Source: https://m.openjurist.org/449/us/539
Timestamp: 2020-04-07 20:55:13
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Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254', '§ 2254']

449 US 539 Sumner v. Mata | OpenJurist
449 U.S. 539 - Sumner v. Mata
George SUMNER, Warden, Petitioner,
Robert MATA.
"(d) In any proceeding instituted in a Federal court by an application for a writ of habeas corpus by a person in custody pursuant to the judgment of a State court, a determination after a hearing on the merits of a factual issue, made by a State court of competent jurisdiction in a proceeding to which the applicant for the writ and the State or an officer or agent thereof were parties, evidenced by a written finding, written opinion, or other reliable and adequate written indicia, shall be presumed to be correct, unless the applicant shall establish or it shall otherwise appear, or the respondent shall admit—
It is obvious from a literal reading of the above that § 2254(d) is applicable to the present situation although it has been contended that this should not be the case where a state appellate court, as opposed to a trial court, makes the pertinent factual findings. We, however, refuse to read this limitation into § 2254(d).1 Admittedly, the California Court of Appeal made the factual determinations at issue here and it did so after a review of the trial court record. Nevertheless, it clearly held a "hearing" within the meaning of § 2254(d). Both respondent and the State were formally before the court. Respondent was given an opportunity to be heard and his claim received plenary consideration even though he failed to raise it before the trial court. After respondent presented his case to the state appellate court, that court concluded in a written opinion that "the facts of the present case" did not adequately support respondent's claim. Since that court was requested to determine the issue by respondent, we do not think he may now be heard to assert that its proceeding was not a "hearing" within the meaning of § 2254(d).
Given the applicability of § 2254(d) to the present case, it is apparent that the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit did not apply the "presumption of correctness" which is mandated by the statute to the factual determinations made by the California state courts. Indeed, the court did not even refer in its opinion to § 2254(d).2 Last Term we denied certiorari in Lombard v. Taylor, 445 U.S. 946, 100 S.Ct. 1346, 63 L.Ed.2d 781 (1980), in which a New York prosecutor sought certiorari from a judgment of the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, 606 F.2d 371. That court had held in a § 2254 action that the habeas petitioner had been the victim of knowing use of perjured testimony at his trial, and reversed the District Court's refusal to grant the writ. In that case, however, the Federal Court of Appeals indicated in the course of its opinion full awareness of § 2254(d), and after an examination of the same documentary evidence on which the state court relied, it expressly concluded that the state-court finding to the contrary was not entitled to deference by reason of § 2254(d). Taylor v. Lombard, 606 F.2d 371, 375 (1979). The approach of the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in the instant case was quite different. Its only reference to the previous state-court decision and collateral proceedings was to state in one sentence that "[t]he Petition followed the appellant's conviction of murder in a California state court and his exhaustion of all available state court remedies." 611 F.2d, at 755. From this statement, its opinion went directly to a discussion of the "facts" and constitutional merits of the respondent's claims.
Federal habeas has been a source of friction between state and federal courts, and Congress obviously meant to alleviate some of that friction when it enacted subsection (d) in 1966 as an amendment to the original Federal Habeas Act of 1867. Accordingly, some content must be given to the provisions of the subsection if the will of Congress be not frustrated. Since the 1966 amendment, this Court has had few opportunities to address the various provisions of subsection (d), and never in a context similar to the one presented here. See, e. g., Cuyler v. Sullivan, 446 U.S. 335, 100 S.Ct. 1708, 64 L.Ed.2d 333 (1980); LaVallee v. Delle Rose, 410 U.S. 690, 93 S.Ct. 1203, 35 L.Ed.2d 637 (1973). A writ issued at the behest of a petitioner under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 is in effect overturning either the factual or legal conclusions reached by the state-court system under the judgment of which the petitioner stands convicted, and friction is a likely result. The long line of our cases previously referred to accepted that friction as a necessary consequence of the Federal Habeas Act of 1867, 28 U.S.C. § 2254. But it is clear that in adopting the 1966 amendment, Congress in § 2254(d) intended not only to minimize that inevitable friction but also to establish that the findings made by the state-court system "shall be presumed to be correct" unless one of seven conditions specifically set forth in § 2254(d) was found to exist by the federal habeas court. If none of those seven conditions were found to exist, or unless thehabeas court concludes that the relevant state-court determination is not "fairly supported by the record," "the burden shall rest upon the applicant to establish by convincing evidence that the factual determination by the State court was erroneous." (Emphasis supplied.)3
"The function of a standard of proof, as that concept is embodied in the Due Process Clause and in the realm of factfinding, is to 'instruct the factfinder concerning the degree of confidence our society thinks he should have in the correctness of factual conclusions for a particular type of adjudication.' In re Winship, 397 U.S. 358, 370 [90 S.Ct. 1068, 1076, 25 L.Ed.2d 368] (1970) (Harlan, J., concurring). The standard serves to allocate the risk of error between the litigants and to indicate the relative importance attached to the ultimate decision." Id., at 423, 99 S.Ct., at 1808.
