Topic
Every decision we've filed under Habeas Corpus - Federal Prisoner (28 USC 2255).
The Fourth Circuit vacated and remanded a district court order because the defendant filed a second or successive habeas petition without first obtaining appellate authorization. The court held that the district court lacked jurisdiction to consider the motion and denied the request to file the successive petition.
The Fourth Circuit dismissed an appeal filed by a federal prisoner seeking relief under Section twenty-eight U.S.C. Section two thousand two hundred fifty-five. The court denied a certificate of appealability because the appellant failed to make a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed the denial of a second-or-successive habeas motion, ruling that a defendant's collateral-attack waiver barred his challenge to a § 924(c) conviction. The court further held that the defendant failed to prove the sentencing court relied on the now-invalid residual clause of the statute.
The Tenth Circuit granted counsel's motion to withdraw and dismissed the defendant's direct criminal appeal after an independent review found no arguable grounds for relief. The court concluded that procedural failures barred a suppression claim and that an ineffective assistance claim was improperly raised on direct appeal.
The Third Circuit summarily affirmed the denial of Nathaniel Coleman's petition for a writ of error coram nobis, ruling that his appeal failed to present a substantial question. The court held that Coleman could not use the writ to bypass the strict standards required for filing a second or successive habeas motion.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of Bani Moreno's habeas petition challenging his 2022 removal, holding that he was not 'in custody' within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. § 2241 because he remained outside the United States. The court concluded that a non-citizen residing abroad lacks the requisite custody status to invoke federal habeas jurisdiction for immigration removal proceedings.
The Third Circuit affirmed Deon Blair's criminal sentence, rejecting his pro se arguments regarding ineffective assistance of counsel, jury trial waiver, and sufficiency of evidence. The court held that Blair knowingly waived his constitutional rights and that the evidence sufficiently supported his conviction for fentanyl distribution resulting in death.
The Tenth Circuit denied Abdul Waris Akinsanya a certificate of appealability regarding his ineffective assistance of counsel claim. The court held that no reasonable jurist could debate the district court's factual finding that trial counsel adequately advised Akinsanya of the immigration consequences of his plea.
The Third Circuit denied a petition for a writ of mandamus, ruling that the delay in adjudicating the petitioner's pending habeas motion did not constitute an undue failure to exercise jurisdiction. The court declined to intervene while a separate motion for judicial recusal remained unresolved at the district level.
The First Circuit affirmed the District Court's denial of Anthony Shea's request to vacate his federal firearms convictions, ruling that instructional errors regarding predicate crimes were harmless. The court also upheld the resentencing of Shea based on the erroneous application of the career offender guideline, which the government conceded no longer applied.