Sharrieff v. Cathel

OPINION

SMITH, Circuit Judge.

Appellant Jihad Abdullah Sharrieff unsuccessfully petitioned the District Court for habeas relief based on an alleged violation of his Sixth Amendment rights under Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. 296, 124 S.Ct. 2531, 159 L.Ed.2d 403 (2004). Because the State 1 admits that a Blakely violation occurred, this appeal turns on the resolution of one issue: whether the State expressly waived the exhaustion requirement under 28 U.S.C. § 2254(b)(3) when it conceded exhaustion before the District Court. We hold that it did. Accordingly, we will reverse the District Court’s…