CARR v. BOWIE COUNTY

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER REGARDING VENUE

CAROLINE M. CRAVEN, Magistrate Judge.

Petitioner Christopher Maurice Carr, an inmate confined in the Bowie County Jail, proceeding pro se, filed this petition for writ of habeas corpus.

Petitioner states that on September 7, 2016, pursuant to an order of Ms. Wendy Kelley, the Director of the Arkansas Department of Corrections, he was transferred from the Arkansas Department of Corrections to the Bowie County Jail located in Texarkana, Texas. The information available on the Arkansas Department of Corrections Inmate Search website indicates Petitioner is confined pursuant to multiple criminal convictions from Washington County, Arkansas. See https://apps.ark.org/inmate_info/search.php. Petitioner asserts he is being illegally restrained in Texas because he has not been found guilty of a crime in the state of Texas, nor does he have any charges or indictments pending against him in the state of Texas. Petitioner contends his transfer to the Bowie County Jail violated the judgments entered against him in Arkansas. Thus, he claims his confinement is unlawful.

Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241(d), a petitioner may bring his petition for writ of habeas corpus in either the federal judicial district in which he was convicted or the district in which he is incarcerated. As petitioner states no Texas charges have been filed against him, his incarceration in the Bowie County Jail appears to be the result of some contractual arrangement between Bowie County and the Arkansas Department of Corrections. Accordingly, his incarceration is due to his Arkansas convictions rather than any action by a Texas court.

As petitioner's incarceration is the result of his Arkansas convictions, the Court is of the opinion this petition should be transferred to the federal judicial district where the convictions occurred. Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 83, Washington County, where petitioner was convicted, is located in the Fayetteville Division of the Western District of Arkansas. This petition will therefore be transferred to such division and district.

ORDER

For the reasons set forth above, it is ORDERED that this petition is TRANSFERRED to the Fayetteville Division of the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas.