Johnson v. Foster

Dist. Ct. did not err in dismissing defendant’s section 2254 habeas petition, after finding that defendant had procedurally defaulted on claims in said petition because he had failed to present claims in petition for review with Wisc. Supreme Ct. While defendant argued that such default should have been excused because his failure to file petition for review with Wisc. Supreme Ct. was because prison Business Office had improperly denied his request for loan to cover expenses associated with said petition, Dist. Ct. could properly find that defendant failed to show that denial of his loan request was objective impediment to his ability to comply with state court’s procedural rules or that said denial actually prevented him from filing state-court petition for review. Also, Ct. of Appeals found that defendant was not entitled to seek habeas relief to resolve state-law question as to whether prison officials had improperly denied his loan request, where defendant failed to show that state court had ruled on said question, and where it would be improper for federal court to rule on said issue based solely on its own interpretation of state prison policy.