Clemons v. Klee
| Decision Date | 10 September 2019 |
| Docket Number | Case No. 17-cv-10235 |
| Parties | William Earl Clemons, III, Petitioner, v. Paul D. Klee, Respondent. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Michigan |
William Earl Clemons, III, ("petitioner"), who is presently residing at 5300 Lawton in Detroit, Michigan,1 has filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. In his pro se application, petitioner challenges his conviction for one count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct, Mich. Comp. Laws Ann. § 750.520d(1)(b), and being afourth felony habitual offender, § 769.12. For the reasons set forth below, the Court denies the petition for a writ of habeas corpus.
Petitioner was charged with sexually assaulting the babysitter of his two minor children. On October 23, 2012, Faith Marie Taylor testified at the Preliminary Examination that after relocating from North Carolina to Michigan, she met petitioner in front of a car wash when her car broke down. Petitioner volunteered to help and purchased a water pump to repair her car. Taylor and petitioner exchanged phone numbers and a few days later, petitioner sent a series of sexually explicit pictures to Taylor. Taylor told petitioner to stop disrespecting her, and petitioner stopped sending any further indecent pictures or messages. (ECF No. 8-2, PageID.362-68.)
A couple of days later, petitioner called and asked Taylor if she could babysit his two children. Petitioner agreed to pay Taylor $15.00 an hour to watch his two sons. Petitioner picked Taylor up and initially took her to a friend's house. He then took her to a park. It became apparent to Taylor that petitioner was waiting for his girlfriend to leave the apartment for work, before bringing Taylor to the apartment. Petitionerprovided Taylor with his ID and instructions to remain at the park. He later returned with the two boys in a double stroller and left alone shortly thereafter. Taylor babysat the children at the park for about an hour before petitioner returned to walk the group back to his apartment. (Id. at PageID.368-76.)
Upon arriving at the apartment, petitioner told Taylor that he was going to take a shower and then be gone for three hours. He instructed her to put the boys to sleep. After petitioner got out of the shower and dressed, Taylor became concerned that petitioner was not going to leave. Petitioner confirmed that he did not have plans to leave the apartment. (Id. at PageID.375-78.)
Taylor testified that petitioner began drinking and touching her inappropriately. She asked that he stop. Taylor further testified that she went into the bathroom where her phone was charging. Petitioner went into his bedroom. Taylor then also went into the bedroom to ask petitioner to call her a cab and she told him that she was "ready to get the hell out of this house." (Id. at PageID.384.)
Next, Taylor testified about the sexual assault. After she asked to leave, petitioner "dropped his pants and showed his penis." (Id. atPageID.385.) At this point, she testified that he had a gun, pointed it at her, and eventually threw her onto the bed. She testified that he "pulled [her] shorts down and stuck his two fingers in [her] vagina" while he held a gun a foot away from her head. Shortly after penetrating her, petitioner cried, said he was sorry, and begged Taylor to forgive him. (Id. at PageID.385-87.)
Petitioner pleaded no-contest in the Oakland County Circuit Court to a reduced charge of third-degree criminal sexual conduct and being a fourth habitual offender. The judge took his plea as follows:
(ECF No. 8-4, PageID.435-39.) In exchange for his plea, the Oakland County Prosecutor agreed to dismiss the first-degree criminal sexual conduct, felony-firearm, and felon in possession charges and further agreed that petitioner would be sentenced to five to fifteen years in prison. Petitioner was sentenced on March 25, 2013, to five to fifteen years in prison. Petitioner's conviction was affirmed on direct appeal. People v. Clemons, No. 319179 (Mich. Ct. App. Jan. 13, 2014); lv. den., 495 Mich. 1008 (2014).
On August 11, 2014, petitioner signed and dated his post-conviction motion for relief from judgment, which was then filed with the Oakland County Circuit Court. (ECF No. 8-9.) The trial court denied the motion. People v. Clemons, No. 12-243435-FC (Oakland County Circuit Court, Aug. 25, 2014).
Following the denial, petitioner filed an appeal from the denial of his post-conviction motion with the Michigan Court of Appeals. On September 11, 2014, petitioner filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus with this Court, which was dismissed because his appeal before the Michigan Court of Appeals was still pending. Clemons v. Haas, No. 2:14-cv-13625, 2014 WL 4843699 (E.D. Mich. Sept. 29, 2014).
The Michigan appellate courts ultimately denied petitioner's motion for post-conviction relief. People v. Clemons, No. 324012 (Mich. Ct. App. Dec. 26, 2014); lv. den. 499 Mich. 854 (2016).
On January 23, 2017, petitioner filed the habeas petition that is now before this Court alleging that the denial by the Michigan Court of Appeals of his ineffective assistance of counsel claims was an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law. He alleges:
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