Garcia v. Vance

Background

Joseph Garcia filed a self-represented petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 challenging his 2010 conviction in New York Supreme Court, New York County. The opinion states that Garcia had previously filed a petition under the same statute challenging the same conviction. That earlier petition was dismissed on the merits, and the Second Circuit later denied a certificate of appealability and dismissed the appeal.

Reasoning

Because the earlier petition was decided on the merits, the district court treated Garcia’s new filing as a “second or successive” petition. Under 28 U.S.C. § 2244(b)(3)(A), a person must obtain authorization from the appropriate court of appeals before filing such a petition in the district court. The opinion explains that Garcia therefore had to ask the Second Circuit for permission. The footnote identifies the statutory conditions that a motion for permission must address, including reliance on a previously unavailable and retroactive new constitutional rule or newly discoverable facts meeting the statute’s demanding standard.

Ruling and effect

The court transferred the petition to the Second Circuit in the interest of justice under 28 U.S.C. § 1631 and closed the district-court case. The order states that, if the Second Circuit authorizes Garcia to proceed, he may ask to reopen the case under the same civil docket number. Judge Laura Taylor Swain also stated that a certificate of appealability would not issue because Garcia had not made a substantial showing that a constitutional right was denied. The court certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without paying fees for purposes of an appeal. The order directed the Clerk to mail Garcia a copy and record service on the docket.