Robin O'Neill v. Nicholas Deml

Burlington, Vermont Plaintiff pro se without counsel sought a writ of habeas corpus.



Robin O'Neill, who is serving a life sentence for a

double homicide, appeals from a judgment of the United States District Court for

the District of Vermont (Sessions, J.) dismissing her pro se petition for a writ of

habeas corpus made pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. The district court dismissed

O'Neill's petition for failure to fully exhaust all her claims in the state courts. On

appeal, O'Neill does not dispute that her "mixed” petition included both

exhausted and unexhausted claims; instead, she argues that the district court erred

because it did not inform her that she could have requested a stay of the exhausted

claims or filed an amended petition that only included the exhausted claims. She

also contends that the district court erred by failing to advise her of the one-year

statute of limitations that applied to her exhausted claims under the Antiterrorism

and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996. We hold that the district court has no

obligation to explain sua sponte to a pro se petitioner her options following the

dismissal of her "mixed” habeas petition or the potential effects that such a

dismissal could have on the timeliness of her claims. Accordingly, we AFFIRM

the district court's judgment.

Affirmed