Nitschke v. Belleque, No. 10-36121 (9th Cir. 2012)
Annotate this CaseIn this appeal from the denial of habeas relief, the court addressed whether petitioner's Apprendi claim was procedurally defaulted under Oregon's preservation rule. Petitioner failed to raise at the state trial court level the Apprendi claim that formed the basis of his challenge to his enhanced sentence under Oregon's "dangerous offender" law. Although petitioner raised the issue in his appeal to the Oregon Court of Appeals, that court declined to consider the merits of the claim because the issue had not been raised in the trial court and did not meet the plain error exception to the preservation rule. Petitioner ultimately sought habeas relief in federal court, but the district court concluded that the Apprendi claim was procedurally defaulted under federal law and dismissed his habeas petition. Because the court concluded that the Oregon Court of Appeals' ruling was not interwoven with federal law, the court affirmed the district court's judgment.
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