Reed v. Johnson
- Katharine Parker
- 1:20-cv-07584
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 22
In Christopher Reed v. J.JOHNSON, Judge Parker continued the custody-challenge petition’s stay for 60 days while Reed’s counsel seeks records and prepares a state motion.
Christopher Reed and the respondent in the federal habeas case were affected by the continued stay and the December 8, 2025 status-update deadline. Reed’s counsel and the Bronx District Attorney’s Office were involved in obtaining and reviewing the trial file.
What happened
Christopher Reed’s federal petition challenging his custody was already stayed while he pursued a state-court motion seeking to set aside his conviction. His counsel told the court that the motion was nearly ready but depended on receiving the prosecution’s trial file.
The court continued the stay for another 60 days so the file could be produced and the motion could be filed. The court expected the file to be turned over within 30 days.
Judge Katharine H. Parker ordered the parties to file a status update by December 8, 2025. If the state motion was not filed within 60 days, the court would lift the stay and proceed with the federal petition; if it was filed, Reed could request an extension by December 8. The order did not decide the merits of Reed’s petition.
The detailed version
- Reed v. Johnson · No. 1:20-cv-07584
- Katharine Parker
- Oct. 9, 2025
Background
Christopher Reed, who was incarcerated at Sing Sing Correctional Facility, brought a federal habeas petition—a petition asking a federal court to review the legality of his custody. The federal case had been stayed while Reed pursued state-court remedies. The court had asked Reed’s counsel, Danielle Von Lehman, for an update on a motion under New York Criminal Procedure Law § 440.10, which is a state-court motion to set aside a criminal conviction.
Counsel reported that the motion was substantially prepared but could not be finalized until she obtained documents and information from the prosecution’s trial file. The Bronx District Attorney’s Office said it had or would turn over materials used at trial as a courtesy. The opinion also states that Reed’s counsel had sought the file through communications with the prosecution and requests under New York’s Freedom of Information Law.
Court’s Action
The court agreed with the respondent that there should be no additional delay after the trial file was provided and expected the file to be turned over within 30 days. The court therefore permitted the stay to continue for another 60 days to allow production of the file and filing of the state motion.
If the updated § 440.10 motion was not filed within 60 days, the court would lift the stay and proceed with resolving the federal habeas petition. If the motion was filed, Reed could request an extension of the stay, provided the request was received by December 8, 2025. In either event, the parties had to file a status update by December 8 addressing whether the stay should be lifted or extended, even if a state motion remained pending.
Effect of the Order
This was an interim case-management order. It continued the stay but did not grant or deny Reed’s federal petition and did not decide whether his conviction or custody violated federal law. Judge Katharine H. Parker also directed that the order be mailed to Reed and requested that the respondent serve the attached letter on Von Lehman by overnight mail no later than October 13, 2025.
Read the full 22-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.