Dominguez v. Duval
| Decision Date | 30 March 2012 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action No. 10–12138–WGY. |
| Citation | 851 F.Supp.2d 261 |
| Parties | Carlos DOMINGUEZ, Petitioner, v. Ronald DUVAL, Acting Commissioner, Department of Corrections, Martha Coakley, Attorney General, Respondents. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
Susanne G. Reardon, Office of the Attorney General, Boston, MA, Anne Marie Thomas, Office of the Attorney General, Worcester, MA, for Respondent.
Deirdre L. Thurber, Law Office of Deirdre Thurber, Plymouth, MA, for Petitioner.
After a 2006 trial in the Massachusetts Superior Court, sitting in and for the county of Suffolk, a jury convicted Carlos Dominguez (“Dominguez”) of second-degree murder and the judge presiding sentenced him to life in prison. Pet. Writ Habeas Corpus Pursuant 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (“Habeas Pet.”), Mem. Decision Def.'s Mot. New Trial (“Superior Ct. Decision”) 1, ECF No. 1–1. Dominguez filed a timely appeal of his conviction, arguing that the Justice of the Superior Court erred in admitting evidence from an autopsy report even though the author of the report did not testify in court, and in refusing to give a requested jury instruction. Habeas Pet., Mem. Order Pursuant Rule 1:28 (“Appeals Ct. Decision”) 3, ECF No. 1–1. On July 17, 2009, 74 Mass.App.Ct. 1125, 909 N.E.2d 1193 (2009), the Appeals Court affirmed the conviction. Id. at 8. On September 10, 2009, the Supreme Judicial Court denied his Application for Further Appellate Review. Habeas Pet., Notice Denial F.A.R. Application (“Supreme Judicial Ct. Denial”), ECF No. 1–1. Dominguez did not petition for a writ of certiorari with the United States Supreme Court. Habeas Pet. 4.
Dominguez also moved for a new trial based on alleged newly discovered evidence, which a different Superior Court justice denied without an evidentiary hearing in 2008. Superior Ct. Decision 2. The Appeals Court affirmed the denial. Appeals Ct. Decision 8.
Dominguez filed a writ of habeas corpus in this Court on December 10, 2010, under 28 U.S.C. § 2254. Habeas Pet. 2. Dominguez asks this Court to vacate his conviction and order a new trial. Id. at 16.
Respondents Ronald Duval, then Acting Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Corrections, and Martha Coakley, Massachusetts Attorney General, moved to dismiss Dominguez's habeas petition as untimely. Resp't's Mot. Dismiss 1, ECF No. 5; Resp't's Mem. Law Supp. Mot. Dismiss Pet. Writ Habeas Corpus Time–Barred (“Resp't's Mem.”) 1, ECF No. 6. Dominguez argues that the petition was not time barred or, in the alternative, the statute of limitations should be equitably tolled and therefore his petition should be considered timely. Pet'r's Reply Mot. Dismiss 1, ECF No. 8; Mem. Law Supp. Pet'r's Reply (“Pet'r's Mem.”) 1–2, ECF No. 9. On January 9, 2012, this Court ordered the parties to submit supplemental briefs in order better to establish the factual record. Order, ECF No. 14. Dominguez filed a supplemental brief on February 13, 2012. Supplemental Br. 1, ECF No. 17. The Attorney General failed to submit a timely response to the Court's request.1
Specifically, Dominguez argues that when his attorney originally mailed the habeas petition to the prison where he is currently detained, the prison rejected the mail properly addressed to him and returned it to the attorney unopened. Pet'r's Mem. 2. The attorney resent the paperwork, Dominguez signed the relevant documents, and the attorney subsequently filed the petition with this Court one day after the filing deadline. Id. Dominguez now argues that his petition would have been timely filed but for the prison's failure to deliver his mail. Id.
The Court divides the facts that govern its analysis into three sections: first, the events underlying Dominguez's conviction; second, the facts pertaining to the timeliness of Dominguez's habeas petition; and third, the facts pertaining to the merits of Dominguez's habeas petition.
The Appeals Court stated that “Based on the evidence at trial, the jury could have found as follows.” Appeals Ct. Decision 1. A witness living on the second floor of a building on 96 Grove Street heard screams at 4:30 A.M. on January 2, 2004. Id. The witness looked out his window and saw the victim “being chased by two Hispanic males.” Id. at 1–2. The witness did not see any altercation, but he saw the two males chase the victim from 92 Grove Street to the corner of Highland and Grove Streets. Id. at 2.
Paramedics responded to a report of a “man down” at 5:30 A.M. and found the victim lying next to the curb. Id. The victim died at the scene. Id. The cause of death was a wound on his right shoulder, which was “covered in a large amount of blood.” Id. “A trail of blood led from 92 Grove Street to his body, traveling up Grove Street and curving right onto Highland Street.” Id.
