Mark Brittingham v. United States

Brittingham appeals the district court’s dismissal of his petition for writ of habeas corpus. The court held that it lacked personal jurisdiction in this case. We affirm.

For a court to hear a petition for writ of habeas corpus, it must have jurisdiction over the prisoner or his custodian. United States v. Giddings, 740 F.2d 770, 772 (9th Cir.1984). Brittingham contends that, for the purposes of his petition, the U.S. Marshal for the District of Hawaii was his custodian, and therefore the district court in Hawaii had jurisdiction. This novel argument is not based on the facts.

The proper respondent in a federal habeas corpus petition is the petitioner’s “immediate custodian.” Demjanjuk v. Meese, 784 F.2d 1114, 1115 (D.C.Cir.1986) (Bork, J., in chambers). A custodian “is the person having a day-to-day control over the prisoner. That person is the only one who can produce 'the body’ of the petitioner.” Guerra v. Meese, 786 F.2d 414, 416 (D.C.Cir.1986) (Parole Commission is not custodian despite its power to release petitioner).

At the time Brittingham filed his petition, he was in custody in Alameda County Jail, a California State facility used for the detention of federal…