In re Cabrera

Opinion

FRANSON, J.

INTRODUCTION

In 2008, California’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) determined that inmate Elvin Cabrera was an associate of the Mexican Mafia prison gang (EME) based on his possession of photocopies of four drawings, two of which included part of the names of EME affiliates as the artists. Cabrera challenged his gang validation 2 in a petition for writ of habeas corpus.

This court granted Cabrera’s petition in a September 2011 opinion, but the California Supreme Court reversed, concluding our decision was based on an improper interpretation of the CDCR’s…