Luevano v. Guterres
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-07922
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Luevano v. Guterres, Judge Swain transferred the custody petition to the Western District of Texas because petitioner was confined there.
Jamie Luevano’s custody challenge was transferred from the Southern District of New York to the Western District of Texas, which will decide whether the case may proceed and whether fees must be paid.
What happened
In Luevano v. Guterres, Jamie Luevano filed a self-represented petition challenging the validity of his custody. The court said his handwriting was difficult to read and that it appeared he was seeking relief under a federal custody statute.
The Southern District of New York explained that a court handling this type of petition must have authority over the person responsible for the petitioner’s custody. Because Luevano was confined in Gatesville, Texas, the court transferred the petition to the Western District of Texas in the interest of justice.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain directed the clerk to transfer the case and closed the action in the Southern District of New York. The transferee court will decide whether Luevano may proceed without paying filing fees. The court also said it would not issue a certificate allowing an appeal and denied fee-free status for any appeal.
The detailed version
- Luevano v. Guterres · No. 1:23-cv-07922
- Laura Swain
- Sept. 12, 2023
Background
Jamie Luevano, who is in the custody of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice at the Alfred D. Hughes Unit in Gatesville, Texas, filed a self-represented petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 challenging the validity of his custody. The court noted that Luevano’s handwriting was difficult to read but understood that he appeared to be seeking that relief.
Reason for Transfer
A court may decide a custody petition under Section 2241 only if it has jurisdiction—legal authority—over the custodian. The court explained that such a petition generally belongs in the federal district where the petitioner is physically confined. Luevano was confined in Coryell County, Texas, which is within the Western District of Texas. The court therefore transferred the petition there under 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a), finding transfer to be in the interest of justice.
Disposition
The clerk was directed to transfer the action to the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas. The Southern District of New York’s order closed the action in that court; it did not decide the validity of Luevano’s custody. The transferee court was left to decide whether Luevano could proceed without paying fees.
The court also stated that Luevano had not made a substantial showing that a constitutional right was denied, so it would not issue a certificate of appealability. It certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without paying fees.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.