Marco Lopez v. Michael Stainer

MEMORANDUM

California state prisoner Marco Lopez appeals from the district court’s denial of his petition for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254 . Mr. Lopez argues that the state trial court violated his federal due process rights to a fair trial by failing to instruct the jury properly. Specifically, he asserts that to establish felony-murder under California law, the prosecution must prove that the killing and the underlying felony were part of one “continuous transaction.” Because the parties are familiar with the history of this case, we need not recount it here. We have jurisdiction over this appeal pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2253 . We affirm the district court.

I

We review the district court’s denial of a 28 U.S.C. § 2254 petition for habeas corpus de novo and its findings for clear error. Hurles v. Ryan, 650 F.3d 1301, 1308-09 (9th Cir.2011). In reviewing California state court decisions, this Court must apply the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (“AEDPA”) to any petition filed after April 24, 1996. 28 U.S.C. § 2254 ; see also Woodford v. Garceau, 538 U.S. 202, 204 , 123 S.Ct. 1398 , 155 L.Ed.2d 363 (2003); Lindh v. Murphy, 521 U.S.…