Knowles

FOR PUBLICATION

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

LAMERLE R. JOHNSON,  No. 07-15221 Petitioner-Appellant, v.  D.C. No.

CV-02-05309-JSW

MIKE KNOWLES, Warden,

OPINION

Respondent-Appellee.  Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California Jeffrey S. White, District Judge, Presiding

Argued and Submitted May 12, 2008—San Francisco, California

Filed September 2, 2008

Before: Diarmuid F. O’Scannlain, Michael Daly Hawkins, and M. Margaret McKeown, Circuit Judges.

Opinion by Judge O’Scannlain

12037 JOHNSON v. KNOWLES 12039

COUNSEL

Mark D. Eibert, Half Moon Bay, California, argued the cause for the petitioner-appellant and filed briefs.

Peggy S. Ruffra, Supervising Deputy Attorney General of the State of California, San Francisco, California, argued the 12040 JOHNSON v. KNOWLES cause for the respondent-appellant and filed a brief; Edmund G. Brown, Attorney General of the State of California, Dane R. Gillette, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Gerald A. Engler, Senior Assistant Attorney General, and Gregory A. Ott, Deputy Attorney General, San…