Suggs

MEMORANDUM *

California state prisoner Edward Lee Suggs (“Suggs”) appeals the district court’s denial of his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 habeas petition, challenging his conviction for possession of a controlled substance. He contends that he received ineffective assistance of counsel. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and we affirm.

Suggs argues that his counsel was ineffective for failing to file a notice of appeal (“NOA”) on his behalf despite his request to do so. In order to succeed on this claim, Suggs must show that his counsel's actions were objectively unreasonable. Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687-691 , 104 S.Ct. 2052 , 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). He must also show prejudice. Id. at 694 .

Suggs cannot show the required prejudice because counsel’s decision not to file the NOA did not “actually cause the forfeiture of the [his] appeal.” Roe v. Flores-Ortega, 528 U.S. 470, 484 , 120 S.Ct. 1029 , 145 L.Ed.2d 985 (2000). Suggs, in fact, filed a notice of appeal on November 9, 1999. Although his notice appears to have been erroneously disregarded by the Superior Court as a duplicate, court personnel, not counsel, caused this error. Given that an intervening…