HEARNS
v.
WARDEN, WAKULLA CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION, ANNEX
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The court held that a successive federal habeas petition filed without prior authorization from the court of appeals must be denied for lack of jurisdiction.
Petitioner, a state prisoner, filed a second federal habeas corpus petition challenging his state conviction. He had previously filed a federal habeas…
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Before the Court is Julies L. Hearns' Motion to Issue a Writ of Habeas Corpus (Doc. 1). Hearns is a prisoner of the State of Florida, and he challenges various aspects of his 2012 conviction in Gadsden County, Florida. Hearns filed a prior federal habeas petition in the Tallahassee Division of the Northern District of Florida, styled Hearns v. Inch, 4:19-cv-28-RH-MJF. Judge Robert Hinkle denied the petition on its merits.
“Congress proscribes that a state prisoner only has one opportunity for federal habeas review; a second petition will be denied as successive.” Faison v. Sec'y, Fla. Dep't of Corr., 806 F. App'x 938, 938-39 (11th Cir. 2020). Before bringing a successive petition, a prisoner must obtain authorization from the court of appeals. Otherwise, the district court lacks jurisdiction.
Accordingly, Hearns' construed habeas petition (Doc. 1) is DENIED as successive. The Clerk is DIRECTED to terminate any deadlines, enter judgment, and close this case. If the Eleventh Circuit authorizes a successive habeas petition, Hearns must file it in the Tallahassee Division of the Northern District of Florida, because that is the federal court serving the county where Hearns was convicted.
DENIAL OF CERTIFICATE OF APPEALABILITY
A prisoner seeking a writ of habeas corpus has no absolute entitlement to appeal a district court's denial of his petition. 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(1). Rather, a district court must first issue a certificate of appealability (COA). “A [COA] may issue...only if the applicant has made a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right." 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2). To make such a showing, a petitioner must demonstrate that “reasonable jurists would find the district court's assessment of the constitutional claims debatable or wrong,” Tennard v. Dretke, 542 U.S. 274, 282 (2004) (quoting Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473, 484 (2000)), or that “the issues presented were adequate to deserve encouragement to proceed further,” Miller–El v. Cockrell, 537 U.S. 322, 335- 36 (2003) (citations omitted). Hearns has not made the requisite showing here and may not have a certificate of appealability.
DONE and ORDERED in Fort Myers, Florida on March 20, 2025.
SHERI POLSTER CHAPPELL
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
SA: FTMP-1 Copies: All Parties of Record
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Slack v. McDANIEL, 529 U.S. 473 (U.S. 2000)
- Miller-El v. Cockrell, 537 U.S. 322 (U.S. 2003)
- Tennard v. Dretke, 542 U.S. 274 (U.S. 2004)