Opinion
No. 06 C 6650.
February 5, 2007
MEMORANDUM ORDER
This Court has previously called for input as to the timeliness of petitioner Duke's current effort to seek federal habeas relief, a question whose answer was not immediately apparently from the convoluted course of events involved here and that, if the answer were in the negative, would obviate the need to address what might be equally convoluted issues on the merits. After Duke had provided helpful information in that respect, this Court requested a response from the defendant custodian.
With the timely filing of an extended response by Assistant Attorney General Anderson Gansner, it appears that there is no timeliness problem from whichever direction Duke's petition is approached. That being the case, it becomes appropriate to turn to the merits, and Assistant Attorney General Gansner is ordered to file an Answer to the petition in accordance with Rule 5 of the Rules Governing Section 2254 Cases in the United States District Courts (which this Court elects to treat as applicable here pursuant to Rule 1(b) of the same set of Rules) on or before February 23, 2007.