John N. Johnson v. Lawrence E. Wilson, Warden

The district court erred in dismissing appellant’s petition for habeas corpus without an evidentiary hearing.

Appellant’s petition and traverse sufficiently alleged (1) that his guilty plea was the product of a coerced confession and of evidence obtained by unlawful search and seizure; (2) that his guilty plea was itself coerced; and (3) that he did not have effective assistance of. counsel in determining his plea. Doran v. Wilson, 369 F.2d 505 (9th Cir. 1966); Wilson v. Rose, 366 F.2d 611 (9th Cir. 1966); Hale v. Wilson, 364 F.2d 906 (9th Cir. 1966); and Wilson v. Reagan, 354 F.2d 45 (9th Cir. 1965), are among recent decisions of this court holding that these allegations afforded grounds for habeas corpus relief.

Two matters referred to in the trial court’s memorandum-order of dismissal require comment.

First. As the trial court observed, appellant’s guilty plea barred habeas corpus relief on the ground that the police had obtained evidence against appellant by illegal means. However, contrary to the trial court’s holding, the existence of such potential defenses may be considered in determining both whether appellant had the effective assistance of counsel in determining his…