Jackie Robinson v. Stephen Mayberg

MEMORANDUM

Jackie Robinson appeals from the district court’s judgment denying his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 habeas petition. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 2253 , and we affirm.

Robinson was involuntarily committed to the custody of the Department of Mental Health in December 2006 under California’s Sexually Violent Predators Act (“SVPA”), Welfare and Institutions Code § 6600 et seq. He contends that application of the version of the SVPA in effect at the time of his retrial, rather than the version in effect at the time of his first trial, which resulted in a deadlocked jury, violated his due process rights. The state court’s decision denying this claim was neither contrary to nor based upon an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law, including Kansas v. Hendricks, 521 U.S. 346, 370-71 , 117 S.Ct. 2072 , 138 L.Ed.2d 501 (1997). See 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (d)(1); Williams v. Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 409-10 , 120 S.Ct. 1495 , 146 L.Ed.2d 389 (2000).

Robinson next contends that the SVPA violates due process by providing for an indeterminate term of commitment that Robinson can terminate only by proving that he is no longer a sexually violent predator. Given the Supreme…