United States District Court, W.D. Oklahoma
GLYNN R. SIMMONS, Petitioner,
v.
JOE ALLBAUGH, Respondent.
ORDER
SCOTT
L. PALK UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE.
Petitioner,
Glynn R. Simmons, is an Oklahoma state prisoner appearing pro
se in this matter. However, at the time the Petition was
filed and through the filing of his Objection to the
Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation, Petitioner
appeared through counsel, Rand Eddy. The Court granted Mr.
Eddy leave to withdraw his appearance after the Objection was
filed. See Order [Doc. No. 28] (J.
Miles-LaGrange).[1]
I.
Introduction
Petitioner
is serving a life sentence for a 1975 murder conviction.
See Roberts v. State, 564 P.2d 246 (Okla. Crim. App.
1977).[2] In 1995 the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole
Board (Board) recommended Petitioner for parole release, but
the Governor of the State of Oklahoma rejected the
Board's parole recommendation. In 1997, Petitioner
brought an action in this judicial district pursuant to 28
U.S.C. § 2254 and challenged his conviction and
sentence. His petition was denied and the Tenth Circuit
affirmed the denial. See Simmons v. Ward, No.
98-6414, 1999 WL 983090 (10th Cir. Oct. 29, 1999)
(unpublished op.).[3]
Petitioner
now brings this action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241
challenging the execution of his sentence arising from
matters related to Oklahoma's parole procedures and prior
parole denials by the Board. Petitioner seeks as relief his
“immediate release.”
II.
Petitioner's Claims for Relief
In the
Petition [Doc. No. 1], Petitioner identifies the following
four grounds for relief:
Ground One: The State of Oklahoma has extended the duration
of Mr. Simmons' term of imprisonment in violation of the
14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause;
Ground Two: Three-year offset of parole hearing frequency
violates Mr. Simmons' federal protection against ex post
facto laws;
Ground Three: Contracts between the State of Oklahoma and the
corporate prisons that contain quota/occupancy guarantees
subject Mr. Simmons to denial of parole release and/or
interference with parole consideration by private actors,
which is unconstitutional; the State of Oklahoma knows of the
undue influence and failed to take action to abate it; and
Ground Four: By any definition or measure, Mr. Simmons has
served a longer term of imprisonment than any other prisoner
in the State. The confluence of factors, i.e., Mr. Simmons
will not admit guilt; Mr. Simmons' co-defendant has been
free on parole for 10 years and application of the more
onerous 85% demonstrate due process violations.
See Pet., ¶ 13.
In
further support of his first ground for relief, Petitioner
alleges that the Board's actions in denying him parole
are arbitrary and capricious. Petitioner claims at both his
2014 and 2017 parole hearings, he did not have the benefit of
consideration by a five-member Board, as required by the
Oklahoma Constitution. See Pet'r's Am. Br.
at 8-9 (citing Okla. Const. Art. 6, § 10). Specifically,
with respect to his 2014 parole consideration, Petitioner
claims the Board consisted of only four members who rendered
a split decision. With respect to his 2017 parole
consideration, Petitioner claims the Board consisted of only
three members and that one of those members is the son of the
former District Attorney of Oklahoma County who was the
District Attorney at the time of his conviction. Petitioner
claims the State's arbitrary administration of its parole
system constitutes a violation of his federal constitutional
rights. Id. at 14 (citing Greenholtz v. Inmates
of Nebraska Penal and Corr. Complex, 442 U.S. 1 (1979)).
As to
his second ground for relief, Petitioner alleges that he
should be receiving annual parole review instead of review
once every three years. He alleges changes to the Oklahoma
statute governing his parole consideration constitute a
violation of the Ex Posto Facto Clause. Id. at
17-19.
In
further support of his third ground for relief, Petitioner
claims that he has been housed in a private prison for the
past 20 years and that Oklahoma's contractual agreements
with private, for-profit prisons has resulted in a decrease
in parole releases. He claims this conduct constitutes
additional grounds for finding the State has acted
arbitrarily and capriciously in the denial of his parole.
Id. at 19 (alleging ...