United States v. Robinson (In Re Robinson)
United States v. Robinson (In Re Robinson)
Opinion
*859 Julius Robinson was sentenced to death for his role in multiple murders. After we affirmed his conviction on direct appeal, Robinson filed a federal habeas corpus petition asserting six grounds for relief. The district court denied the petition. Nearly ten years later, Robinson filed a Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b)(6) motion for relief from judgment. The district court determined that Robinson's motion was "in actuality a second or successive petition for habeas relief" and transferred it to this court.
Robinson maintains that the district court erred by construing his Rule 60(b)(6) motion as a second or successive habeas petition. Finding no error, and that Robinson fails to meet the standard for a second or successive petition, we deny his motion for authorization and dismiss for want of jurisdiction.
I.
In 1998, Robinson murdered Johnny Shelton, "a man he mistakenly believed responsible for an armed hijacking that cost him $30,000."
United States v. Robinson
,
In 2002, a jury convicted Robinson on sixteen counts, including,
inter alia
,
1
one count of murder while engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, in violation of
In 2005, Robinson initiated federal habeas proceedings via a motion to vacate conviction and sentence and for a new trial under
In 2008, the district court denied Robinson's motion to vacate his conviction and sentence under
Robinson filed a Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 59(e) motion for reconsideration of the order denying the motion to vacate sentencing without an evidentiary hearing. The district court denied that motion 5 and declined to issue a certificate of appealability ("COA"). We affirmed, and the Supreme Court denied Robinson's petition for writ of certiorari.
In February 2018, Robinson filed a Rule 60(b)(6) motion for relief from judgment. He asserted that "the lack of due process in his post-conviction proceedings constituted an extraordinary circumstance that justified re-opening the judgment in his case pursuant to Rule 60(b)." Relying on Supreme Court precedent established after the district court denied his § 2255 motion, Robinson contended that the district court (1) "wrongly denied his ability to appeal" because that court (and the Fifth Circuit) "applied an erroneously high standard for obtaining a [COA]," (2) "erroneously barred [him] from conducting a reasonable investigation," and (3) erroneously denied his "right to amend his [§] 2255 motion to include his [defective-indictment] claim."
The district court determined that the motion was, "in actuality[,] a second or successive petition for habeas relief" and transferred it to this court. On appeal, Robinson asserts that the district court improperly construed his Rule 60(b)(6) motion as a second or successive § 2255 motion. In the event, however, that we find the district court did not err, Robinson asks that we certify a second or successive § 2255 motion so that he may raise his impartial-jury claim in the district court.
II.
"We review a district court's determination as to whether a Rule 60(b) motion constitutes a second-or-successive habeas petition
de novo
."
In re Edwards
,
A.
Federal habeas review for a prisoner in federal custody is governed by
[a] second or successive motion must be certified as provided in section 2244 by a panel of the appropriate court of appeals to contain- *862 (1) newly discovered evidence that, if proven and viewed in light of the evidence as a whole, would be sufficient to establish by clear and convincing evidence that no reasonable fact-finder would have found the movant guilty of the offense; or
(2) a new rule of constitutional law, made retroactive to cases on collateral review by the Supreme Court, that was previously unavailable.
28 U.S.C § 2255(h). Section 2244(a) provides,
No circuit or district judge shall be required to entertain an application for a writ of habeas corpus to inquire into the detention of a person pursuant to a judgment of a court of the United States if it appears that the legality of such detention has been determined by a judge or court of the United States on a prior application for a writ of habeas corpus, except as provided in section 2255.
A petition is successive when it 'raises a claim ... that was or could have been raised in an earlier petition....' "
Edwards
,
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b)(6) authorizes a court to "relieve a party or its legal representative from a final judgment, order, or proceeding for ... any other reason that justifies relief." To prevail on a Rule 60(b)(6) motion in a federal habeas proceeding, a movant must establish that (1) the motion was "made within a reasonable time"
6
and (2) " 'extraordinary circumstances' [exist to] justify[ ] the reopening of a final judgment."
Gonzalez v. Crosby
,
"Because of the comparative leniency of Rule 60(b) [as compared to AEDPA], petitioners sometimes attempt to file what are in fact second-or-successive habeas petitions under the guise of Rule 60(b) motions."
Edwards
,
it is extraordinarily difficult to bring a claim of procedural defect rather than a successive habeas claim, because '[p]rocedural defects are narrowly construed. They include fraud on the habeas court, as well as erroneous previous rulings which precluded a merits determination-for example, a denial for such reasons as failure to exhaust, procedural default, or statute-of limitations bar. They generally do not include an attack based on the movant's own conduct, or his habeas counsel's omissions, which do not go to the integrity of the proceedings, but in effect ask for a second chance to have the merits determined favorably.'
