Opinion
CASE NO. 8:07-CV-1365-T-30TGW.
April 7, 2008
ORDER
Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254, Petitioner seeks habeas corpus relief from his sentence of death (Dkt. 1). UPON consideration, the Court ORDERS that:
1. Respondent shall have SIXTY (60) DAYS from the date of this Order within which to respond to the grounds raised in the Petition and to show cause why the Petition should not be granted. The response shall respond to the allegations of the Petition. In addition, it shall state whether Petitioner has exhausted his state remedies including any post-conviction remedies available to him under the statutes or procedural rules of the state and including also the right of appeal both from the judgment of conviction and from any adverse judgment or order in the post-conviction proceedings. If it is denied that Petitioner has exhausted his state remedies, the response shall contain in detail an explanation of which state remedies are available to Petitioner. The response shall also state whether an evidentiary hearing was accorded Petitioner in a court of the state at either the pre-trial or post-conviction stage. If such an evidentiary hearing was conducted, the response shall state whether a transcript of the hearing is presently available and, if not, whether and approximately when it may be procured; or, if the transcript is neither available nor procurable, whether a narrative summary of the evidence is available or can be procured within a reasonable time. If the transcript or narrative summary is presently available, or is procurable within the time fixed for filing the response, it shall be filed by Respondent with the response and the record of the pre-trial, trial, and/or post-conviction proceedings. Otherwise, the response and record shall be filed within that time and the transcript or narrative summary shall subsequently be procured by Respondent and filed. If Petitioner appealed from the judgment of conviction or from an adverse judgment or order in a post-conviction proceeding, a copy of the briefs on appeal and of the opinion of the appellate court, if any, shall also be filed by Respondent with the response. In addition, the response shall contain the citation(s) to the state court opinion(s) that is (are) reported and to the record.
IF RESPONDENT ELECTRONICALLY FILES THE STATE COURT RECORD AS ATTACHMENTS TO THE RESPONSE, RESPONDENT SHALL PROVIDE AN INDEXED AND TABBED COURTESY COPY OF THE RECORD IN PAPER FORM WHEN THE RESPONSE IS FILED.
2. After Respondent files a response, Petitioner shall have THIRTY (30) DAYS within which to file a reply, if any. See Rule 5(e), Rules Governing § 2254 Cases (2007).
DONE and ORDERED in Tampa, Florida.