Hector Lopez v. Scott Kernan

MEMORANDUM

Hector Lopez petitions for a writ of habeas corpus, contending that the trial court’s questioning and dismissal of Juror No. 1 had a coercive effect on the jury and violated his constitutional rights. Lopez has not established that the California Court of Appeal’s decision that Juror No. 1 was properly dismissed for cause “was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States,” 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (d)(1), or that it “was based on an unreasonable determination of the facts.” 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (d)(2). We therefore deny the petition.

I.

The Court of Appeal held that the trial court’s decision to dismiss Juror No. 1 for cause was not an error under CaLPenal Code § 1089, which establishes the standards for dismissing jurors. This court has previously upheld the dismissal of jurors for cause under § 1089. See Perez v. Marshall, 119 F.3d 1422, 1426-27 (9th Cir.1997); Miller v. Stagner, 757 F.2d 988, 995, 997 , as amended, 768 F.2d 1090 (9th Cir.1985). See also Williams, 646 F.3d at 642 (noting that “[a]s a general matter, the Sixth Amendment does not prohibit the mid-deliberation…