Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit December 23, 2005, No. 05-15237; D.C. No. CV-99-01049-1-RLH (Birnbaum v. Long)

MEMORANDUM **

Stephen Birnbaum appeals the district court’s denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus. He asserts that (1) he was denied effective assistance of counsel, (2) as a result his guilty plea was not knowing, intelligent and voluntary, and (3) the trial court deprived him of due process by failing to hold a hearing to determine his competency.