Navarro v. Allison

District Court, S.D. California · 3:22-cv-01093 · 2022-10-04 · Unknown

Proceeding: district
Area: civil
Panel: Andrew G. Schopler (author)

Analysis

A model's reading — qwen3.8-27b, prompt own-v1, 2026-10-13T22:18Z · confidence high

The court reviewed a state prisoner's petition for a writ of habeas corpus after the petitioner was transferred to a new facility. The court ordered the substitution of the Secretary of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation as the respondent in place of the former warden.

What the court decided	The model
Substitution of Respondent “the Court ORDERS the substitution of Kathleen Allison, Secretary of California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, as Respondent in place of Warden W.L. Montgomery.”	agree with court The decision follows directly from 28 U.S.C. § 2242 and Rule 2(a) of the Rules Governing § 2254 Cases, which require that the respondent be the custodian of the prisoner. Because the petitioner was transferred, the specific warden is no longer the custodian. Substituting the Secretary of the CDCR is a standard procedural mechanism to ensure the correct party is named and to avoid further substitutions upon future transfers.

What the court decided

The model

Substitution of Respondent

“the Court ORDERS the substitution of Kathleen Allison, Secretary of California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, as Respondent in place of Warden W.L. Montgomery.”

agree with court
The decision follows directly from 28 U.S.C. § 2242 and Rule 2(a) of the Rules Governing § 2254 Cases, which require that the respondent be the custodian of the prisoner. Because the petitioner was transferred, the specific warden is no longer the custodian. Substituting the Secretary of the CDCR is a standard procedural mechanism to ensure the correct party is named and to avoid further substitutions upon future transfers.

The order itself: sound — The order correctly identifies the legal requirement that the respondent must be the current custodian. It cites the relevant statute and Ninth Circuit precedent supporting the substitution of the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to maintain proper parties in the action despite the prisoner's transfer.

How this analysis was made · dispute it

Opinion

I UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 2 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 3 || Juan Ramon NAVARRO, Case No.: 22-cv-1093-JO-AGS Petitioner.) ORDER SUBSTITUTING 5 || V. RESPONDENT 6 || Kathleen Allison, Secretary, 7 Respondent. 8 9 On September 22, 2022, petitioner, a state prisoner, filed a petition for a writ of 10 ||habeas corpus naming W.L. Montgomery, the Warden of Calipatria State Prison in 11 Imperial, California as respondent. (ECF 1.) On September 30, 2022, petitioner notified 12 ||the Court that he had been transferred to the California State Prison, Solano in Vacaville, 13 || California. (ECF 6.) 14 A writ of habeas corpus is issued to the prisoners’ custodian. 28 U.S.C. § 2242; 15 || Rule 2(a), 28 U.S.C. foll. § 2254. Because petitioner’s place of custody has changed, so 16 || has the respondent to this action. In order to conform with the requirements of Rule 2(a) of 17 ||the Rules Governing § 2254 Cases and to avoid changing the respondent if petitioner is 18 || transferred again, the Court ORDERS the substitution of Kathleen Allison, Secretary of 19 California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, as Respondent in place of 20 || Warden W.L. Montgomery. See Ortiz-Sandoval v. Gomez, 81 F.3d 891, 894 (9th Cir. 1996) 21 || (stating that the respondent in § 2254 proceedings may be the chief officer in charge of 22 || state penal institutions). 23 The Clerk of the Court will modify the docket to reflect “Kathleen Allison, 24 || Secretary” in place of the former respondent. 25 || Dated: October 4, 2022 26 — 97 Hon. ndrew G. Schopler United States Magistrate Judge 28