Jerry F. Stanley v. California Supreme Court

ORDER

Jerry Stanley was convicted in California state court in 1984 for the murder of his wife and was sentenced to death. He has appealed the conviction to the California Supreme Court, where his appeal is still pending.

I

On January 11, 1990, Stanley filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, alleging that his appointed counsel was representing him in the California appeal under a conflict of interest and had attempted to extort money from him. Stanley’s petition later was transferred by order under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 (d) to the United States District Court, for the Eastern District of California.

In his habeas petition, Stanley named the Supreme Court of California, the California Public Defender, and attorney Mike Peseetta as the respondents, none of whom were served. On February 6, 1992, a federal magistrate judge ordered the Federal Public Defender to report on the status of the petition and on whether Stanley had secured representation.

On February 18, 1992, Stanley filed a second petition for habeas corpus, which the magistrate judge deemed to be an amendment of the first petition. There…