When it enacted the 1966 amendment to 28 U.S.C. § 2254, Congress specified that in the absence of the previously enumerated factors one through eight, the burden shall rest on the habeas petitioner, whose case by that time had run the entire gamut of a state judicial system, to establish "by convincing evidence that the factual determination of the State court was erroneous." 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d). Thus, Congress meant to insure that a state finding not be overturned merely on the basis of the usual "preponderance of the evidence" standard in such a situation. In order to ensure that this mandate of Congress is enforced, we now hold that a habeas court should include in its opinion granting the writ the reasoning which led it to conclude that any of the first seven factors were present, or the reasoning which led it to conclude that the state finding was "not fairly supported by the record." Such a statement tying the generalities of § 2254(d) to the particular facts of the case at hand will not, we think, unduly burden federal habeas courts even though it will prevent the use of the "boilerplate" language to which we have previously adverted. Moreover, such a statement will have the obvious value of enabling court of appeals and this Court to satisfy themselves that the congressional mandate has been complied with. No court reviewing the grant of an application for habeas corpus should be left to guess as to the habeas court's reasons for granting relief notwithstanding the provisions of § 2254(d). Cf. Greater Boston Television Corp. v. FCC, 143 U.S.App.D.C. 383, 444 F.2d 841, 851 (1970).
He would vacate the judgment of the Court of Appeals and merely remand the case to that court for reconsideration in light of 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d).
The Court holds today that an order of a federal habeas court requiring release or retrial of a state prisoner because of constitutional violations at his trial must be vacated if the court does not explain in its order why 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d) does not bar re-examination of issues decided by the state courts—even if the State did not contest the order on the ground of § 2254(d), and even if § 2254(d) is plainly inapplicable under decisions of this Court. I dissent.
Respondent did not seek review in the California Supreme Court. Instead, he raised the pretrial identification issue in state habeas corpus proceedings, where his petitions were denied without opinion. Finally, he filed a petition for habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, again raising the pretrial identification issue. In his return in opposition to respondent's petition for habeas corpus, petitioner argued that the District Court was precluded from re-examining the issue by virtue of § 2254(d), which accords a presumption of correctness to state-court factual findings, subject to certain exceptions not relevant here.1 The District Court denied the petition on its merits, without referring to § 2254(d). Respondent appealed to the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, where petitioner abandoned his § 2254(d) argument. That court reversed on the merits, finding that respondent's due process rights had been violated by the pretrial identification procedures. It did not refer to § 2254(d). Petitioner then filed a motion for rehearing and suggestion for rehearing en banc, this time including a one-sentence argument that § 2254(d) barred the federal court from reaching the pretrial identification issue. The Court of Appeals denied these motions without discussion.
I cannot join my Brethren in concluding that the Court of Appeals' decision must be vacated for its failure to discuss an issue not timely raised by petitioner. This Court today holds that a federal habeas court may not grant a petition for a writ without stating on the record why it was not bound by § 2254(d) to defer to the state-court judgment. Ante, at 551. It therefore vacates the judgment of the Court of Appeals in this case, even though petitioner failed to raise the § 2254(d) argument in his briefs before that court. The Court admits that "a court need not elaborate or give reasons for rejecting claims which it regards as frivolous or totally without merit." Ante, at 548. To that I would add that, except in exceptional circumstances, a court need not search the universe of legal argument and discuss every contention that might have been—but was not—made by the losing party. The burden on the dockets of the federal courts is severe enough already, without requiring the courts to raise, research, and explain an issue not deemed important enough by the parties to justify mention in their briefs.
Moreover, I cannot agree that today's holding will "ensure that this mandate of Congress [§ 2254(d)] is enforced," ante, at 551; rather, it is more likely to be seen as an invitation to lower federal courts to "inser[t] a boilerplate paragraph" in their opinions acknowledging their awareness of § 2254(d). See ante, at 549.2 The requirement is as useless as it is disruptive.
The Court's disposition of the instant case is all the more perplexing because § 2254(d) plainly constitutes no bar to the Court of Appeals' holding that the pretrial identification procedure employed by the police violated respondent's due process rights. Section 2254(d) requires a federal habeas court to defer to "a determination after a hearing on the merits of a factual issue, made by a State court. . . ." 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d) (emphasis supplied). The factual issues to which § 2254(d) applies are "basic, primary, or historical facts: facts 'in the sense of a recital of external events and the credibility of their narrators. . . .' " Cuyler v. Sullivan, 446 U.S. 335, 342, 100 S.Ct. 1708, 1714, 64 L.Ed.2d 333 (1980) (quoting Townsend v. Sain, 372 U.S. 293, 309, n.6, 83 S.Ct. 745, 755, n.6, 9 L.Ed.2d 770 (1963)). Section 2254(d) does not bar a federal court from reviewing "a mixed determination of law and fact that requires the application of legal principles to the historical facts of this case." 446 U.S., at 342, 100 S.Ct., at 1715; see Brewer v. Williams, 430 U.S. 387, 403-404, 97 S.Ct. 1232, 1241, 51 L.Ed.2d 424 (1977).
