Stephen David Thompson, and v. Raymond K. Procunier, Director, Department of Corrections of the State of California, And

The first problem presented by this appeal from an order denying a petition for a writ of habeas corpus is whether petitioner has exhausted his state remedies. 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (b). Petitioner was convicted in California on his plea of guilty. No appeal was ever taken from the judgment of conviction. Petitions for writs of habeas corpus alleging ineffectiveness of counsel were presented in California state courts in the following chronological order: the Superior Courts of Monterey County, San Luis Obispo County, and Solano County (transferred to San Joaquin County), the Court of Appeal for the State of CAlifornia, Second Appellate District, and the Supreme Court of California. All were denied. The Supreme Court simply denied the petitions without indicating whether or not the denials were on the merits.

The State now contends, and correctly, that petitioner, although convicted on a plea of guilty, had a right of appeal under Cal.Pen.Code § 1237.5, and that if, as petitioner alleges, he was ignorant of that right, he might have petitioned for a late appeal under the California Rules of Court, Rule 31(a). In California, issues relating to claimed ineffectiveness of…