Knight v. Walsh
| Decision Date | 17 December 2007 |
| Docket Number | No. 03-CV-802S(F).,03-CV-802S(F). |
| Citation | 524 F.Supp.2d 255 |
| Parties | Willis KNIGHT, Petitioner, v. James J. WALSH, Respondent. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Western District of New York |
Willis Knight, Comstock, NY, pro se.
Michael C. Green, Monroe County District Attorney, Wendy Evans Lehmann, Assistant District Attorney, Rochester, NY, for Respondent.
DECISION AND ORDER
1. Petitioner commenced this action pro se on October 29, 2003, requesting habeas corpus relief under 28 U.S.C. § 2254. (Docket No. 1.)
2, The Court referred this matter to the Honorable Leslie G. Foschio, United States Magistrate Judge, to issue a Report and Recommendation for the consideration of the District Judge pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(B).
3. In a 77-page Report and Recommendation dated September 26, 2007, Judge Foschio recommended that Knight's habeas Petition be dismissed. (Docket No. 11.)
4. On October 29, 2007, Petitioner filed a 71-page Objection to Judge Foschio's Report and Recommendation in accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(C) and Local Rule 72.3(a)(3). (Docket No. 14.) Several weeks later, on November 21, 2007, Petitioner sought leave to amend his objections, claiming that paragraph "I" had been inadvertently omitted. (Docket No. 17.) Petitioner submitted his proposed amended Objection to the Report and Recommendation, numbering 73 pages, which has already been filed. (Docket No. 16.) Having compared the initial Objections and the proposed amendment, the Court grants Petitioner's request.
5. The Court has thoroughly reviewed this case de novo and has considered Judge Foschio's Report and Recommendation, Petitioner's Amended Objections thereto, and the applicable law. Upon due consideration, this Court will accept Judge Foschio's recommendation and deny the Petition for a writ of habeas corpus.
6. In addition, because the issues raised here are not the type of issues that a court could resolve in a different manner, and because these issues are not debatable among jurists of reason, the Court concludes that petitioner has failed to make a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right, 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2), and accordingly the Court denies a certificate of appealability.
The Court also hereby certifies, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3), that any appeal from this judgment would not be taken in good faith and therefore denies leave to appeal as a poor person. Coppedge v. United States, 369 U.S. 438, 82 S.Ct. 917, 8 L.Ed.2d 21 (1962).
Petitioner must file any notice of appeal with the Clerk's Office, United States District Court, Western District of New York, within thirty (30) days of the date of judgment in this action. Requests to proceed on appeal as a poor person must be filed with the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in accordance with the requirements of Rule 24 of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure.
IT HEREBY IS ORDERED, that Petitioner's Request for Leave to Amend his Objections (Docket No. 16) is GRANTED.
FURTHER, that this Court accepts Judge Foschio's September 26, 2007 Report and Recommendation (Docket No. 11) in its entirety, including the authorities cited and the reasons given therein, and Willis Knight's Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus (Docket No. 1) under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 is DENIED.
FURTHER, that a certificate of appealability is DENIED.
FURTHER, that leave to appeal as a poor person is DENIED.
FURTHER, that the Clerk of this Court is directed to take the necessary steps to close this case.
SO ORDERED.
REPORT and RECOMMENDATION
Petitioner Willis Knight, acting pro se, commenced this action on October 29, 2003, requesting habeas corpus relief under 28 U.S.C. § 2254. On November 3, 2006, Honorable William M. Skretny referred the matter to the undersigned, pursuant to. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(B), for report and recommendation.
On October 29, 2003, Petitioner Willis Knight ("Petitioner" or "Knight"), proceeding pro se, filed a Petition (Doc. No. 1) ("Petition"), commencing this action seeking habeas relief, challenging Petitioner's conviction on June 8, 1995 for the kidnapping, rape and murder of an 18-year old woman in Rochester, New York. Petitioner asserts 20 grounds for relief, arguing that his conviction and sentence are unconstitutional based on (1) unlawful arrest, Petition ¶ 12(A); (2) impermissibly suggestive identification procedures, Petition ¶ 12(B); (3) denial of right to conflict-free counsel, Petition ¶ 12(C); (4) an improperly impaneled trial jury, Petition ¶ 12(D); (5) use of inadmissible tape recordings and transcripts, Petition ¶ 12(E); (6) improper use of voice identification testimony, Petition ¶ 12(F); (7) introduction of impermissible DNA evidence at trial, Petition ¶ 12(G); (8) prosecutorial misconduct, Petition ¶ 12(H); (9) use of an "annotated" verdict sheet, Petition ¶ 12(I); (10) trial court judge's failure to recuse himself after the case was remanded for a reconstruction hearing regarding use of the annotated verdict sheet, Petition ¶ 12(J); (11) conflict of interest between the trial court judge and Petitioner, Petition ¶ 12(K); (12) withholding of exculpatory evidence by the prosecution, Petition ¶ 12(L); (13) ineffective assistance of appellate counsel, Petition ¶ 12(M); (14) the appellate court's failure to consider all supporting papers when ruling on Petitioner's motion for a writ of error coram nobis, Petition ¶ 12(N); (15) the jury's consideration of improper evidence during deliberations, Petition ¶ 12(O); (16) inadmissible fingerprint evidence, Petition ¶ 12(P); (17) failure to preserve evidence, Petition ¶ 12(Q); (18) insufficient evidence to support the verdict, Petition ¶ 12(R); (19) the imposition of consecutive sentences, resulting in an excessive sentence, Petition ¶ 12(S); and (20) ineffective assistance of trial counsel, Petition ¶ 12(T).
