Giang Nguyen v. Scott Frauenheim

FOR PUBLICATION

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

GIANG THUY NGUYEN, No. 20-56284 Petitioner-Appellant, D.C. No. v. 8:17-cv-01526-

FMO-JPR

SCOTT FRAUENHEIM, Warden, Respondent-Appellee.

OPINION

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Central District of California Fernando M. Olguin, District Judge, Presiding

Argued and Submitted June 8, 2022 Pasadena, California

Filed August 22, 2022

Before: MILAN D. SMITH, JR., BRIDGET S. BADE, and LAWRENCE VANDYKE, Circuit Judges.

Opinion by Judge Milan D. Smith, Jr. SUMMARY *

Habeas Corpus

The panel affirmed the district court’s denial of a California state prisoner’s habeas corpus petition raising a Batson challenge to a jury conviction.

After the prosecutor used peremptory strikes against three Hispanic women during jury selection, petitioner raised an objection pursuant to Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986). The trial court denied the challenge, and the California Court of Appeal affirmed on direct appeal. The California Supreme Court summarily denied review.

Batson holds that purposeful racial discrimination in jury…