Destinni Mardesich v. Matthew Cate

Destinni Mardesich appeals the district court’s dismissal of three claims in her federal habeas petition as untimely under the one-year statute of limitations set forth in the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA). 28 U.S.C. § 2244 (d)(1). Because we apply the AED-PA statute of limitations on a claim-by-claim basis, and because Mardesich’s three claims challenging a state administrative agency’s order were filed nearly 18 months after the statute of limitations expired, we affirm the district court’s dismissal.

I

A

When Destinni Mardesich was 16, she convinced two friends to help her kill Damian McKenna, her former boyfriend and father of her child, because she feared McKenna might try to obtain custody of their young son. Though the fatal shots were fired by Mardesich’s friend, she was personally armed with a gun and was present during the murder. She was tried as an adult in the Orange County Superior Court and convicted of first degree murder on December 15, 1992. The court sentenced her to 26 years to life, and committed her to the California Youth Authority, a state agency providing education and treatment to juvenile offenders.

About three years…