Lizarraga

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 JOSEPH DAVID CHAPA, No. 2:16-cv-2019 JAM AC P Petitioner, v. FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS JOE A. LIZARRAGA, Warden, Respondent. 16 Petitioner is a California state prisoner proceeding pro se with an application for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. The action proceeds on the petition filed in this court on August 24, 2016,1 ECF No. 1, which challenges petitioner’s 2012 conviction for sex offenses against children. Respondent has answered, ECF No. 11, and petitioner filed a traverse, ECF No. 14. BACKGROUND I. Proceedings In the Trial Court A. Preliminary Proceedings Petitioner was charged in Sacramento County with three counts of lewd touching (Cal. 26 Because the timeliness of the petition is not disputed, the court need not consider application of the prison mailbox rule. See Houston v. Lack, 487 U.S. 266 (1988) (establishing rule that a prisoner’s…