D Andre Stallworth v. Superior Court of Los Angeles
2:16-cv-07135
C.D. Cal.Aug 29, 2017Background
- D’Andre Stallworth, a California prisoner, was convicted by a jury on February 24, 2014 of robbery and carrying a loaded firearm in public, with a personal firearm-use enhancement.
- The California Court of Appeal affirmed the conviction but remanded for resentencing; the California Supreme Court denied review.
- Stallworth filed a federal habeas petition pro se on September 22, 2016, asserting ineffective assistance of counsel and an unspecified sentencing error.
- He did not raise the ineffective-assistance claim on direct appeal and had not filed any state habeas petitions on these claims.
- The petition’s sentencing-error allegation was conclusory and failed to identify operative facts or a federal basis for relief.
- The district court dismissed the petition without prejudice for failure to exhaust and for lacking a cognizable federal claim, and denied a certificate of appealability.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ineffective assistance of counsel | Stallworth alleges counsel was ineffective (ground asserted) | Respondent: claim not presented to state courts; unexhausted | Dismissed without prejudice for failure to exhaust state remedies |
| Sentencing error / unauthorized sentence | Stallworth claims he received an unauthorized sentence | Respondent: allegation is vague, conclusory, and raises only state-law error | Dismissed as not stating a cognizable federal habeas claim |
| Certificate of appealability (COA) | Implicitly argues appealability of district court’s dismissal | Respondent: dismissal is correct and not debatable among reasonable jurists | COA denied |
Key Cases Cited
- Baldwin v. Reese, 541 U.S. 27 (requirement to fairly present federal claims to state courts)
- Duncan v. Henry, 513 U.S. 364 (per curiam) (fair presentation/exhaustion requirement)
- Mayle v. Felix, 545 U.S. 644 (pleading specificity for habeas claims)
- Estelle v. McGuire, 502 U.S. 62 (federal habeas does not lie for state-law errors alone)
- Rasberry v. Garcia, 448 F.3d 1150 (9th Cir. 2006) (district court may dismiss petition that contains only unexhausted claims)
- Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473 (standards for certificate of appealability)
- Porter v. Ollison, 620 F.3d 952 (judicial notice of state court docket and filings)