Cruz v. Griffin
- Cathy Seibel
- 7:16-cv-08998
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Cruz v. Griffin, Judge Seibel adopted a recommendation denying Cruz’s habeas petition and closed the case.
Humberto Cruz’s federal habeas petition was denied, the case was closed, and no certificate of appealability was issued. The respondent was Thomas Griffin, identified as superintendent of Green Haven Correctional Facility.
What happened
In Cruz v. Griffin, Humberto Cruz asked the federal court to grant his petition challenging his custody under federal habeas law. A magistrate judge recommended denying the petition.
No one objected to that recommendation. Judge Cathy Seibel reviewed it for obvious error and found none.
Judge Seibel adopted the recommendation as the court’s decision, directed the clerk to close the case, and denied a certificate of appealability because Cruz had not substantially shown a constitutional-right violation.
The detailed version
- Cruz v. Griffin · No. 7:16-cv-08998
- Cathy Seibel
- Nov. 20, 2019
Background
Humberto Cruz filed a petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2254, a federal procedure for challenging state custody. Magistrate Judge Judith McCarthy issued a Report and Recommendation recommending that the petition be denied.
Review of the Recommendation
The court explained that a district judge may accept, reject, or modify a magistrate judge’s recommendation. Because no objections were received, Judge Cathy Seibel reviewed the recommendation for clear error—an obvious mistake apparent from the record. She found no error, clear or otherwise.
Ruling
The court adopted the Report and Recommendation as its decision. The clerk was directed to send Cruz a copy of the order and close the case. The court also stated that Cruz had not made a substantial showing that he was denied a constitutional right, so it would not issue a certificate of appealability, which is required to appeal the denial of a federal habeas petition in this setting.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.