[PUBLISH] In the United States Court of Appeals For the Eleventh Circuit

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No. 20-13301 ____________________ JAMES RUSSELL JOHNSON, Petitioner-Appellant, versus STATE OF FLORIDA,

Respondent-Appellee.

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Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida D.C. Docket No. 5:20-cv-00131-TKW-EMT ____________________ USCA11 Case: 20-13301 Date Filed: 04/28/2022 Page: 2 of 18

2 Opinion of the Court 20-13301 Before NEWSOM and MARCUS, Circuit Judges, and LAWSON, * Dis- trict Judge. MARCUS, Circuit Judge: James Johnson, a Florida pretrial defendant awaiting trial on state criminal charges, has filed a petition in federal court alleging that his Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial has been violated as a result of temporary measures suspending criminal jury trials in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He seeks the dismissal of all of his criminal charges, traveling under the federal habeas provi- sion found in 28 U.S.C. § 2241. However, because Johnson never raised a Sixth Amendment claim in the state courts, and because he has given us no basis for intervening in his state criminal prosecution, we affirm the district court’s dismissal of his petition. I. These are the essential facts and procedural history sur- rounding this case. In July 2019, Johnson was arrested for drug and ammunition offenses and was released on bond. But, on March 13, 2020, Johnson was arrested again for new drug and firearm offenses and his bond was revoked. By this point, Johnson had filed one pro se demand for a speedy trial pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.191, and upon his incarceration, while represented by

* Honorable Roger H. Lawson, Jr., United States District Judge, for the Middle District of Georgia, sitting by designation. USCA11 Case: 20-13301 Date Filed: 04/28/2022 Page: 3 of 18

20-13301 Opinion of the Court 3 counsel, he filed another pro se demand. Prior to the second de- mand, however, the Supreme Court of Florida had issued an ad- ministrative order in response to the growing COVID-19 pan- demic, which temporarily suspended the state of Florida’s “speedy trial” procedural requirements in an effort “to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 on the courts and court participants.” Supreme Court of Florida Administrative Order No. AOSC20-13 (Mar. 13, 2020). Despite the Florida Supreme Court’s suspension of the state’s speedy-trial rules, Johnson repeatedly claimed a violation of those rules in the state courts, ultimately asking the state trial court and then an appeals court to dismiss his charges. Both courts de- nied Johnson relief. Johnson v. State, 314 So. 3d 258 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2021) (table decision). Nevertheless, Johnson was granted a medical furlough on the state’s motion in December 2020, and he has remained out of jail since then. The parties are currently in the discovery phase of his criminal trial. 1 Shortly after Johnson lodged his second speedy-trial demand in state court, he filed the instant federal habeas petition pro se un- der 28 U.S.C. § 2241 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, claiming, in relevant part, a violation of his Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial. Johnson now ap- peals, through counsel, the district court’s dismissal of his habeas petition. The district court rejected his federal petition on two

1 The state trial court docket can be found at https://www.civitekflor- ida.com/ocrs/app