*863
Id
. at 205 (quoting
In re Coleman
,
Accordingly, "[a] federal court examining a Rule 60(b) motion should determine whether it either: (1) presents a new habeas
claim
(an 'asserted federal basis for relief from a ... judgment of conviction'), or (2) 'attacks the federal court's previous resolution of a claim
on the merits
.' "
Id.
at 203 (quoting
Gonzalez,
B.
Robinson contends that the district court erred when it construed his claim concerning the denial of a COA as a second or successive habeas petition. After the district court denied relief on each of the six grounds he raised in his initial § 2255 motion, Robinson moved for a COA on his penalty-phase IAC claim. The court denied the application. Robinson then sought a COA from this court, but we also declined. The Supreme Court denied Robinson's petition for writ of certiorari.
Robinson v. United States
,
Robinson cites
Buck v. Davis
, --- U.S. ----,
Robinson avers that the district court wrongly decided that "[t]he denial of a COA did not preclude a merits determination," because "merits review by an appellate court is ... its own independent proceeding that the appellant has a right to access." Because "appellate merits review is a separate entity, ... an erroneous procedural ruling that precludes appellate merits review is entitled to reconsideration under Rule 60(b)."
The government maintains that Robinson's denial-of-COA claim "is not a proper basis for a Rule 60(b)(6) motion because it does not seek to reopen a ruling that
precluded
a merits determination of his [IAC] claim." Rather, Robinson "seeks to reopen
*864
a ruling (the denial of a COA) that
followed
the district court's merits-based ruling on [his] [IAC] claim." The government emphasizes that "a Rule 60(b) motion that seeks to revisit the federal court's denial
on the
merits of
a claim for relief should be treated as a successive habeas petition" (quoting
Gonzalez
,
The district court correctly concluded that Robinson "badly misreads Gonzalez ." The denial of a COA on Robinson's IAC claim did not preclude a merits determination. Instead, the court reviewed and denied the claim on its merits as part of Robinson's initial § 2255 motion. Because his Rule 60(b) motion attacks the district court's merits-based resolution of his IAC claim, it is best viewed as a second or successive petition. 12 The court did not err in finding that it had "no jurisdiction to consider [the motion]."
C.
Robinson asserts that the district court erred in determining that his request to interview the jurors was a second or successive § 2255 motion. He contends that "he was unreasonably barred from interviewing the trial jurors, thus depriving him of a reasonable post-conviction investigation." Citing
In re Sessions
,
Robinson avers that the district court was not correct that his "request ... seeks to develop evidence in support of an impartial-jury claim under the Sixth Amendment." He contends that as part of his first habeas petition, he sought to interview jurors and that "the reason that [an impartial-jury] claim was not raised to the [d]istrict [c]ourt in Robinson's amended [§] 2255 motion was because the court prevented Robinson from conducting discovery." Consequently, "Robinson's inability to raise an [impartial-jury] claim is a prime example of a defect in the integrity of the habeas proceedings."
In response, the government maintains that Robinson's Rule 60(b) motion seeks to "reopen the [§] 2255 proceedings so that he [can] interview jurors 'to determine what role, if any, racial bias played in his convictions and sentences.' " The government
*865
notes, correctly, that "[a] habeas petitioner, unlike the usual civil litigant in federal court, is not entitled to discovery as a matter of ordinary course."
Bracy v. Gramley
,
The government emphasizes that Robinson's previous request to interview jurors, filed as part of his first § 2255 petition, did not concern a potential impartial-jury claim, but instead related to his Batson and IAC claims. The government also highlights that when he made his initial interview request, Robinson expressly acknowledged that he did not have a viable impartial-jury claim. Accordingly, although Robinson "certainly had the ability to bring the claim in his original [§] 2255 motion or to seek leave to amend his motion to add the claim," he "chose not to because ... there was no evidence to support such a claim." 15
The best view is that Robinson is attempting to advance a new habeas claim related to jury impartiality (in light of
Pena-Rodriguez v. Colorado
, --- U.S. ----,
The denial of Robinson's discovery request during his initial habeas proceedings-a request that was then related to his
Batson
and IAC claims-did not prevent a merits determination on those issues. Moreover, Robinson was not prevented from litigating his impartial-jury claim because of "a denial for such reasons as failure to exhaust, procedural default, or statute-of-limitations bar."
See
Gonzalez
,
To the extent that Robinson now attempts to bring such a claim, the government rightly posits that "[b]ecause the merits of Robinson's discovery request to interview jurors [are] wrapped up with, and dependent on, his ability to bring a new claim for relief from the judgment of his conviction," his request is "a paradigmatic habeas claim."
Rodwell v. Pepe
,
Ultimately, "[u]sing Rule 60(b) to present new claims for relief from a ... court's judgment of conviction-even claims couched in the language of a true Rule 60(b) motion-circumvents AEDPA's requirement that a new claim be dismissed unless it relies on either a new rule of constitutional law or newly discovered facts."
