Frederic Dixon v. Brian Williams, Sr.

FOR PUBLICATION

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

FREDERIC K. DIXON, No. 10-17145 Petitioner-Appellant, D.C. No. v. 2:09-cv-00066-

PMP-PAL

BRIAN E. WILLIAMS, SR.; ATTORNEY

GENERAL OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, ORDER AND

Respondents-Appellees. AMENDED

OPINION

Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Nevada Philip M. Pro, Senior District Judge, Presiding

Argued and Submitted March 10, 2014—San Francisco, California

Filed April 30, 2014 Amended June 11, 2014

Before: John T. Noonan, Sidney R. Thomas, and Marsha S. Berzon, Circuit Judges.

Per Curiam Opinion SUMMARY*

Habeas Corpus

The panel reversed the district court’s denial of a 28 U.S.C. § 2254 habeas corpus petition challenging a jury instruction on self-defense.

The trial court gave an inaccurate jury instruction that an honest but “reasonable” (instead of “unreasonable”) belief in the necessity for self-defense does not negate malice and does not reduce the offense from murder to manslaughter. The panel held that this error was not harmless, because the error reduced the State’s burden for…