Exhausting state court remedies means trying to get habeas relief at every level of the state court before filing in federal court. This means starting with, if one is in state prison, with filing a Form 602 claim in prison, usually twice, filing one’s petition or writ request in the county court, then appealing the ruling to the court of appeal, then appealing that ruling to the California Supreme Court. To read more about this, please click on the following link – What Does it Mean to Exhaust State Court Remedies?
Motion to Suppress on Laser Narcotics Identification
Evidence of a drug’s identity by police use of the TruNarc laser drug identifier device was inadmissible because the judge abused his discretion in not following the Kelly and Frye tests for admissibility of such novel scientific evidence. There was no evidence of the general reliability of the device in the relevant scientific community. To read more about this ruling, please click on the following link – Motion to Suppress on Laser Narcotics Identification
Who Can File a Federal Habeas Corpus Petition?
One must be “in custody,” including on parole, probation, on bail or released on one’s own recognizance, to file a petition for a writ of habeas corpus. There are many seemingly counterintuitive legal interpretations of what can be considered “in custody” as well that are not immediately obvious, so read this article, particularly for being in custody due to “continuing consequences” of a sentence or punishment – Who Can File a Federal Habeas Corpus Petition?
Death Row Challenge to Method of Execution Fails
Appeal by death row inmate denied in challenging lethal injection as cruel and unusual punishment and therefore unconstitutional because the inmate’s claims that the pentobarbital used in the injection was of unknown origin was safe. This was so because the prison had provided the inmate’s attorney with a Certificate of Analysis verifying that the pentobarbital in its possession complied with regulatory and quality standards and that it had a February 2025 expiration date. To read more about this appeal, please click on the following link – Death Row Challenge to Method of Execution Fails
What is a Post-Conviction Motion for DNA Testing?
After being convicted and being sent to prison (as compared to county jail for a misdemeanor), one can request DNA testing of biological evidence under Penal Code § 1417.9. The following article explains how to request post-conviction DNA testing under Penal Code § 1405(a) – What is a Post-Conviction Motion for DNA Testing?
Commutation Denied Because Proceedings Not Arbitrary
Commutation request of execution denied because the hearing on petitioner’s commutation request was not arbitrary or unfair, as petitioner claimed, and not a due process violation, specifically a prosecutor’s erroneous description of evidence was a harmless error because even if the error was not committed, the jury would have still found defendant guilty and he still would have been sentenced to death, particularly in light of defendant’s extensive criminal history. To read more about this ruling, please click on the following link – Commutation Denied Because Proceedings Not Arbitrary
What Must be Stated in a Writ of Mandate / Mandamus?
A petition for a writ of mandate, also called a petition for a writ of mandamus, must contain a minimum of at least seven things to properly assert a claim for relief. Such things are similar to what is required in a petition for a writ of habeas corpus. To read what these things are, please click on the following link to read a short article setting for these things – What Must be Stated in a Writ of Mandate / Mandamus?
What is a Plea Under People v. Palmer? Why Do It?
A plea entered under People v. Palmer is a plea entered into without stipulation to specific facts or circumstances upon which the plea is based to protect the defendant from collateral consequences such as adverse immigration or licensing consequences, similar to a plea under People v West. To read more about a plea under People v. Palmer, please click on the following link – What is a Plea Under People v. Palmer? Why Do It?
Examples of a Writ of Mandate / Mandamus
A petition for a writ of mandate, also called a petition for a writ of mandamus, is an appropriate method for requesting that a judge issue an order for a wide variety of relief. Such relief can be that the CDCR or a judge perform some legal duty or obligation. However, it would be wise to find a prior published ruling that ordered such relief for the same duty or obligation, so read the following article to find such an example – Examples of a Writ of Mandate / Mandamus
Can State Court Have Jurisdiction Over VA Fraud Case?
A state court action for fraud and other state-court crimes, when the victim is the Veterans Administration, is not federally pre-empted. The criminal case can proceed in state criminal court. To read more about this case, please click on the following link – Can State Court Have Jurisdiction Over VA Fraud Case?
