Irizarry v. Keyser
1:17-cv-06453
E.D.N.YAug 31, 2021Background:
- Petitioner Pedro Irizarry stabbed Mark White during an altercation; White later died. Petitioner was convicted of second-degree murder and second-degree assault and sentenced to 18 years-to-life (plus concurrent terms and post-release supervision).
- Appellate Division affirmed on October 25, 2011; New York Court of Appeals denied leave and the conviction became final for AEDPA purposes on May 23, 2012.
- Petitioner filed a CPL §440.10 motion in August 2016 (denied December 15, 2016) and filed the federal habeas petition on October 31, 2017—almost five years after finality.
- Habeas claims: (1) failure to charge second-degree manslaughter as a lesser-included offense (raised on direct appeal); (2) ineffective assistance of counsel (¶ DNA stipulation and counsel’s response to a jury note) (raised in the §440.10 motion).
- Petitioner sought equitable tolling based on low IQ, mental-health issues, and limited education; the district court found no diligent pursuit or extraordinary circumstances, ruled the petition untimely, and alternatively held the claims procedurally barred or without merit. Certificate of appealability denied.
Issues:
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timeliness / AEDPA one-year limit & equitable tolling | Irizarry urged equitable tolling due to IQ <63, mental-health and low literacy, claiming he relied on institutional law-library assistance | Respondent: petitioner did not show rare/extraordinary circumstances or reasonable diligence; prior pro se filings show ability to litigate | Petition untimely; equitable tolling denied for lack of causal link and diligence |
| Procedural default of §440 ineffective-assistance claims | Irizarry claimed trial counsel was ineffective re: DNA stipulation and handling of jury note | Respondent: state court denied §440 motion as procedurally barred (failure to raise on direct appeal) and petitioner did not appeal the §440 denial | Claims are procedurally barred/exhausted-and-defaulted; petitioner failed to show cause & prejudice or actual innocence |
| Failure to instruct lesser-included offense (manslaughter II) | Irizarry argued a reasonable view of evidence supported manslaughter II and the court should have charged it | Respondent: Appellate Division rejected the claim on direct appeal; federal law unsettled whether such noncapital instruction error is cognizable on habeas | Claim not cognizable on §2254 in noncapital case; denied |
| Merits of ineffective assistance (DNA stipulation & jury note) | Irizarry asserted counsel erred by stipulating to the DNA report (and not calling a witness) and not objecting to the court’s handling of a jury note | Respondent: counsel’s stipulation was strategic and favorable (showed unknown male DNA); court handled jury note properly; no reasonable probability of different outcome | No ineffective assistance: counsel’s choices were reasonable trial strategy and petitioner showed no prejudice |
Key Cases Cited
- Holland v. Florida, 560 U.S. 631 (2010) (equitable tolling requires diligence and an extraordinary circumstance that prevented timely filing)
- Valverde v. Stinson, 224 F.3d 129 (2d Cir.) (2000) (AEDPA finality and certiorari-timing rules)
- Williams v. Taylor, 529 U.S. 362 (2000) (AEDPA standards for "contrary to" and "unreasonable application" of Supreme Court precedent)
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (1984) (two-part ineffective-assistance standard: performance and prejudice)
- Coleman v. Thompson, 501 U.S. 722 (1991) (procedural default, cause-and-prejudice framework)
- Schlup v. Delo, 513 U.S. 298 (1995) (actual-innocence gateway to overcome procedural default)
- Harrington v. Richter, 562 U.S. 86 (2011) (deference to state-court adjudications under AEDPA)
- Bolarinwa v. Williams, 593 F.3d 226 (2d Cir.) (2010) (equitable-tolling inquiry for mental illness requires particularized showing)