RICO ARREOLA v. SMITH (2018)

MEMORANDUM **

Petitioner-Appellant Oscar Rico-Arreola was convicted in Nevada state court of one count of sexual assault of a minor under the age of fourteen. Rico-Arreola filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus with the Federal District Court for the District of Nevada alleging that the prosecution’s use of peremptory strikes against two African-American jurors violated his constitutional rights under Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79, 106 S.Ct. 1712, 90 L.Ed.2d 69 (1986). The district court denied the petition. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 2253, and we affirm.

The Nevada Supreme Court’s decision was not “contrary to” nor “an unreasonable application of[ ] clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States.” 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d)(1). Applying Felkner v. Jackson, 562 U.S. 594, 131 S.Ct. 1305, 179 L.Ed.2d 374 (2011) (per curiam), which upheld a peremptory strike based on the juror’s background in social work, the Nevada Supreme Court could reasonably conclude that the prosecution had provided a valid, race-neutral reason for striking both jurors. Moreover, the Nevada Supreme Court did not contravene clearly established Federal law by failing to conduct a comparative juror analysis when evaluating the third prong of Batson. See Murray v. Schriro, 745 F.3d 984, 1005 (9th Cir. 2014).

The Nevada Supreme Court’s decision was also based on a reasonable “determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented in the State court proceeding.” 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d)(2). It was not objectively unreasonable for the Nevada Supreme Court to defer to a credibility determination by the trial court. See Felkner, 562 U.S. at 598, 131 S.Ct. 1305. Moreover, the comparative juror analysis presented by Rico-Arreola to this court does not indicate that the trial court’s credibility determination was unreasonable.

Accordingly, the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED.