United States District Court, D. Arizona
REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION
Honorable John Z. Boyle United States Magistrate Judge
TO THE
HONORABLE NEIL V. WAKE, SENIOR UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE:
Petitioner
Ronald Francis Greene has filed a pro se Petition for Writ of
Habeas Corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. (Doc. 1.)
I.
Summary of Conclusion.
Petitioner
raises one claim of ineffective assistance of counsel in his
Petition. Petitioner was sentenced in 2006, and his sentence
was final 30 days later because he did not pursue
post-conviction relief. The instant Petition was due in 2007
but was not filed until 2018. Petitioner's claim is
untimely. Therefore, the Court will recommend that the
Petition be denied and dismissed with prejudice.
II.
Background.
A.
Facts and Trial Procedural History.
The
Maricopa County Superior Court included a summary of the
underlying facts and procedural history of Petitioner's
case:
Defendant entered a plea agreement and pled guilty to two
dangerous crimes against children: one count of sexual
exploitation of a minor, a class-2 felony, and one count of
attempted sexual exploitation of a minor, a class-3 felony.
On June 29, 2006, the Court entered judgment and sentenced
Defendant to a 17-year flat term of imprisonment for sexual
exploitation of a minor. In addition, the Court suspended
imposition of sentence for the attempted sexual exploitation
offense and placed Defendant on a lifetime term of probation
commencing upon absolute discharge from prison. At sentencing
Defendant received a form titled “Notice of Rights of
Review After Conviction and Procedure.” Defendant
acknowledged receipt by signing the form.
(Doc. 11-10, Ex. I at 2-3.)
b.
Petitioner's State Post Conviction Relief
Proceedings.
On May
14, 2018, Petitioner filed a post-conviction relief
(“PCR”) notice. (Doc. 11-9, Ex. H, at
2-4.)[1] Petitioner did not request appointment of
counsel. (Id. at 3.) On June 6, 2018, the Maricopa
County Superior Court found that Petitioner's PCR claims
were untimely, and that Petitioner failed to assert
substantive claims and provide reasons for their
untimeliness. (Doc. 11-10, Ex. I at 3.) The Superior Court
dismissed the Petition. (Id. at 4.)
Under Rule 32.4(a)(2)(C) of the Arizona Rules of Criminal
Procedure, the Notice of Request for Post-Conviction Relief
must be filed within 90 days of the entry of judgment. This
date is clearly stated in the “Notice of Rights of
Review After Conviction and Procedure” form that
Defendant received at sentencing. Because this Court
sentenced Defendant on June 29, 2006, the deadline for
Defendant's Notice of Request for ...