Opinion
No. 71738 No. 71739 No. 71740
10-12-2017
MIGUEL ANGEL LOPEZ-SUAREZ, Appellant, v. BRIAN E. WILLIAMS, WARDEN; JAMES DZURENDA, DIRECTOR OF NDOC; OFFICE OF OFFENDER MANAGEMENT; AND THE STATE OF NEVADA, Respondents. MIGUEL ANGEL LOPEZ-SUAREZ, Appellant, v. BRIAN E. WILLIAMS, SR., WARDEN, Respondent. MIGUEL ANGEL LOPEZ-SUAREZ, Appellant, v. THE STATE OF NEVADA; JO GENTRY S.D.C.C.; AND BRIAN WILLIAMS, SR., WARDEN Respondents.
ORDER OF AFFIRMANCE
Miguel Angel Lopez-Suarez appeals from orders of the district court denying three postconviction petitions for a writ of habeas corpus. Eighth Judicial District Court, Clark County; Linda Marie Bell, Judge.
Docket No. 71738 is an appeal from the denial of a petition filed on May 31, 2016, in district court case number A-16-737563-W. Docket No. 71739 is an appeal from the denial of a petition filed on July 25, 2016, in district court case number A-16-740529-W. Docket No. 71740 is an appeal from the denial of a petition filed on October 10, 2016, in district court case number A-16-744764-W. These appeals have been submitted for decision without oral argument and we conclude the records are sufficient for our review and briefing is unwarranted. See NRAP 34(f)(3), (g).
In his petitions, Lopez-Suarez claimed the Nevada Department of Corrections (NDOC) improperly declined to apply statutory credits toward his minimum term. The district court concluded Lopez-Suarez was not entitled to relief because he is serving a prison term for a category B felony he committed in 2013, and for those reasons, the NDOC may only apply credits toward Lopez-Suarez' maximum term pursuant to NRS 209.4465(8)(d). Given these circumstances, we conclude the district court did not err in denying this claim.
In all three petitions, Lopez-Suarez challenged the computation of time served for his sentence for attempted discharging a firearm out of a motor vehicle, a category B felony. See NRS 193.330(1)(a)(2); NRS 202.287(1)(b). --------
Next, Lopez-Suarez appeared to claim the NDOC improperly denied him the opportunity to earn work credits despite his willingness to work while incarcerated. Lopez-Suarez had no right to employment while in prison. See NRS 209.461(1); Collins v. Palczewski, 841 F. Supp. 333, 336-37 (D. Nev. 1993) (recognizing a prisoner has no independent constitutional right to employment and that the Nevada statutes do not mandate employment). Therefore, Lopez-Suarez cannot demonstrate lack