Opinion ID: 1393905
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Did Respondent's Return Contain Only General Denials?

Text: Respondent contends that, assuming general denials are disapproved, his return was not objectionable on that ground. First, respondent asserts that his return cannot fairly be characterized as containing a general denial because a general denial is a one-sentence denial of all the allegations in a complaint. (See 5 Witkin, Cal. Procedure (3d ed. 1985) Pleading, § 981, p. 409 [A general denial is a simple, stereotyped form of statement which in one sentence denies all the allegations of the complaint.].) By contrast, he claims, his return admitted 12 of the 16 paragraphs in the habeas corpus petition and denied 4 paragraphs. (See ante, pp. 472-473.) Second, respondent claims he denied those paragraphs in the habeas corpus petition that involved conclusory statements of law and assertions of untested fact based on the declarations of petitioner and the former investigator who worked on his behalf. As we observed earlier (see ante, at pp. 477-478, fn. 4; see also Romero, supra, 8 Cal.4th at p. 739, fn. 6), the rules of civil pleading provide an imperfect analogy in this case. For normal civil pleading, a general denial is indeed permissible in many situations. (Code Civ. Proc., § 431.30, subd. (d) [If the complaint ... is not verified, a general denial is sufficient....]; see generally, 5 Witkin, Cal Procedure, supra, Pleading, § 981, p. 409.) The reason why such denials are disapproved in the habeas corpus context, however, is because they fail to serve the purpose of the return, i.e., to help the court identify the disputed factual issues so that it can determine whether a reference hearing is necessary. That respondent's return here did not contain a general denial as that term is defined for civil pleadings is beside the point. In this case, the 12 paragraphs the People admitted in their return are the standard paragraphs present in all habeas corpus petitions. Thus, the People admitted the truth of the defendant's factual allegations concerning the crimes of which he was convicted, the location of his present confinement, the absence of any remedy at law, etc. The four paragraphs that were generally denied, however, are the key paragraphs in the petition that explain the alleged factual and legal basis for the requested relief. (9) Although it is true that the return specifically denied petitioner received ineffective counsel at trial, it did not indicate the factual basis on which the People reach that conclusion. Such assertions do not assist the appellate court in identifying the material factual issues actually in dispute. Accordingly, they may fairly be characterized as general denials for purposes of habeas corpus pleading. Respondent argues the narrowing function of the return was performed by both the points and authorities accompanying the return, as well as the respondent's brief in the direct appeal which he sought to incorporate by reference. Respondent claims the Court of Appeal should have been able to discern from these documents what facts he was disputing. On this point, respondent stands on firmer ground. In general, points and authorities state legal arguments, not facts, and thus will fail to narrow the factual issues that must be determined to resolve the dispute. In this case, however, although respondent's points and authorities largely proffered legal arguments, part 3 of that document stated respondent denies allegations [in the petition] based on the declaration of [defendant], who claims never to have discussed the matter of a mental defense with his attorney. Such declarations are `subjective, self-serving, and, by [themselves], insufficient to satisfy the Strickland test for prejudice.' [Citations.] In addition, a footnote states: [Respondent] also dispute[s] the factual allegations of trial counsel's investigator in this case, Chuck Harrington. By these assertions, it becomes clearer respondent disputed the allegations, made by defendant in his habeas corpus petition, that defendant discussed a diminished capacity defense with his trial attorney, and that the attorney directed Harrington not to investigate that issue. If this portion of the points and authorities can be deemed a part of the return, then the lower court erred in concluding respondent failed to dispute any material factual allegations in his return. As a technical matter, it is arguable that factual allegations made in the memorandum of points and authorities, but not in the return itself, were not properly incorporated into the return. The goal, however, of the procedures that govern habeas corpus is to provide a framework in which a court can discover the truth and do justice in timely fashion. Accordingly, we should not construe the pleadings in such a parsimonious fashion. Moreover, for such technical irregularities in the pleadings in a habeas corpus proceeding, a court issuing an OSC retains the discretion to grant a party leave to amend. (Cf. Code Civ. Proc., § 576 [Any judge, at any time before or after commencement of trial, in the furtherance of justice, and upon such terms as may be proper, may allow the amendment of any pleading....].) Retention of this power is necessary to ensure that technical and inadvertent pleading errors do not lead to premature dismissals that would frustrate the ends of justice or require holding unnecessary evidentiary hearings that would squander scarce judicial resources. If the lower court, having read the return and the accompanying memorandum of points and authorities, entertained a doubt about whether respondent stated adequate facts to demonstrate he was contesting the truth of petitioner's factual allegations, it could have granted leave to amend the return. [6] Although we conclude that portions of respondent's memorandum of points and authorities were sufficient to place the lower court on notice regarding those facts in dispute, respondent nevertheless fails affirmatively to state facts that contradict the factual allegations in the petition for habeas corpus. In other words, although respondent stated he denied the truth of defendant's declarations, he stated no facts that would justify holding an evidentiary hearing. Respondent contends that he should not be required to set forth such facts. We therefore next address the nature of respondent's burden of pleading in the return.