Opinion
No. CIV S-08-2219 DAD P.
October 7, 2008
ORDER
Petitioner, a state prisoner proceeding pro se, has filed an application for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. Petitioner has not, however, filed an in forma pauperis affidavit or paid the required filing fee ($5.00). See 28 U.S.C. §§ 1914(a); 1915(a). Petitioner will be provided the opportunity to either submit the appropriate affidavit in support of a request to proceed in forma pauperis or submit the appropriate filing fee.
In addition, the court will dismiss the petition and grant petitioner leave to file an amended petition. In any amended petition he elects to file petitioner must clarify whether he is challenging his conviction, a disciplinary ruling, an action by prison officials concerning his transfer, or some other matter. Petitioner is informed that when a prisoner challenges the fact or duration of his custody and a determination of his action may result in petitioner's entitlement to an earlier release, his sole federal remedy is a writ of habeas corpus. See Preiser v. Rodriguez, 411 U.S. 475 (1973); Young v. Kenny, 907 F.2d 874 (9th Cir. 1990). The proper mechanism for raising a federal challenge to conditions of confinement is through a civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Badea v. Cox, 931 F.2d 573, 574 (9th Cir. 1991). Since petitioner is proceeding with a habeas petition in this action, if he seeks to challenge a transfer decision or some other action concerning the conditions of his confinement, he must file a new civil rights action. Lastly, since a habeas action is intended to challenge a conviction or disciplinary action that extends the length of his confinement, petitioner must identify the court where he was convicted and sentenced or the prison where the disciplinary action was taken against him.
In accordance with the above, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:
1. Petitioner shall submit, within thirty days from the date of service of this order, an affidavit in support of his request to proceed in forma pauperis or the appropriate filing fee;
2. Petitioner's petition for a writ of habeas corpus is dismissed;
3. Petitioner is granted thirty days from the date of service of this order to file an amended petition that complies with the requirements of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure; the amended petition must bear the docket number assigned this case and must be labeled "Amended Petition;"
4. Petitioner's failure to comply with this order will result in the dismissal of this action; and
5. The Clerk of the Court is directed to send petitioner a copy of the in forma pauperis form used by this district and the court's form petition for a writ of habeas corpus for a state prisoner. APPLICATION TO PROCEED WITHOUT PREPAYMENT OF FEES AND AFFIDAVIT 28 USC § 1915
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT Eastern District of California Plaintiff v. CASE NUMBER: Defendant. I, ____________________________________, declare that I am the (check appropriate box) petitioner/plaintiff/movant other in the above-entitled proceeding: that in support of my request to proceed without prepayment of fees or costs under I declare that I am unable to pay the costs of these proceedings and that I am entitled to the relief sought in the complaint/petition/motion. In support of this application, I answer the following questions under penalty of perjury: 1. Are you currently incarcerated? Yes No (If "No," go to Part 2) If "Yes," state the place of your incarceration __________________________________________ Are you employed at the institution? ________ Do you receive any payment from the institution? _____ Attach a ledger sheet from the institution(s) of your incarceration showing at least the past six months' transactions. 2. Are you currently employed? Yes No a. If the answer is "Yes," state the amount of your take-home salary or wages and pay period and give the name and address of your employer. b. If the answer is "No," state the date of your last employment, the amount of your take-home salary or wages and pay period and the name and address of your last employer. 3. In the past 12 twelve months have you received any money from any of the following sources? a. Business, profession or other self-employment Yes No b. Rent payments, interest or dividends Yes No c. Pensions, annuities or life insurance payments Yes No d. Disability or workers compensation payments Yes No e. Gifts or inheritances Yes No f. Any other sources Yes No If the answer to any of the above is "Yes," describe, on the following page, each source of money and state the amount received and what you expect you will continue to receive. 4. Do you have any cash or checking or savings accounts? Yes No If "Yes," state the total amount. _________________________________ 5. Do you own any real estate, stocks, bonds, securities, other financial instruments, automobiles or any other thing of value? Yes No If "Yes," describe the property and state its value. 6. List the persons who are dependent on you for support, state your relationship to each person and indicate how much you contribute to their support. I declare under penalty of perjury that the above information is true and correct. _______________________ ______________________________________ Date Signature of Applicant NOTICE TO PRISONER: A prisoner seeking to proceed without prepayment of fees shall submit an affidavit stating all assets. In addition, a prisoner must attach a statement certififed by the appropriate institutional officer showing all receipts, expenditures, and balances during the last six months in your institutional accounts. If you have multiple accounts, perhaps because you have been in multiple institutions, attach one certified statement of each account. 