Roger Marvin Williams v. Louis S. Nelson, Warden of San Quentin State Prison, and the People of the State of California

The appellant, a prisoner of the State of California, was convicted and sentenced on January 21, 1966, for first degree robbery. On June 20, 1968, the appellant petitioned the United States District Court for the Northern District of California for a writ of habeas corpus, which was denied by the court on the same day without an evidentiary hearing. (Tr 22-23). A subsequent motion for rehearing was denied by the District Court on February 20, 1969, (Tr 33) and this appeal followed.

The District Court denied the original petition and the motion for rehearing on the ground that the appellant had failed to exhaust his state remedies before resorting to the federal court for habeas corpus relief. We affirm the order of the District Court.

The record reflects that while the appellant appealed his conviction to the California Court of Appeal, he has not sought any relief in the California Supreme Court other than the submission to that court of a motion by which the appellant endeavored to ascertain the status of his case in the California appellate courts. The District Court correctly held that the appellant might present the issues raised here by a petition for a late appeal to the…