Maiker Vazquez v. Secretary, Florida Department of Corrections

MELLOY, Circuit Judge:

State prisoner Maiker Vazquez appeals from the district court’s denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus, filed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. In his petition, Vazquez claimed that the state trial court erred by admitting hearsay evidence in violation of his rights under the Sixth Amendment’s Confrontation Clause. The district court found sua sponte that Vazquez was procedurally barred from bringing this claim because he had not exhausted available state court remedies. Because we find that the state waived exhaustion, we vacate the district court’s order and…