Reed v. Madden
- Proceeding
- district
- Area
- civil
- Panel
- Michael M. Anello (author)
Analysis
The court reviewed a pro se habeas corpus petition filed by a state prisoner in the Southern District of California. The court ordered the transfer of the action to the Central District of California, Western Division, in the furtherance of justice.
| What the court decided | The model |
|---|---|
Transfer of action to the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Western Division“Therefore, in the furtherance of justice, the Court ORDERS the Clerk of this Court to transfer this matter to the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Western Division.” | agree with court The court correctly identified that jurisdiction exists in both the district of confinement (S.D. Cal.) and the district of conviction (C.D. Cal.) under 28 U.S.C. § 2241(d) and *Braden*. The court applied the standard practice in California federal courts to transfer habeas cases challenging convictions to the district of conviction due to the convenience of accessing records and witnesses. This is a proper exercise of the court's authority to transfer cases in the interest of justice. |
The order itself: sound — The order is procedurally sound. It correctly identifies the statutory basis for venue in habeas cases, cites the controlling Supreme Court precedent (*Braden*) regarding the preference for the district of conviction, and applies the local practice of the California federal courts to transfer the case for convenience. The reasoning is concise and directly supports the order.
Opinion
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 10 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 11 12 ARZURAY D. REED, Case No. 22-cv-00356-MMA (JLB)
13 Plaintiff, ORDER TRANSFERRING ACTION 14 v. TO UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE CENTRAL 15 RAYMOND MADDEN, DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA, 16 Defendant. WESTERN DIVISION 18 19 Petitioner is a state prisoner proceeding pro se with a habeas corpus action filed 20 pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. Doc. No. 1. Petitioner has not paid the $ 5.00 filing fee 21 and has not filed a motion to proceed in forma pauperis. Upon reviewing the petition, the 22 Court finds that this case should be transferred in the interest of justice. 23 A petition for writ of habeas corpus may be filed in the United States District Court 24 of either the judicial district in which the petitioner is presently confined or the judicial 25 district in which he was convicted and sentenced. See 28 U.S.C. § 2241(d); Braden v. 26 30th Judicial Circuit Court, 410 U.S. 484, 497 (1973). Petitioner is presently confined at 27 R.J. Donovan State Prison in San Diego, California, located in San Diego County, which 28 is within the jurisdictional boundaries of the United States District Court for the Southern 1 || District of California. 28 U.S.C. § 84(d). The Petition attacks a judgment of conviction 2 was entered in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, which is within the 3 jurisdictional boundaries of the United States District Court for the Central District of 4 California, Western Division. 28 U.S.C. § 84(c)(2). Thus, jurisdiction exists in both the 5 Southern and Central Districts. 6 When a habeas petitioner is challenging a judgment of conviction, the district court 7 || of the district in which the judgment of conviction was entered is a more convenient 8 || forum because of the accessibility of evidence, records, and witnesses. Thus, it is 9 || generally the practice of the district courts in California to transfer habeas actions 10 || questioning judgments of conviction to the district in which the judgment was entered. 11 || Here, any records, witnesses, and evidence necessary for the resolution of Petitioner’s 12 ||contentions are more conveniently available in Los Angeles County. See Braden, 410 13 at 497, 499 n.15 (stating that a court can transfer habeas cases to the district of 14 |} conviction, which is ordinarily a more convenient forum). 15 Therefore, in the furtherance of justice, the Court ORDERS the Clerk of this Court 16 || to transfer this matter to the United States District Court for the Central District of 17 || California, Western Division. See 28 U.S.C. § 2241(d). Additionally, the Court 18 |} ORDERS the Clerk of this Court to serve a copy of this Order upon Petitioner and upon 19 || the California Attorney General. 20 IT IS SO ORDERED. 21 ||Dated: March 24, 2022 23 HON. MICHAEL M. ANELLO 24 United States District Judge 25 26 27 28