Opinion ID: 2518361
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: The narrow circumstances in which extraordinary intervention is appropriate; the relief appropriate in this case

Text: We begin our analysis by stressing that extraordinary relief is not warranted for routine correction of errors that a district court may make. Such relief is not in order, for example, where a district court has considered the applicable procedural default rules, applied them to a post-conviction habeas petition, and concluded that claims are not procedurally barred. That the State, or even this court, might disagree with the district court's conclusion is not a reason to seek extraordinary relief as long as the district court has made a reasonable effort to follow the applicable law regarding procedural default. Even if a district court errs, consistent application of procedural default rules in this state can be maintained by our review of the matter on appeal from the district court's final resolution of a petition. However, the statutory rules regarding procedural default are mandatory and cannot be ignored when properly raised by the State. Therefore, in a case where it is clear that the district court has disregarded the applicable law and failed to decide the issue of procedural default or decided the issue by applying clearly incorrect legal standards, extraordinary relief is likely warranted. In this case, the district court disregarded the applicable law and invoked incorrect standards in rejecting the State's assertions of procedural default. But we do not ourselves decide the question of procedural default, as the State requests; rather, we direct the district court to assess the record and Riker's specific claims, consider and apply the appropriate rules of procedural default, and decide in a written order whether claims are procedurally barred. Given the untimely and successive nature of Riker's petition, the district court had a duty imposed by law to consider whether any or all of Riker's claims were barred under NRS 34.726, NRS 34.810, NRS 34.800, or the law of the case previously pronounced by this court. The district court, however, did not refer to or apply these legal standards in granting the evidentiary hearing. It cited concerns which, while understandable, are not controlling. The district court considered itself the equivalent of ... the trial judge and consequently wanted to make as complete a record as possible. This is an incorrect basis for an evidentiary hearing. Once a defendant has pleaded guilty, as long as the validity of the plea is recognized, he is not entitled to a trial or a hearing comparable in scope to a trial. [24] The district court also repeatedly expressed the aim of thoroughly considering and deciding Riker's case in order not to see it again. Though an appropriate goal in regard to cognizable issues, this consideration does not nullify procedural default rules. The district court stated further that an evidentiary hearing would be granted because it was a different judge and view[ed] the death penalty case much differently than some of my other jurists. I know that's just the chance you guys take when you come to this department. Again, although serious and careful consideration of death penalty cases is always required, the fact that a habeas petitioner faces a death sentence does not somehow lessen the effect of procedural bars. Nor should the temperament and particular concerns of a district judge determine whether the bars will be given effect. None of the factors discussed by the district court permitted it to disregard the question of the applicability of the procedural default rules. We conclude that mandamus relief is appropriate here because determining whether procedural bars apply to an untimely or successive habeas petition is an act which the law requires of the district court and that court's failure to make this determination here constituted an arbitrary and unreasonable exercise of discretion. Also, the State has no plain, speedy, and adequate remedy in the ordinary course of law for this abuse of discretion. Particularly in this case where the claims are so numerous and the requests for discovery so extensive, judicial economy and sound judicial administration militate for granting relief: determining the applicability of procedural bars may eliminate the need for or narrow the scope of any discovery or evidentiary hearing.