In Re Franklin
Opinion
Opinion
Gomes, J.
Edwin V. Franklin petitions for writ of habeas corpus to require dismissal with prejudice of the pending petition for his civil commitment as a sexually violent predator (SVP) and to require his release from custody arising out of those proceedings. We will grant his petition.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
On August 24, 2001, on the basis of a 2001 SVP petition alleging, inter alia, a 1978 rape conviction, a 1981 rape conviction, a 1991 voluntary manslaughter conviction (on which the superior court imposed a sentence of 12 years), and a 1994 possession of a controlled substance in state prison conviction (on which the superior court imposed a sentence of an additional three years), a jury for the first time found Franklin to be an SVP.
On August 28, 2001, the superior court ordered Franklin’s first two-year SVP civil commitment (2001 SVP commitment). On January 21, 2003, we affirmed the judgment of the 2001 SVP commitment, rejecting his argument that his 1978 rape conviction failed to qualify as a conviction of a sexually violent offense within the scope of the SVPA. (People v. Franklin (2003) 105 Cal.App.4th 532 [ 129 Cal.Rptr.2d 518 ].)