28 U.S.C. § 2254 28 U.S.C. § 2255You must keep the Clerk of the Court informed of any change of address. If you fail to do so, the Clerk cannot be responsible for your failure to receive Court orders. This could result in the dismissal of your suit. st PETITION UNDER FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS BY A PERSON IN STATE CUSTODY (If petitioner is attacking a judgment which imposed a sentence to be served in the future, petitioner must fill in the name of the state where the judgment was entered. If petitioner seeks to attack a sentence to be served in the future under a federal judgment, petitioner should file a motion under in the federal court that entered the judgment.) PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS BY A PERSON IN STATE CUSTODY Instructions — Read Carefully (1) This petition must be legibly handwritten or typewritten and signed by the petitioner under penalty of perjury. Any false statement of a material fact may serve as the basis for prosecution and conviction for perjury. All questions must be answered concisely in the proper space on the form. (2) Additional pages are not permitted except with respect to the facts which you rely upon to support your grounds for relief. No citation of authorities need be furnished. If briefs or oral arguments are submitted, they should be submitted in the form of a separate memorandum. (3) Upon receipt of a filing fee of $5.00 your petition will be filed if it is in proper order. (4) If you do not have the necessary funds for transcripts, counsel, appeal, and other costs connected with this petition, you may request permission to proceed in forma pauperis, in which event you must complete and execute the Application to Proceed In Forma Pauperis by a Prisoner appended to this petition. You must have a prison or jail official complete the Certification section on the back of the application. If you submit an incomplete application, your request to proceed in forma pauperis will be denied. (5) Only judgments entered by one court may be challenged in a single petition. If you seek to challenge judgments entered by different courts either in the same state or in different states, you must file separate petitions as to each court. (6) You must include all grounds for relief and all facts supporting such grounds for relief in the petition you file seeking relief from any judgment of conviction. (7) When the petition is fully completed, mail the original and at least two copies to: Clerk of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California 501 I Street, Room 4-400 Sacramento, California 95814 (8) Once the petition is filed, the court will review it and decide whether to order service of the petition on the respondent(s). You will be sent a copy of any order the court issues. Because of the large volume of cases filed by inmates pending in this court, the court WILL NOT ANSWER INQUIRIES concerning the status of your petition. Please be advised that the court does not provide copies of documents to litigants. Copies of any volume may be obtained from Attorney's Diversified Services (ADS): 1424 21 Street, Sacramento, California 95814. Their phone number is 916-441-4396. We will, however, provide copies of the dockets at the rate of fifty cents ($0.50) per page. Checks in the exact amount are made payable to "Clerk, USDC." In forma pauperis status does not waive the cost of copies. Therefore you must keep copies of all documents submitted to the court for your own records. 28 USC § 2254 concisely briefly facts facts CAUTION: In order to proceed in the federal court, you must ordinarily first exhaust your available state court remedies as to each ground on which you request action by the federal court. If you fail to set forth all grounds in this petition, you may be barred from presenting additional grounds at a later date. you should raise in this petition all available grounds briefly briefly briefly briefly AO 241 (Rev. 5/85) PETITION UNDER FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS BY A PERSON IN STATE CUSTODY United State District Court District Name Prisoner No. Case No. Place of Confinement Name of Petitioner (include name under which convicted) Name of Respondent (authorized person having custody of petitioner) v. The Attorney General of the State of PETITION 1. Name and location of court which entered the judgment of conviction under attack __________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Date of judgment of conviction ____________________________________________________________________ 3. Length of sentence ________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Nature of offense involved (all counts) ___________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. What was your plea? (Check one) (a) Not guilty (b) Guilty (c) Nolo contendere If you entered a guilty plea to one count or indictment, and a not guilty plea to another count or indictment, give details: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. If you pleaded not guilty, what kind of trial did you have? (Check one) (a) Jury (b) Judge only 7. Did you testify at the trial? Yes No 8. Did you appeal from the judgment of conviction? Yes No 9. If you did appeal, answer the following: (a) Name of court ________________________________________________________________________________ (b) Result _______________________________________________________________________________________ (c) Date of result and citation, if known ________________________________________________________ (d) Grounds raised _______________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ (e) If you sought further review of the decision on appeal by a higher state court, please answer the following: (1) Name of court ____________________________________________________________________________ (2) Result ___________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ (3) Date of result and citation, if known ____________________________________________________ (4) Grounds raised ___________________________________________________________________________ (f) If you filed a petition for certiorari in the United States Supreme Court, please answer the following with respect to each direct appeal: (1) Name of court ____________________________________________________________________________ (2) Result ___________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________ (3) Date ofresult and citation, if known _____________________________________________________ (4) Grounds raised ___________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. Other than a direct appeal from the judgment of conviction and sentence, have you previously filed any petitions, applications, or motions with respect to this judgment in any court, state or federal? Yes