Joshua Brock Martinez v. North Dakota Attorney General

Summary

The court sua sponte substitutes Joseph Joyce, Warden of the North Dakota State Penitentiary, as the proper respondent in Joshua Brock Martinez's 28 U.S.C. § 2254 habeas petition. The court characterizes the failure to name the state officer having custody as a technical error and orders the substitution in the interest of justice.

Holdings

1. When a state habeas petitioner is in custody pursuant to a state judgment, Rule 2 requires the petition to name the state officer having custody of the petitioner as respondent.
2. The court may sua sponte substitute the proper custodial respondent when the petition's failure to name that official is a technical error and substitution serves the interest of justice.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the court should substitute the state officer having custody of a state habeas petitioner for the improperly named respondent under Rule 2 of the Rules Governing Section 2254 Cases.

Disposition

other