Johnson v. People for the State of California
- Charles Breyer
- 3:19-cv-04341
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Johnson v. People, Judge Breyer dismissed Johnson’s habeas petition without prejudice for failure to exhaust state remedies and granted his poverty-based filing request.
Paul David Johnson’s federal habeas petition was dismissed without prejudice because he had not exhausted state judicial remedies. His application to proceed without paying the filing fee was granted.
What happened
In Johnson v. People for the State of California, Paul David Johnson, a state prisoner, challenged the Alameda County Superior Court’s denial of his request to recall his indeterminate life sentence under California Penal Code section 1170(d).
The court ruled that Johnson had not presented his claims to the California Supreme Court, as required before seeking federal review of state custody. It dismissed the habeas petition without prejudice, allowing a new petition after state remedies are exhausted. The court also granted Johnson’s application to proceed without paying filing fees based on his affidavit of poverty.
Judge Charles R. Breyer entered the order on December 13, 2019, and directed the clerk to close the file.
The detailed version
- Johnson v. People for the State of California · No. 3:19-cv-04341
- Charles Breyer
- Dec. 13, 2019
Background
Paul David Johnson, identified as a state prisoner incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison, filed a petition for federal habeas relief under 28 U.S.C. § 2254. He challenged the Alameda County Superior Court’s April 30, 2019 denial of his request to recall his indeterminate life sentence under recently amended California Penal Code section 1170(d).
Exhaustion ruling
The court explained that a state prisoner seeking federal review of the fact or length of confinement must first exhaust available state judicial remedies. This requires presenting each federal claim to the highest available state court and giving that court a fair opportunity to decide the claim’s merits. Johnson had not presented his claims to the California Supreme Court, so the court dismissed the habeas petition without prejudice to filing a new petition after state remedies are exhausted.
Other ruling and disposition
Based on Johnson’s affidavit of poverty, the court granted his application to proceed without paying the filing fee under 28 U.S.C. § 1915. The court directed the clerk to close the file. Judge Charles R. Breyer signed the order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.