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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

Cliff St. Brice,

Petitioner, 

v. 

Charles L. Ryan, et al., 

Respondents.

No. CV-15-01852-PHX-NVW (DKD)

ORDER 

Pending before the court is the Report and Recommendation (“R&R”) of 

Magistrate Judge David K. Duncan (Doc. 13) issued December 18, 2015, regarding 

petitioner’s Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus filed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (Doc. 

1). The R&R recommends that the Petition be denied and dismissed with prejudice. The 

Magistrate Judge advised the parties that they had fourteen days to file objections to the 

R&R. (R&R at 5 (citing 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1); Rules 72, 6(a), 6(b), Federal Rules of 

Civil Procedure). No objections were filed. 

 Because the parties did not file objections, the court need not review any of the 

Magistrate Judge’s determinations on dispositive matters. See 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1); 

Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(b); United States v. Reyna-Tapia, 328 F.3d 1114, 1121 (9th Cir. 2003); 

Thomas v. Arn, 474 U.S. 140, 149 (1985) (“[Section 636(b)(1)] does not . . . require any 

review at all . . . of any issue that is not the subject of an objection.”). The absence of a 

timely objection also means that error may not be assigned on appeal to any defect in the 

rulings of the Magistrate Judge on any non-dispositive matters. Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(a) (“A 

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party may serve and file objections to the order within 14 days after being served with a 

copy [of the magistrate’s order]. A party may not assign as error a defect in the order not 

timely objected to.”); Simpson v. Lear Astronics Corp., 77 F.3d 1170, 1174 (9th Cir. 

1996); Phillips v. GMC, 289 F.3d 1117, 1120-21 (9th Cir. 2002). 

Notwithstanding the absence of an objection, the court has reviewed the R&R and 

finds that it is well taken. The court will accept the R&R and dismiss the Petition. See

28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1) (stating that the district court “may accept, reject, or modify, in 

whole or in part, the findings or recommendations made by the magistrate”). 

IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that Report and Recommendation of the 

Magistrate Judge (Doc. 13) is accepted. 

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Clerk of the Court enter judgment denying 

and dismissing petitioner's Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus filed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 

§ 2254 (Doc. 1) with prejudice. The Clerk shall terminate this action. 

 Having considered the issuance of a Certificate of Appealability from the order 

denying Petitioner’s Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus, the Court FINDS: Certificate 

of Appealability and leave to proceed in forma pauperis on appeal are denied because 

dismissal of the petition is justified by a plain procedural bar and jurists of reason would 

not find the procedural ruling debatable. 

 Dated this 22nd day of January, 2016. 

Neil V. Wake

United States District Judge

 

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