NOT FOR PUBLICATION
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FILED
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT JUL 11 2014
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
ISAIAH HENDERSON, No. 11-56932
Petitioner - Appellant, D.C. No. 2:10-cv-10073-PSG-
RNB
v.
G. D. LEWIS, Warden, MEMORANDUM*
Respondent - Appellee.
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Central District of California
Philip S. Gutierrez, District Judge, Presiding
Submitted July 9, 2014**
Pasadena, California
Before: SILVERMAN, TALLMAN, and RAWLINSON, Circuit Judges.
Isaiah Henderson appeals from the district court’s denial of his 28 U.S.C. §
2254 petition for a writ of habeas corpus. Henderson argues that he was deprived
of a fair and impartial jury when the state trial court denied his motion to dismiss
*
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).
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the jury panel and declined to conduct further specific questioning of the panel
after one prospective juror, Juror Number 17, stated that he had seen the
defendants in his community and would have safety concerns if he served on the
case. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1291 and 2253, and we
affirm.
Our review is governed by the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty
Act of 1996, which prescribes a highly deferential standard preventing a federal
court from granting relief to a person in custody pursuant to a state court judgment
“with respect to any claim that was adjudicated on the merits in State court
proceedings unless the adjudication of the claim – (1) resulted in a decision that
was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established
Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States; or (2)
resulted in a decision that was based on an unreasonable determination of the facts
in light of the evidence presented in the State court proceeding.” 28 U.S.C. §
2254(d).
The California Court of Appeal’s September 30, 2009 denial of Henderson’s
claim was not contrary to or an unreasonable application of clearly established
federal law, and the state court did not unreasonably determine the facts. To the
contrary, the Court of Appeal appropriately recognized the “broad discretion” of
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the trial court to ensure the empanelment of an impartial jury, see Frazier v. United
States, 335 U.S. 497, 511 (1948), and its factual determination that Juror Number
17's remarks were unlikely to have tainted the panel was reasonable and supported
by the record, see Taylor v. Maddox, 366 F.3d 992, 1000 (9th Cir. 2004).
AFFIRMED.