Towner v. Silva
- Virginia Demarchi
- 5:25-cv-06569
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Towner v. Silva, Judge Oberto transferred the conviction challenge to the Northern District of California because it was filed in the wrong district.
Jeremy M. Towner's petition was transferred from the Eastern District of California to the Northern District of California; the order did not resolve his conviction challenge.
What happened
In Towner v. Silva, Jeremy M. Towner, a state prisoner without a lawyer, challenged a conviction from Santa Cruz County and asked to proceed without paying the filing fee. He filed the case in the Eastern District of California.
The court explained that Santa Cruz County is in the Northern District of California, where the case should have been filed. The court therefore transferred the case to that district in the interest of justice, without deciding the challenge to the conviction.
Judge Sheila K. Oberto ordered the transfer on July 31, 2025. The order does not decide whether Towner is entitled to relief.
The detailed version
- Towner v. Silva · No. 5:25-cv-06569
- Virginia Demarchi
- July 31, 2025
Background
Jeremy M. Towner, a state prisoner proceeding without a lawyer, filed a petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 challenging a conviction from Santa Cruz County. He also requested permission to proceed without paying the filing fee under 28 U.S.C. § 1915.
Venue analysis
The court applied the federal venue statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b), which identifies the federal districts where a civil action may be filed. Because Santa Cruz County is in the Northern District of California, the court concluded that the petition should have been filed there rather than in the Eastern District of California.
Ruling
The court transferred the matter to the United States District Court for the Northern District of California under 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a). The order addressed venue only; it did not decide the substance of Towner's challenge to his conviction or his request to proceed without paying the filing fee.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.