Jacome v. Newsom

Summary

The United States District Court for the Southern District of California granted Alexander Robert Jacome’s renewed application to proceed in forma pauperis. The court dismissed his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 habeas petition without prejudice under Rule 4 because he did not allege that his state conviction or sentence violated the Constitution or federal law, and it advised him regarding exhaustion and the federal habeas limitations period.

Holdings

1. A state prisoner must allege both custody pursuant to a state-court judgment and custody in violation of the Constitution, laws, or treaties of the United States to present a cognizable federal habeas claim under § 2254. Because Jacome sought resentencing without alleging a violation of federal rights, the petition was not cognizable and was properly dismissed without prejudice under Rule 4.
2. A state prisoner must exhaust available state judicial remedies before presenting a federal habeas claim, including by giving the California Supreme Court a fair opportunity to rule on the merits of each federal issue.
3. The renewed in forma pauperis application was granted because the prison certificate showed that Jacome had insufficient funds to prepay the $5 filing fee.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the petition stated a cognizable federal habeas claim under 28 U.S.C. § 2254(a).
2. Whether the petitioner was entitled to proceed in forma pauperis based on his renewed application and prison financial certificate.

Disposition

dismissed