Topic
Every decision we've filed under Sixth Amendment - Ineffective Assistance of Counsel.
The Tenth Circuit denied Erick Wanjiku's request to file a second or successive habeas corpus petition because his claims did not meet the strict statutory exceptions required by federal law. The court emphasized that Wanjiku's own motion admitted his claims failed to rely on a new rule of constitutional law or present previously undiscoverable facts establishing innocence.
The Supreme Court held that a trial court may prohibit a testifying defendant from discussing his own testimony with counsel during an overnight recess without violating the Sixth Amendment. The Court clarified that while defendants retain rights to consult on tactics and sentencing, they have no constitutional entitlement to confer about ongoing testimony itself.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed the denial of Donald Stenson's motion to withdraw his guilty plea to sex trafficking charges. The court held that the district court did not abuse its discretion in finding the plea voluntary despite Stenson's claims of medication impairment and feeling rushed.
The Seventh Circuit reversed a district court order transporting a death row inmate for mental health testing, holding that the All Writs Act does not authorize such measures without a sufficient nexus to a specific claim for relief. The court found the petitioner failed to demonstrate how the requested brain scans would be admissible evidence to support his equitable tolling argument.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the denial of Marcus Taylor's federal post-conviction relief motion, ruling that his challenges to the sufficiency of evidence were procedurally barred. The court further held that Taylor failed to demonstrate ineffective assistance of counsel or the need for an evidentiary hearing regarding his trial strategy claims.
The D.C. Circuit affirmed the denial of a writ of coram nobis, holding that the appellant failed to prove fundamental error or ineffective assistance of counsel regarding his guilty plea. The court further ruled that the appellant waited too long to challenge the conviction, offering no valid reason for the three-decade delay.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the denial of Cecil Buckner's § 2255 motion alleging ineffective assistance of counsel for failing to object to his career-offender classification. The court held that Buckner failed to show prejudice because his actual sentence was below the guideline range he would have received without the classification.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of a writ of error coram nobis for a petitioner convicted of possessing a firearm as an alien unlawfully present. The court held that the failure to give a Rehaif instruction was not fundamental error because the evidence of the petitioner's knowledge of his status was overwhelming.
The Second Circuit affirmed R. Kelly's RICO and Mann Act convictions, rejecting challenges to the sufficiency of the evidence and the constitutionality of the underlying state laws. The court also upheld the district court's evidentiary rulings, jury selection process, and restitution orders, leaving the defendant subject to his original sentence and financial penalties.
The Second Circuit affirmed Robert Sylvester Kelly's RICO and Mann Act convictions, ruling that sufficient evidence supported each count and that the underlying state laws were constitutional as applied to him. The court rejected claims of juror bias, ineffective assistance during voir dire, and errors in evidentiary rulings and restitution orders.