AARON AGUIRRE V. DAVE DAVEY, No. 15-56019 (9th Cir. 2017)

Annotate this Case
Download PDF
NOT FOR PUBLICATION UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FILED FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT FEB 17 2017 MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK AARON AGUIRRE, No. Petitioner-Appellant, 15-56019 U.S. COURT OF APPEALS D.C. No. 2:12-cv-00697-JGB-SP v. DAVE DAVEY, Warden, Pelican Bay State Prison, MEMORANDUM* Respondent-Appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Central District of California Jesus G. Bernal, District Judge, Presiding Submitted February 14, 2017** Pasadena, California Before: D.W. NELSON, TALLMAN, and N.R. SMITH, Circuit Judges. Aaron Aguirre (“Aguirre”) appeals the district court’s judgment denying his petition for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 2253, and we AFFIRM. * This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3. ** The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2). With respect to the only certified issue on appeal – whether the trial court’s denial of Aguirre’s motion for a new trial violated his due process rights – we note it does not appear this claim was fairly presented to the California Court of Appeal or the California Supreme Court and may therefore implicate exhaustion concerns. See 28 U.S.C. § 2254(b)(1)(A). However, under 28 U.S.C. § 2254(b)(2), we may deny an unexhausted claim on the merits “when it is perfectly clear that the applicant does not raise even a colorable federal claim.” Cassett v. Stewart, 406 F.3d 614, 624 (9th Cir. 2005). Aguirre has failed to demonstrate that the trial court’s denial of his motion for a new trial violated his due process rights or otherwise prevented him from presenting a complete defense. The district court did not certify Aguirre’s remaining claims and we therefore construe them as a motion to broaden the certificate of appealability. See 9th Cir. R. 22-1(e). We deny the motion. See Hiivala v. Wood, 195 F.3d 1098, 1104 (9th Cir.1999) (per curium) (explaining that broadening a certificate of appealability requires a “substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right”) (quoting 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2)). AFFIRMED. 2

Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.