Robert Brown v. James Key
702 F. App'x 518
| 9th Cir. | 2017Background
- Brown participated in a kidnapping that ended with the victim's murder by Brown’s associates; he was charged with first-degree kidnapping and felony murder.
- The information charged kidnapping specifying intent “to inflict bodily harm” only; it did not allege other intents.
- The felony murder count alleged the murder occurred in the course of “first degree kidnapping” but did not specify any kidnapping intent.
- Jury instructions allowed a kidnapping conviction based on either intent to inflict bodily injury or intent to inflict extreme mental distress.
- A jury convicted Brown of first-degree kidnapping and felony murder; the state appellate court later reversed the kidnapping conviction for lack of notice but affirmed the felony murder conviction.
- Brown sought federal habeas relief arguing that the felony murder conviction must fall because the predicate kidnapping conviction was reversed for deficient charging notice; the district court denied relief and this Court affirmed.
Issues
| Issue | Brown's Argument | State's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether a felony-murder conviction must be vacated when the predicate felony conviction is overturned for lack of charging notice | The defective notice that doomed the kidnapping conviction also invalidates the felony-murder conviction that relied on that predicate | No Supreme Court rule requires vacating felony-murder where predicate elements were not included in the information; state law treats the predicate’s elements as nonessential for the felony-murder information | The state-court decision upholding the felony-murder conviction does not conflict with clearly established Supreme Court law; habeas relief denied |
Key Cases Cited
- Smith v. Ryan, 823 F.3d 1270 (9th Cir. 2016) (standard of review for habeas denials)
- Carey v. Musladin, 549 U.S. 70 (2006) (federal habeas courts cannot broaden clearly established law by analogy)
- Lopez v. Smith, 135 S. Ct. 1 (2014) (circuit precedent cannot create clearly established Supreme Court rule)
- Marshall v. Rodgers, 569 U.S. 58 (2013) (limits on expanding clearly established federal law)
- State v. Craig, 514 P.2d 151 (Wash. 1973) (Washington law holding predicate felony elements need not appear in the information for felony murder)
- State v. Whitfield, 224 P. 559 (Wash. 1924) (earlier Washington authority on felony-murder notice and predicate elements)