On January 4, 2004, the police interviewed Dominguez. Id. After giving two different accounts, Dominguez blurted out “ ‘I did it’ ” and gave a version of the events where the victim had initiated the altercation by trying to hit Dominguez with a stick. Id. According to Dominguez, Dominguez ran around a parked car and pulled out a knife. Id. After the victim lunged at Dominguez, Dominguez “cut” the victim. Id. The Appeals Court stated that a police search of Dominguez's apartment revealed the clothes Dominguez was wearing that night, “hidden behind the refrigerator and covered in [the victim's] blood.” Id. at 2–3. Dominguez argued at trial that his statement admitting guilt was unreliable or that he had acted in self-defense when stabbing the victim. Id. at 3.
On November 23, 2010, Dominguez's attorney, Deirdre Thurber (“Thurber”), mailed two sets of completed habeas petitions to Dominguez, who was being housed in the Northern State Prison in Newark, New Jersey. Aff. Counsel (“First Aff.”) ¶ 5–6, ECF No. 10; Pet'r's Mem. 2. Thurber asserts that she used “the same address [she] had always used” for the previous correspondences on November 23. First Aff. ¶ 6. The envelope with the petition was returned unopened. Id. ¶ 7. She further asserts that no previous correspondence had been returned to her. Aff. Counsel (“Second Aff.”) ¶ 2, ECF No. 17–1. Thurber asserts that there is no indication why the address was insufficient, and that she included the same identification number (SBI number) that she had always used in her correspondences with Dominguez but was rejected for this submission. First Aff. ¶¶ 10–11; Second Aff. ¶ 2.
Thurber resent the envelope containing the additional identifying information she received from the prison administration, including a longer SBI number with the string “612096” and the specific wing of the prison where Dominguez was housed, but Thurber asserts that all previous correspondences lacked this additional identifying information. Second Aff. ¶¶ 2–3; see Second Aff., Ex., ECF No. 17–2 ().
There are several discrepancies in the affidavits submitted to the Court regarding the timing of the returned envelope. Thurber's first affidavit states that she received the returned envelope on December 2, 2010, and that the envelope was unopened and marked “RTS” (i.e. Returned to Sender) and “Insufficient Address.” First Aff. ¶ 7; Id., Ex. at 2, ECF No. 10–1. Her second affidavit, however, states that the envelope was returned to her on December 3, 2010. Second Aff. ¶ 3.
The first affidavit states that she received the returned envelope “after normal operating hours for administrative personnel,” so she was unable to call the administration office of the Northern State Prison to confirm Dominguez's inmate status until the following day, December 3. First Aff. ¶ 10. According to the second affidavit, since the date of receipt was December 3, a Friday, and Thurber received the envelope “after the close of business hours,” she needed to wait until Monday, December 6, 2010, to call the prison. Second Aff. ¶ 3.
According to the first affidavit, upon learning that Dominguez was still housed at Northern State Prison, Thurber mailed the habeas petitions that same day, December 3, by express mail. First Aff. ¶ 12. The receipt from the United States Postal Service submitted with the first affidavit confirms that a package was mailed to Dominguez on December 3, 2010 at 9:48 A.M. First Aff., Ex. at 3. Contradictorily, the second affidavit states that she mailed the petitions to Dominguez on December 6. Second Aff. ¶ 3. Although there are discrepancies as to when Thurber received and re-mailed the petitions, it appears that she subsequently received the petitions with Dominguez's signature on December 8, 2010. First Aff. ¶ 13.
Thurber completed the paperwork and mailed it by certified mail to the Clerk of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts on December 9, 2010. Id. The petition was filed and docketed on December 10, 2010. ECF No. 1.
Dominguez presents two grounds in his petition of habeas corpus. Habeas Pet. 6, 8. The first ground claims a violation of his Sixth Amendment Confrontation Clause rights. Id. at 6; see Melendez–Diaz v. Massachusetts, 557 U.S. 305, 317–21, 129 S.Ct. 2527, 2536–38, 2542, 174 L.Ed.2d 314 (2009). The second ground claims that prosecutors withheld certain evidence which would have aided in his defense, a violation of his Fourteenth Amendment Due Process rights. Habeas Pet. 8 (citing Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 87, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963)).
Dominguez states that an autopsy was performed on the victim by Dr. Abraham Philip (“Dr. Philip”).2Id. at 6. Dr. Mark Flomenbaum (“Dr. Flomenbaum”), however, testified at trial rather than Dr. Philip. Id. Dominguez states that Dr. Flomenbaum testified about the autopsy, its findings and...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Santana v. Cowen
...S.Ct. 1239, 90 L.Ed. 1557 (1946) ); see also Cronin v. Commissioner of Probation, 783 F.3d 47, 51 (1st Cir. 2015) ; Dominguez v. Duval, 851 F.Supp.2d 261, 269 (D. Mass. 2012).A. The Supreme Judicial Court's Decision Did Not Result from an Unreasonable Determination of the Facts in Light of ......