Hylok v. Ward, 10th Cir. (1997)
Hylok v. Ward, 10th Cir. (1997)
Hylok v. Ward, 10th Cir. (1997)
DEC 22 1997
PATRICK FISHER
Clerk
DALE H. HYLOK,
Petitioner-Appellant,
v.
RONALD WARD; ATTORNEY
GENERAL OF THE STATE OF
OKLAHOMA,
No. 97-5077
(D.C. No. 96-CV-43-B)
(N.D. Okla.)
Respondents-Appellees.
ORDER AND JUDGMENT *
Before ANDERSON, McKAY, and LUCERO, Circuit Judges.
Petitioner Hylok, appearing pro se, seeks to appeal from the district courts
order dismissing without prejudice his petition for a writ of habeas corpus
pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 2254. We deny a certificate of probable cause and
dismiss the appeal. 1
This order and judgment is not binding precedent, except under the
doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, and collateral estoppel. The court
generally disfavors the citation of orders and judgments; nevertheless, an order
and judgment may be cited under the terms and conditions of 10th Cir. R. 36.3.
Because petitioner filed his habeas corpus petition on January 22, 1996,
before the April 24, 1996 enactment date of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death
(continued...)
(...continued)
Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA), pre-AEDPA habeas corpus provisions apply to
this petition. See Demarest v. Price, No. 95-1535, 1997 WL 746288, at *1, *9
(10th Cir. Dec. 3, 1997). The relevant provisions, as in effect at the time the
petition was filed in district court, include the requirement of a certificate of
probable cause in order to proceed on appeal, rather than a certificate of
appealability, see United States v. Kunzman, 125 F.3d 1363, 1364 n.2 (10th Cir.
1997), and the requirement of exhaustion of available state remedies, pursuant to
28 U.S.C. 2254(b), see Demarest, 1997 WL 746288, at *9.
1
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I represented Mr. Hylock [sic] many years ago in a murder case here
in Rogers County. If it please the court, I do not want to do that
anymore. He killed Don Reynolds wife. Don is my friend. I did it
once and I dont want to do it again.
....
I just wanted to make sure that everyone understood that I did not
want appointed again. It was almost more than I could stand the first
time. . . .
R., Doc. 2, Ex. A at 3-4 (Trans. of 10/6/94 proceedings). The state district court
made no inquiries of counsel. It construed counsels request as a motion to
withdraw and granted the motion. The court then denied all of petitioners
motions, without taking any evidence or hearing any argument.
In appealing to the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals, petitioner
obtained a transcript of the post-conviction hearing, read counsels in-court
statement, and, allegedly for the first time, learned of counsels relationship
with the victims family. Petitioner filed a copy of the transcript in the appellate
court and argued, in his reply brief, that counsels statement amounted to an
admission of a conflict of interest. The appellate court affirmed the denial of
post-conviction relief on the ground of procedural default. It did not mention the
alleged conflict of interest.
Petitioner then filed his pro se petition in federal district court, reasserting
his general ineffective assistance of counsel claims, and emphasizing the
perceived conflict of interest. The district court determined that petitioner had
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failed to exhaust his state court remedies on the issue of ineffective assistance of
counsel based on the conflict theory and dismissed the petition without prejudice.
There is no question that the district courts conclusion is correct. As we
have stated,
[t]he exhaustion doctrine requires a state prisoner to fairly present
his or her claims to the state courts before a federal court will
examine them. Fair presentation of a prisoners claim to the state
courts means that the substance of the claim must be raised there.
The prisoners allegations and supporting evidence must offer the
state courts a fair opportunity to apply controlling legal principles to
the facts bearing upon his constitutional claim. Anderson v.
Harless, 459 U.S. 4, 6 (1982).
Demarest, 1997 WL 746288, at *9 (additional quotations and citations omitted).
The conflict issue transforms petitioners general ineffective assistance of
counsel claim and places it in a significantly different legal posture than in the
state court proceedings. See id., at *9-*10, *12-*13. An attorney has no
absolute duty in every case to advise a defendant of his limited right to appeal
after a guilty plea, but he must provide notification of a claim of error . . .
made on constitutional grounds, which could result in setting aside the plea.
Laycock v. New Mexico, 880 F.2d 1184, 1187-88 (10th Cir. 1989). The duty
arises when counsel either knows or should have learned of his clients claim
or of the relevant facts giving rise to that claim. Hardiman v. Reynolds,
971 F.2d 500, 506 (10th Cir. 1992) (quoting Marrow v. United States, 772 F.2d
525, 529 (9th Cir. 1985)).
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could resolve the issues differently, or that the questions deserve further
proceedings. Gallagher v. Hannigan, 24 F.3d 68, 68 (10th Cir. 1994) (citing
Barefoot v. Estelle, 463 U.S. 880 (1983)). Petitioners request for a certificate
of probable cause is therefore DENIED, and the appeal is DISMISSED. The
mandate shall issue forthwith.
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