Deng v. Schiebner

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN
SOUTHERN DIVISION
Chol Thiek Deng,
Petitioner,
v.
James Schiebner,
Respondent.
________________________________/
Case No. 26-cv-10339
Judith E. Levy
United States District Judge
Mag. Judge Curtis Ivy, Jr.
ORDER TRANSFERRING PETITIONER’S APPLICATION FOR
A WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS [1] TO THE UNITED STATES
DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF
MICHIGAN
Petitioner Chol Thiek Deng—who is presently confined at the
Muskegon Correctional Facility in Muskegon, Michigan—filed a pro se
application for a writ of habeas corpus in this district pursuant to 28
U.S.C. § 2254. (ECF No. 1.) Petitioner challenges his convictions for
kidnapping, 	first-degree 	criminal 	sexual 	conduct, 	and 	second-degree
criminal 	sexual 	conduct 	out 	of 	Kent 	County 	Circuit 	Court. 	(Id. 	at
PageID.1.) The proper venue for this application is the Western District
of 	Michigan. 	Therefore, 	the 	Court 	orders 	that 	the 	application 	be
Case 1:26-cv-00613-SJB ECF No. 3, PageID.<pageID> Filed 02/23/26 Page 1 of 4

2
transferred to the federal district court for that district.
Section 2241(d) states:
Where an application for a writ of habeas corpus is made by a
person in custody under the judgment and sentence of a State
court of a State which contains two or more Federal judicial
districts, the application may be filed in the district court for
the district wherein such person is in custody or in the district
court for the district within which the State court was held
which convicted and sentenced him and each of such district
courts shall have concurrent jurisdiction to entertain the
application. The district court for the district wherein such an
application is filed in the exercise of its discretion and in
furtherance of justice may transfer the application to the
other district court for hearing and determination.
28 U.S.C. § 2241(d).
As noted above, Petitioner is a Michigan prisoner. He currently
challenges the judgment of conviction entered by Kent County Circuit
Court in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Given that Michigan has more than
one federal judicial district, Petitioner may file his application for a writ
of habeas corpus either in the district where he is in custody or in the
district where he was convicted and sentenced. See 28 U.S.C. § 2241(d).
Petitioner is incarcerated in a state facility located in the Western
District of Michigan, and he was convicted and sentenced in a state court
located in that district. He is presently incarcerated at the Muskegon
Case 1:26-cv-00613-SJB ECF No. 3, PageID.<pageID> Filed 02/23/26 Page 2 of 4

3
Correctional Facility in Muskegon County, Michigan. He was convicted
and sentenced in Kent County, Michigan. Both counties are located in
the Western District of Michigan. 	See 	28 U.S.C. § 102(b)(1). Thus,
Petitioner’s “conviction was imposed in a state court that is not located
in the Eastern District of Michigan and petitioner is not presently in
custody in this district.” Young v. Horton, No. 2:19-CV-12710, 2019 WL
4732481, at *1 (E.D. Mich. Sept. 26, 2019). As a result, the United States
District Court for the Western District of Michigan is the only court
under § 2241(d) that may hear Petitioner’s application for a writ of
habeas corpus. The Court transfers the application to the United States
District Court for the Western District of Michigan “in the exercise of its
discretion and in furtherance of justice.” 28 U.S.C. § 2241(d).
Accordingly, 	the 	Clerk 	of 	the 	Court 	is 	ordered 	to 	transfer
Petitioner’s application for a writ of habeas corpus (ECF No. 1) to the
United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: February 23, 2026 	s/Judith E. Levy
Ann Arbor, Michigan 	JUDITH E. LEVY
United States District Judge
Case 1:26-cv-00613-SJB ECF No. 3, PageID.<pageID> Filed 02/23/26 Page 3 of 4

4
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
The undersigned certifies that the foregoing document was served
upon counsel of record and any unrepresented parties via the Court’s
ECF System to their respective email or first-class U.S. mail addresses
disclosed on the Notice of Electronic Filing on February 23, 2026.
s/Caitlin Shrum
CAITLIN SHRUM on behalf of
WILLIAM BARKHOLZ
Case Manager
Case 1:26-cv-00613-SJB ECF No. 3, PageID.<pageID> Filed 02/23/26 Page 4 of 4