The treatment of the pretrial identification issue by the California court was brief and contained little in the way of formal factual findings. Its relevant findings were that "the witnesses had an adequate opportunity to view the crime"; that "there is no showing of influence by the investigating officers"; and that the witnesses' "descriptions are accurate." App. to Pet. for Cert. C-4 to C-5. The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit explicitly agreed that the witnesses had "an opportunity . . . to observe the perpetrators of the crime," 611 F.2d, at 758, but disagreed with the California court'slegal conclusion that the opportunity for observation was constitutionally adequate, because of the "diversion of the witnesses' attention at the time the crime was committed." Id., at 759. Similarly, the Court of Appeals' description of the facts concerning the photographic lineup procedure differs in no significant detail from that offered by the California court. Compareid., at 756, with App. to Pet. for Cert. C-3 to C-4. The California court, however, concluded that "[t]he circumstances thus indicate the inherent fairness of the procedure," id., at C-5, while the Court of Appeals reached the opposite legal conclusion. The Court of Appeals, like the California court, did not dispute the accuracy of the witnesses' identifications, but only their degree of detail. 611 F.2d, at 758. Finally, the Court of Appeals considered whether using a photo array procedure rather than a lineup was necessary, a consideration not deemed relevant by the California court. Id., at 757.
On the merits, petitioner contends that the "Ninth Circuit's application of an erroneous standard led it to an erroneous result and that application of the proper standard must lead to a conclusion that [respondent] was not denied due process by reason of the admission of identification evidence at his trial." Brief for Petitioner 49 (emphasis supplied); see also id., at 14.3 Thus, petitioner's very argument reveals that the difference between the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the California Court of Appeal was over the applicable legal standard, and not over the particular facts of the case. And § 2254(d) surely does not detract from the well-established duty of federal courts "to apply the applicable federal law to the state court fact findings independently." Townsend v. Sain, 372 U.S., at 318, 83 S.Ct., at 760. A federal court need not—indeed, must not—defer to the state court's interpretation of federal law. Ibid.; see ante, at 543-544.4 In view of this, I cannot understand how the Court today can conclude that "[i]t is obvious from a literal reading of [§ 2254(d)] that § 2254(d) is applicable to the present situation. . . ." Ante, at 545. To me, it is just as obvious that § 2254(d) is not applicable.
This Court previously reserved the question in Cuyler v. Sullivan, 446 U.S. 335, 341, n.5, 100 S.Ct. 1708, 1714, n.5, 64 L.Ed.2d 333 (1980). The Courts of Appeals, without extensive analysis, have reached differing conclusions as to whether findings of fact made by a state appellate court can be considered "determination[s] after a hearing on the merits of a factual issue" within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d). Compare Drayton v. Hayes, 589 F.2d 117, 122, n.9 (CA2 1979); White v. Finkbeiner, 570 F.2d 194, 201 (CA7 1978), appeal after remand, 611 F.2d 186 (1979); Payne v. Cardwell, 436 F.2d 577 (CA6 1971); Hill v. Nelson, 466 F.2d 1346, 1348 (CA9 1972), with Souza v. Howard, 488 F.2d 462 (CA1 1973); and United States ex rel. Harris v. Illinois, 457 F.2d 191 (CA7 1972).
The Court admits that the decision in Taylor v. Lombard, 606 F.2d 371 (CA2 1979), cert. denied, 445 U.S. 946, 100 S.Ct. 1346, 63 L.Ed.2d 781 (1980), would be sustained under the rule announced today. Ante, at 547-548. The sole discussion of § 2254(d) by the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Taylor was its conclusory statement: "The County Court's finding that there was no factual basis for the claim of perjury is not fairly supported by the record, and therefore is not entitled to deference. 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d)(8)." 606 F.2d, at 375. On the basis of this statement, we no more know whether the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit correctly applied § 2254(d) in Taylor than we know whether the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit correctly applied it in the instant case. Admittedly, the Second Circuit opinion manifested "full awareness" of the existence of § 2254(d), see ante, at 548, but it nevertheless "left [us] to guess as to [its] reasons for granting relief notwithstanding the provisions of § 2254(d)." See ante, at 552. I would be content to presume that federal judges are fully aware of so prominent a statute as § 2254(d), and to leave them free to devote their energies to writing opinions concerning contested issues.