Morris v. Brown

FILED NOT FOR PUBLICATION JUN 29 2011 MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS U .S. C O U R T OF APPE ALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT LONNIE MORRIS, No. 08-15229 Petitioner - Appellant, D.C. No. CV-04-02813-SBA v. MEMORANDUM * J. BROWN, Respondent - Appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California Saundra B. Armstrong, District Judge, Presiding Submitted June 15, 2011 ** Before: CANBY, O’SCANNLAIN, and FISHER, Circuit Judges. California state prisoner Lonnie Morris appeals pro se from the district court’s judgment denying his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 habeas petition. We dismiss. Morris contends that the Board’s 2002 decision to deny him parole was not supported by “some evidence” and therefore violated his due process rights. After * This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3. ** The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2). briefing was completed in this case, this court held that a certificate of appealability (“COA”) is required to challenge the denial of parole. See Hayward v. Marshall, 603 F.3d 546, 554-55 (9th Cir. 2010) (en banc). Now the Supreme Court has held that the only federal right at issue in the parole context is procedural, and the only proper inquiry is what process the inmate received, not whether the state court decided the case correctly. See Swarthout v. Cooke, 131 S. Ct. 859, 863 (2011) (per curiam). Because Morris raises no procedural challenges regarding his parole hearing, a COA cannot issue, and we dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction. See 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2). DISMISSED. 2 08-15229