VELASCO v. DIXON et al

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
TALLAHASSEE DIVISION
FELIPE GINO VELASCO, JR.,
Petitioner,
v. 	Case No. 4:25cv455-MW/MAF
RICKY DIXON, Secretary,
Florida Department of Corrections,
Respondent.
_____________________________/
REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION
TO TRANSFER HABEAS CORPUS PETITION
On or about October 23, 2025, Felipe Gino Velasco, Jr., a state inmate
proceeding pro se, filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28
U.S.C. § 2254. 	ECF No. 1. 	He has paid the filing fee. 	ECF No. 6. 	In the
§ 2254 petition, he indicates he challenges a judgment and sentence dated
December 13, 2019, by the Fourth Judicial Circuit, Clay County, in cases
2017-CF-823A and 2019-CF-1195. ECF No. 1 at 1-2.
Petitioner Velasco is currently incarcerated at the Marion Correctional
Institution in Marion County, Florida, which is located in the Middle District of
Florida. 	See 28 U.S.C. § 89(b). He challenges a state court judgment from
the Fourth Judicial Circuit, Clay County, Florida, which is also located in the
Middle District of Florida. ECF No. 1 at 1; see 28 U.S.C. § 89(b).
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Case No. 4:25cv455-MW/MAF
For federal habeas corpus actions, jurisdiction is appropriate in the
district of confinement and the district of conviction. 	28 U.S.C. § 2241(d)
(providing that state prisoner may file habeas petition in district of conviction
or in district of incarceration). Petitioner Velasco is not confined in this district
and does not challenge the judgment of a state court located in this district;
thus, jurisdiction is not appropriate in the Northern District of Florida. 	This
petition should be transferred to the United States District Court for the
Middle District of Florida. See 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a) (“For the convenience of
the parties and witnesses, in the interest of justice, a district court may
transfer any civil action to any other district or division where it might have
been 	brought 	or 	to 	any 	district 	or 	division 	to 	which 	all 	parties 	have
consented.”); Mitchell v. Henderson, 432 F.2d 435, 436 (5th Cir. 1970)
(“Under 28 U.S.C.A. § 2241(d), state convicts may file federal habeas corpus
petitions in the district either where they are confined or where they were
convicted. 	The purpose of this, of course, is to provide a more convenient
forum for witnesses.”). 	See also Parker v. Singletary, 974 F.2d 1562, 1582
(11th Cir. 1992) (explaining that “district courts should avoid the temptation
to transfer habeas petitions without giving careful consideration to the
convenience of witnesses” and, at note 118, citing Mitchell).
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Case No. 4:25cv455-MW/MAF
RECOMMENDATION
It is respectfully RECOMMENDED that the case file, including any
service copies and pending motions, be TRANSFERRED to the United
States 	District 	Court 	for 	the 	Middle 	District 	of 	Florida, 	for 	all 	further
proceedings.
IN CHAMBERS at Tallahassee, Florida, on November 17, 2025.
S/ Martin A. Fitzpatrick
MARTIN A. FITZPATRICK
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
NOTICE TO THE PARTIES
Within fourteen (14) days after being served with a copy of this
Report and Recommendation, a party may serve and file specific
written objections to these proposed findings and recommendations.
Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(b)(2). A copy of the objections shall be served upon
all other parties. 	A party may respond to another party’s objections
within fourteen (14) days after being served with a copy thereof. 	Fed.
R. Civ. P. 72(b)(2). 	Any different deadline that may appear on the
electronic docket is for the Court’s internal use only and does not
control. 	If a party fails to object to the magistrate judge’s findings or
recommendations as to any particular claim or issue contained in a
Report and Recommendation, that party waives the right to challenge
on appeal the district court’s order based on the unobjected-to factual
and legal conclusions. 	See 11th Cir. R. 3-1; 28 U.S.C. § 636.
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