Matta-Ballesteros v. Henman

• Decision Date: 22 February 1990
• Docket Number: P,No. 88-2767,MATTA-BALLESTERO,88-2767
• Citation: 896 F.2d 255
• Parties: Juan Ramonetitioner, v. Gary L. HENMAN, Warden, United States Penitentiary at Marion, Illinois, Respondent.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit

Page 255

896 F.2d 255

Juan Ramon MATTA-BALLESTEROS, Petitioner, v. Gary L. HENMAN, Warden, United States Penitentiary at Marion, Illinois, Respondent.

No. 88-2767.

United States Court of Appeals Seventh Circuit.

Argued Nov. 1, 1989.

Decided Feb. 21, 1990.

As Amended Feb. 22, 1990.

Martin R. Stolar, New York City, Michael D. Abzug, Los Angeles, Cal., Adolfo Z. Aguila, Miami, Fla., J. William Lucco, Lucco & Brown, Edwardsville, Ill., for petitioner.

Ralph M. Friederich, Asst. U.S. Atty., East St. Louis, Ill., Catherine M. Volz, Bradley D. Simon, Dept. of Justice, Narcotic & Dangerous Drug Section, Washington, D.C., for respondent.

Before CUMMINGS and FLAUM, Circuit Judges, and WILL, Senior District Judge. ^*

FLAUM, Circuit Judge.

Juan Ramon Matta-Ballesteros ("Matta"), petitions this Court by writ of habeas corpus claiming that the United States illegally kidnapped him from his home in Honduras and tortured him before transporting him to the United States to face trial on pending criminal charges. Based on these allegations, Matta claims that the United States violated the Honduran Constitution, international law, and the due process clause of the United States Constitution and as a result, the United States is without personal jurisdiction over him. The district court denied his petition without a hearing on the basis that the facts, as alleged, did not entitle him to the requested relief. Matta petitions us to remand the case to the district court for an evidentiary hearing. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm.

I. FACTS

In 1971, Matta escaped from the United States Prison Camp at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida and fled to Honduras. He is a Honduran citizen and because Honduras does not extradite its own citizens, he believed that he had found a safe haven from the reach of United States law enforcement officials. While he was in the Honduras, he allegedly became heavily involved in the narcotics trade and now faces criminal charges in the federal district courts of Arizona, Central California, and Southern California. At the time he filed the writ, he was also under indictment in the Northern District of Florida for escape pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Sec. 751(a). He has since been convicted of that crime and sentenced to three years imprisonment.

At about 6:00 a.m. on the morning of April 5, 1988, Matta, accompanied by his bodyguards, arrived at his home in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. ¹ Upon his arrival, Matta was surrounded by armed members of the Honduran Special Troops or "Cobras," who were accompanied by at least four United States Marshals. He was arrested and handcuffed, allegedly at the direction of the United States Marshals. A black hood was placed over his head and he was pushed onto the floor of a car driven by the United States Marshals.

A United States Marshal immediately drove him to a United States Air Force base approximately an hour-and-a-half away. During the ride, Matta claims that he was severely beaten and burned with a "stun gun" ² at the direction of the United States Marshals. Once he arrived at the airport, Matta was flown to the United States. He claims that during this flight, he was once again beaten and shocked about the body, including on his testicles and feet, again by United States Marshals.

Upon his arrival in the United States, Matta was immediately transferred to Marion Penitentiary. Approximately 24 hours had passed from the time of his apprehension. Matta was subsequently examined by a physician who found abrasions on his head, face, scalp, neck, arms, feet, and penis, as well as blistering on his back. According to the examining physician, these injuries were consistent with those which could have been caused by a stun gun.

Based on these allegations, Matta filed a writ of habeas corpus in the Southern District of Illinois claiming that the United States had acted in violation of the Honduran Constitution, international law, and the United States Constitution. He demanded his release back to Honduras on the basis the United States was without jurisdiction to prosecute him as a result of the alleged due process violations.

At the time he filed the writ, Matta faced indictment in the Northern District of Florida for escape from the United States Prison Camp at Eglin Air Force Base in 1971, along with indictments on various narcotics charges in the central and southern districts of California, and the district of Arizona. After filing the writ, he sought a preliminary injunction to prevent the government from transferring him from Marion to face prosecution in these districts. Matta-Ballesteros ex rel. Stolar v. Henman, 697 F.Supp. 1036 (S.D.Ill.1988). Matta did not face charges anywhere within the jurisdiction of the district court where he brought his petition. He was simply being held in Marion Penitentiary pending transfer to jurisdictions where he did face charges. The preliminary injunction was denied by the district court on the basis that Matta failed to establish that he had no adequate remedy at law and failed to show irreparable harm. Id.

After denying the preliminary injunction, the district court ordered an expanded record from the parties, including affidavits from the petitioner and any occurrence witnesses. In addition to other documents, Matta filed affidavits from his bodyguards who were with him at the time of his arrest confirming his allegations. The government filed affidavits by various United States Marshals denying most of Matta's allegations, especially those concerning torture. The United States contended that the Honduran government, and not the United States, arrested Matta and was responsible for any mistreatment. Based on this expanded record, the district court found that Matta's claims failed as a matter of law, holding that even if the facts were as Matta alleged, he was not entitled to the relief he sought. The court, therefore, denied Matta's request for discovery and an evidentiary hearing, ruling on the pleadings and affidavits alone, much in the manner of a summary judgment. Matta-Ballesteros ex rel. Stolar v. Henman, 697 F.Supp. 1040 (S.D.Ill.1988). Since the district court's denial of the writ, Matta has been transferred to a prison in Florida, arraigned, tried, and convicted of escape from federal custody. 18 U.S.C. Sec. 751(a). ³

II. ANALYSIS

The district court's decision not to grant an evidentiary hearing was based on Rule 8(a) of the Rules Governing Section 2254 Cases ⁴ (the "Rules") which states that after the transcript and record of the state court proceedings are filed, the trial judge may determine if an evidentiary hearing is needed, and if not, shall "make such disposition of the petition as justice shall require." Rule 8(a) of the Rules; 28 U.S.C. Sec. 2554. The district court held that it could consider the facts much as in a summary judgment motion, reading any facts in dispute in favor of the non-movant, in this case Matta, and then applying the law to those facts.

Matta's only claim on appeal is based on this denial: he claims he was entitled to an evidentiary hearing by the district court. To advance this claim, Matta presents two arguments. First, he asserts that he was entitled to an evidentiary hearing because of the unique posture of his case, i.e., there was no trial court record upon which the denial of the writ could be based. Second, he maintains that the facts, as he alleges them, entitle him to relief as a matter of law, and therefore, there are material issues of fact that must be determined through an evidentiary hearing. We consider each of these in turn. Both claims present questions of law, so we review the district court's decision de novo. See Christianson v. Colt. Indust. Operating Corp., 870 F.2d 1292, 1299 (7th Cir.1989).

A. Denial of an Evidentiary Hearing

Matta's first contention is, in essence, that where there has been no prior trial, a writ of habeas corpus may not be denied without a hearing. ⁵ Common sense, however, dictates that if the facts as alleged by the applicant do not entitle him to relief, a hearing at which the applicant may prove those facts is useless. This reasoning, which was relied on by the district court, is reflected by 28 U.S.C. Sec. 2254(d) and by the decisions of both this Court and the Supreme Court.

The Seventh Circuit has held that "an evidentiary hearing is not necessary when the facts essential to consideration of the constitutional issue are already before the court." Jeter v. Keohane, 739 F.2d 257 n. 1 (7th Cir.1984); see also Bergenthal v. Cady, 466 F.2d 635, 648 (7th Cir.1972), cert. denied, 409 U.S. 1109, 93 S.Ct. 913, 34 L.Ed.2d 690 (1973). Our holding in Jeter is based on Townsend v. Sain, 372 U.S. 293, 319, 83 S.Ct. 745, 760, 9 L.Ed.2d 770 (1963) and its codification at 28 U.S.C. Sec. 2254, both of which detail the situations where an evidentiary hearing is mandatory. Each situation listed by Townsend assumes that material facts are in dispute. Two of the listed situations are relevant for our purposes. First, the Court stated that a hearing is mandatory where "the merits of the factual dispute were not resolved in the state court hearing." 372 U.S. at 313, 83 S.Ct. at 757. The merits of a dispute, however, only concern material facts. Second, the Court required a hearing where "the material facts were not adequately developed...." Id. at 313, 83 S.Ct. at 757. Again, material facts must be at issue. Section 2254 echoes the requirements of Townsend. ⁶ Section 2254(d)(3), the provision most applicable to this case, mandates a hearing when "material facts were not adequately developed...." 28 U.S.C. Sec. 2254(d)(3). Similarly, section 2254(d)(1) requires a hearing when the merits of the factual dispute were not resolved earlier. Once again, the "merits" of a dispute only concern material facts. Neither Townsend nor Sec. 2254 require a hearing where no material facts are in dispute.

Moreover, under the Rules Governing Habeas Corpus, ...