No 11. If your answer to 10 was "yes," give the following information: (a) (1) Name of court ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) Nature of proceeding ____________________________________________________________________ (3) Grounds raised __________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ (4) Did you receive an evidentiary hearing on your petition, application or motion? Yes No (5) Result __________________________________________________________________________________ (6) Date of result __________________________________________________________________________ (b) As to any second petition, application or motion give the same information: (1) Name of court ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) Nature of proceeding ____________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ (3) Grounds raised __________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ (4) Did you receive an evidentiary hearing on your petition, application or motion? Yes No (5) Result __________________________________________________________________________________ (6) Date of result __________________________________________________________________________ (c) Did you appeal to the highest state court having jurisdiction the result of action taken on any petition, application or motion? (1) First petition, etc. Yes No (2) Second petition, Yes No (d) If you did not appeal from the adverse action on any petition, application or motion, explain briefly why you did not: 12. State every ground on which you claim that you are being held unlawfully. Summarize the supporting each ground. If necessary, you may attach pages stating additional grounds and supporting same. For your information, the following is a list of the most frequently raised grounds for relief in habeas corpus proceedings. Each statement preceded by a letter constitutes a separate ground for possible relief. You may raise any grounds which you may have other than those listed if you have exhausted your state court remedies with respect to them. However, (relating to this conviction) on which you base your allegations that you are being held in custody unlawfully. Do not check any of these listed grounds. If you select one or more of these grounds for relief, you must allege facts. The petition will be returned to you if you merely check (a) through (j) or any one of these grounds. (a) Conviction obtained by plea of guilty which was unlawfully induced or not made voluntarily with understanding of the nature of the charge and the consequences of the plea. (b) Conviction obtained by use of coerced confession. (c) Conviction obtained by use of evidence gained pursuant to an unconstitutional search and seizure. (d) Conviction obtained by use of evidence obtained pursuant to an unlawful arrest. (e) Conviction obtained by a violation of the privilege against self-incrimination. (f) Conviction obtained by the unconstitutional failure of the prosecution to disclose to the defendant evidence favorable to the defendant (g) Conviction obtained by a violation of the protection against double jeopardy. (h) Conviction obtained by action of a grand or petit jury which was unconstitutionally selected and impaneled. (I) Denial of effective assistance of counsel. (j) Denial of right of appeal. A. Ground one: ____________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Supporting FACTS (state without citing cases or law) ____________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ B. Ground two: ____________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Supporting FACTS (state briefly without citing cases or law): __________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ C. Ground three: __________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Supporting FACTS (state without citing cases or law): ___________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ D. Ground four: ___________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Supporting FACTS (state without citing cases or law): ___________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 13. If any of the grounds listed in 12A, B, C, and D were not previously presented in any other court, state or federal, state what grounds were not so presented, and give your reasons for not presenting them: ________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ 14. Do you have any petition or appeal now pending in any court, either state or federal, as to the judgment under attack? Yes No 15. Give the name and address, if known, of each attorney who represented you in the following stages of the judgment attacked herein: (a) At preliminary hearing ________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ (b) At arraignment and plea _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) At trial ______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ (d) At sentencing _________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ (e) On appeal _____________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ (f) In any post-conviction proceeding _____________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ (g) On appeal from any adverse ruling in a post-conviction proceeding _____________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 16. Were you sentenced on more than one count of an indictment, or on more than one indictment, in the same court and at the same time? Yes No 17. Do you have any future sentence to serve after you complete the sentence imposed by the judgment under attack? Yes No (a) If so, give name and location of court which imposed sentence to be served in the future: _____ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ (b) Give date and length of the above sentence: ___________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) Have you filed, or do you contemplate filing, any petition attacking the judgment which imposed the sentence to be served in the future? Yes No Wherefore, petitioner prays that the Court grant petitioner relief to which he may be entitled in this proceeding. ___________________________________________ Signature of Attorney (if any) I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct. Executed ______________________________________ (date) _____________________________________ Signature of Petitioner