Peery

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 JOSEPH VINCENT WARD, No. 2:21-cv-2220 DAD KJN P 12 Petitioner, 13 v. FINDINGS & RECOMMENDATIONS 14 SUZANNE M. PEERY, 15 Respondent. 16 17 I. Introduction 18 Petitioner is a state prisoner, proceeding without counsel, with an application for a writ of 19 habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. Petitioner challenges his 2018 conviction for second 20 degree murder. Petitioner claims that the jury’s verdict finding petitioner competent to stand trial 21 was not supported by substantial evidence. After careful review of the record, the undersigned 22 concludes that the petition should be denied. 23 II. Procedural History 24 In the Nevada County Superior Court, a jury found petitioner competent to stand trial and 25 later convicted petitioner of murder. (ECF No. 11-1 at 1.) On October 2, 2018, petitioner was 26 sentenced to fifteen years to life in state prison. 27 Petitioner appealed the conviction to the California Court of Appeal, Third…