Bennett

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 6 JABRIE BENNETT, Case No. 20-cv-05675-WHO

Plaintiff,

ORDER DENYING WRIT OF HABEAS

v. 9 Re: Dkt. No. 1 JEFF LYNCH, Defendant.

12 Petitioner Jabrie Bennett seeks federal habeas relief from his state convictions for second- degree murder and other crimes on the grounds that the prosecutor violated the Equal Protection Clause by striking a potential juror because he was Black, in violation of Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986). Bennett’s claim lacks merit and his petition is DENIED. BACKGROUND In 2014, an Alameda County jury convicted Bennett of second-degree murder, attempted murder, and assault with a semiautomatic weapon, along with firearm enhancements. Pet. [Dkt. No. 1] 1:15-24. He was sentenced to 72 years to life in state prison. Id. at 2:7-8. The convictions stemmed from two shootings in January 2013: one in Oakland, California, that wounded a high school student and another two days later in San Leandro, California, that…