Opinion
Krista Hart, Attorney at Law, State Bar No. 199650, Sacramento, CA, Attorney for Kenneth Knanishu.
DEFENDANT'S REQUEST FOR EXTENSION OF TIME TO FILE REPLY BRIEF
WILLIAM B. SHUBB, District Judge.
Defendant KENNETH KNANISHU, by and through counsel Krista Hart, hereby requests an extension of time up to and including June 18, 2013, to file the Reply Brief. The request is based on the reasons set forth in counsel's declaration.
Mr. Knanishu pleaded guilty pursuant to a plea agreement and on October 15, 2007, the Court sentenced Mr. Knanishu to 60 months in prison. (Docs 87 & 88) On October 1, 2012, Mr. Knanishu filed a motion pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2255. (Doc 94) The government filed its response on February 17, 2013. (Doc 104)
On March 26, 2013, the Court determined it would be appropriate to have counsel appointed to represent Mr. Knanishu and the Court appointed the undersigned on April 1, 2013. The Reply Brief is currently due on May 28, 2013. Counsel needs additional time to communicate with AUSA Todd Leras about a possible resolution in lieu of litigating the motion. Counsel also needs additional time to communicate with the client. I, KRISTA HART, declare that:
1. I am an attorney licensed to practice in the state of California and I am appointed to represent Mr. Knanishu in the case referenced above.
2. Since being appointed on April 1, 2013, I have obtained the transcripts of the Change of Plea hearing and the Judgment and Sentencing hearing in federal court. I have also obtained a copy of the transcript of the Sentencing hearing in state court.
3. Since being appointed on April 1, 2013, Mr. Knanishu has filed two motions to have me relieved as counsel. While these were pending, Mr. Knanishu did not communicate with me about the specifics of the case - presumably he believed I would be relieved as counsel. On May 8, 2013, this Court denied the motions. Mr. Knanishu and I have resumed communications by U.S. mail.
4. Although other state prisons allow confidential attorney-client phone calls, Dan Pherigo, Litigation Coordinator, at the Correctional Training Facility in Soledad, has indicated to me they do not have the resources to allow legal telephone calls at their facility. (They do, however, have the resources to accommodate face-to-face attorney client meetings.) Since Mr. Knanishu and I are limited to communications by U.S. mail, we need some additional time.
5. Finally, AUSA Todd Leras and I have been in communication. We are both open to resolving the matter short of fully litigating the motion. However, due to our schedules, we have not had sufficient time to fully discuss the matter. Additional time is requested to allow the parties to discuss the matter and possibly resolve the motion.
6. I have exchanged emails with Mr. Leras and he has no objection to this request for an extension of time.
/s/Krista HartORDER
GOOD CAUSE APPEARING defendant's request for an extension of time to file the Reply Brief is granted. The Reply Brief is due on or before June 28, 2013.