Robertson

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 KEVIN A. BROWN, No. 2:20-cv-0991-KJM-SCR Petitioner, v. FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS JIM ROBERTSON, Respondent. 16 Petitioner is a state prisoner representing himself in this habeas corpus action. He challenges his 2016 convictions in Sacramento County Superior Court for various sex crimes and robbery. On April 18, 2024, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals remanded this matter for further proceedings, including “consideration of the exhaustion issues and whether to issue a stay under Rhines v. Weber, 544 U.S. 269 (2005),” on petitioner’s pretrial Faretta claim requesting the right to represent himself. ECF No. 44 at 2; see also Faretta v. California, 422 U.S. 806 (1975). The parties have fully briefed this issue following remand. ECF Nos. 58, 61-62. For the reasons explained below, the undersigned recommends granting petitioner a Rhines stay and abeyance. I. Procedural History To understand the…