On February 6, 2004, Respondent filed a Response (Doc. No. 7) ("Response") opposing the Petition, attached to which are the first of two volumes of exhibits, A through V ("Vol. I, Response Exh(s). ___"). Also submitted was a second volume of exhibits, A through X ("Vol. II, Response Exh(s). ___"). The Response Exhibits are comprised of state court records pertaining to Petitioner's conviction, appeal of the conviction to the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Fourth Department ("Appellate Division"), and motion for a writ of error coram nobis. On February 9, 2004, Respondent submitted five additional volumes of transcripts of Petitioner's state court proceedings including, inter alia, arraignment, other pretrial proceedings, Petitioner's jury trial, and a reconstruction hearing. References to "SR Vol(s). ___, at ___" are to the particular page numbers and volumes of the five volumes of state records filed in this action.
On July 27, 2006, Petitioner filed a Traverse and Memorandum of Law (Doc. No. 9) ("Memorandum") in further support of the Petition. Attached to Petitioner's Memorandum are Exhibits A through E ("Petitioner's Exh(s). ___"). Oral argument was deemed unnecessary.
Based on the following, the Petition should be DISMISSED.
Petitioner, Willis Knight ("Knight"), was arrested on May 13, 1994 in connection with the November 13, 1993 abduction, rape and murder of 18-year old college student Jennifer Koon ("the victim"), in Rochester, New York. The trial testimony established that at 11:30 A.M. on Saturday, November 13, 1993, the victim left her part-time job and drove to Pittsford Plaza in Pittsford, New York, a suburb of Rochester, where the victim purchased bagels and used an automatic teller machine ("ATM"), before returning to her vehicle intending to return to her college dorm. Trial Transcript2 ("Tr.") at 933-36, 945-54, 1315-20. Instead, the victim was abducted by at least two men who drove the victim in her vehicle to Rochester, beating the victim during the drive. There were several witnesses to the beating who attempted to obtain aid for the victim by summoning the police. The witnesses reportedly observed the victim's vehicle traveling along Rochester streets, while a struggle ensued between the driver and the victim who was sitting in the front passenger seat. Tr. at 964-73, 977-84, 997-98, 1012-1025, 1068-75, 1101-08. During the ride, another male passenger sat in the vehicle's rear passenger seat. Tr. at 966-68, 978-86, 2199. At one point, the victim was observed hanging out the door of the moving vehicle as she tried to escape before the driver pulled the victim back into the vehicle, slamming the door on the victim's arms, and subsequently smashing the victim's head against the front passenger window so hard as to shatter the glass. Tr. at 964-73, 977-84, 997-98, 1012-25, 1068-75, 1101-08.
While being brutally beaten, the victim managed to dial 911 from a cell phone installed in the vehicle. Tr. at 907, 1479, 1503-06, 1511-23. The call was received on November 13, 1993, at the 911 emergency call center at 1:13 P.M. by telecommunicator Kimberly Bell ("Bell"), who was able to determine only that the call had been placed by a cell phone for which the location could not be determined. Tr. at 1479-80. According to Bell, the caller was "in trouble, someone that was hurt." Tr. at 1480. Bell described hearing a car radio or music, and a door or seatbelt chime with "lots of rustling noises." Id. Bell was never able to speak with the caller, but she kept the phone line open while she informed her supervisor about the call. Id. All communication transmissions to the 911 emergency call center were recorded to a "master tape." Tr. at 1481. The line was left open for 15 minutes. Tr. at 1481, 1485.
Despite the victim's emergency 911 call, the police did not reach the victim in...
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