Opinion
19cv1673-LAB (KSC)
11-23-2021
DAVID LEONARD JOHNSON, Petitioner v. KATHLEEN ALLISON, Secretary, Respondent
ORDER SUA SPONTE SUBSTITUTING RESPONDENT
HOIL KAREN S. CRAWFORD UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
On August 30, 2019, Petitioner, a state prisoner proceeding pro se, filed a Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254, naming Marion Spearman, the Warden of High Desert State Prison in Susanville, California, where Petitioner was confined at the time, as Respondent. (ECF No. 1 at 1.) On October 14, 2021, Petitioner filed a First Amended Petition naming Brian Kibler, the acting Warden of High Desert State Prison at that time, as an additional Respondent. (ECF No. 29 at 1.) On November 12, 2021, Petitioner notified the Court that he had been transferred to the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility in Corcoran, California. (ECF No. 16.)
A writ of habeas corpus acts upon the custodian of the state prisoner. 28 U.S.C. § 2242; Rule 2(a), 28 U.S.C. foll. § 2254. Because Petitioner's place of custody has changed, so has the Respondent to this action. In order to conform with the requirements of Rule 2(a) of the Rules Governing § 2254 Cases and to avoid changing the Respondent if Petitioner is transferred again, the Court hereby sua sponte orders the substitution of Kathleeen Allison, Secretary of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, as Respondent in place of Marion Spearman and Brian Kibler. See Ortiz-Sandoval v. Gomez, 81 F.3d 891, 894 (9th Cir. 1996) (stating that the respondent in § 2254 proceedings may be the chief officer in charge of state penal institutions).
The Court HEREBY ORDERS the substitution of “Kathleen Allison, Secretary, ” as Respondent in place of former respondents Marion Spearman and Brian Kibler. The Clerk of the Court will modify the docket to reflect “Kathleen Allison, Secretary” as Respondent in place of the former respondents.
IT IS SO ORDERED.