioner failed either to present such claim in his initial Petition, or to present such claim to the state courts. This Court therefore will not now address such issue here. 2 For the foregoing reasons and for the reasons detailed in the Magistrate Judge’s Order and Report and Recommendation, Petitioner’s Objection (ECF No. 20) is OVERRULED. The Order and Report and Recommendation (ECF No. 17) is ADOPTED and AFFIRMED. Petitioner’s motion to strike the Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 9) is DENIED. Respondent’s Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 8) is GRANTED and this action is hereby DISMISSED. IT IS SO ORDERED. Date: March 9, 2017 _______s/James L. Graham_____ JAMES L. GRAHAM United States District Judge 3

Disclaimer: Justia Dockets & Filings provides public litigation records from the federal appellate and district courts. These filings and docket sheets should not be considered findings of fact or liability, nor do they necessarily reflect the view of Justia.


Why Is My Information Online?