Gonzalez
,
D.
Robinson raises a third ground for relief in his Rule 60(b) motion. He maintains that the district court erred in finding that his challenge to the denial of his motion to amend his original § 2255 petition to include a defective-indictment claim was substantive in nature. Citing a number of intervening Supreme Court precedents, including
Weaver v. Massachusetts
, --- U.S. ----,
Robinson maintains that Weaver , in particular, "casts serious doubt on [our] denial of Robinson's defective indictment claim in two significant ways." First, "the Weaver Court's description of the three general categories of structural error 19 make clear that this Court's requirement that [Robinson's] defective indictment claim affect the 'fundamental fairness' of his trial in order to be structural was misguided." Second, " Weaver left no doubt that this Court's application of the harmless error standard to Robinson's preserved defective indictment claim-a claim of structural error-was improper."
Robinson contends that Williams "establishes that the indictment error at issue in Robinson is structural because it falls under Weaver 's rubric of an error whose effects are 'simply too hard to measure' "
*867 (quoting Weaver , 137 S.Ct. at 1908 ). 20 Ultimately, Robinson avers that "these opinions demonstrate that the earlier denial of Robinson's motion to amend is clearly erroneous; and the courts' continued denial of Robinson's right to litigate the impact of the structural error inherent in his defective-indictment claim would work a manifest injustice, especially since this is a death-penalty case."
In response, the government asserts that "Robinson's Rule 60(b) motion is a second or successive petition because it attacks the district court's merit-based ruling on his defective-indictment claim." The government notes-as did the district court as part of Robinson's initial habeas proceedings-that "Robinson had 'previously claimed, both at his trial on the merits before [the district court] and on direct appeal before ... the Fifth Circuit, that the government's failure to submit the death penalty aggravating factors to the grand jury violated the Indictment Clause of the Fifth Amendment.' " Consequently, because we ruled otherwise on direct appeal,
Robinson
,
Importantly, the government highlights that Robinson did not appeal the denial of his motion to amend but instead raises the issue now, several years later, in a Rule 60(b) motion. Nonetheless, the government posits that "[b]ecause Robinson's Rule 60(b) motion attacks the district court's merits-based resolution of his proposed [defective-indictment] claim, it is a second or successive [§] 2255 motion."
At bottom, Robinson challenges not "some defect in the integrity of the habeas proceedings,"
Gonzalez
,
The court's refusal, however, was nothing of the sort. Looking to binding circuit precedent, including Kalish and Jones , the district court concluded that the claim was frivolous because its merits had already been determined on direct appeal. Consequently, *868 the court properly denied amendment in the merits-based decision.
In its transfer order, the district court noted that "Robinson's argument is based solely on a purported change in substantive law regarding the definition of structural error which, he asserts, would alter the outcome of his appellate claim."
23
AEDPA forecloses such a claim here because it potentially circumvents § 2255's successive-petition requirements.
III.
Because we conclude that Robinson's Rule 60(b) motion is a second or successive § 2255 motion, we also address his motion for leave to file a successive petition concerning his impartial-jury claim.
A.
"Before a second or successive [habeas] application ... is filed in the district court, the applicant shall move in the appropriate court of appeals for an order authorizing the district court to consider the application."
"A 'prima facie showing' is 'simply a sufficient showing of possible merit to warrant a fuller exploration by the district court.' "
In re Simpson
,
B.
Robinson "seeks leave to file a successive § 2255 motion on the ground that ... [
Pena-Rodriguez
] ... announced a new rule of constitutional law made retroactively applicable on collateral review."
Simpson
,
[W]here a juror makes a clear statement that indicates he or she relied on racial stereotypes or animus to convict a criminal defendant, the Sixth Amendment requires that the no-impeachment rule give way in order to permit the trial court to consider the evidence of the juror's statement and any resulting denial of the jury trial guarantee.
Id . at 869.
The Pena-Rodriguez Court cautioned that "[n]ot every offhand comment indicating racial bias or hostility will justify setting aside the no-impeachment bar to allow *869 further judicial inquiry." Id . Consequently, "[f]or the inquiry to proceed, there must be a showing that one or more jurors made statements exhibiting overt racial bias that cast serious doubt on the fairness and impartiality of the jury's deliberations and resulting verdict." Id . Such a statement must "tend to show that racial animus was a significant motivating factor in the juror's vote to convict." Id . Ultimately, "[w]hether that threshold showing has been satisfied is a matter committed to the substantial discretion of the trial court in light of all the circumstances, including the content and timing of the alleged statements and the reliability of the proffered evidence." Id .
C.
The Supreme Court has not expressly stated whether
Pena-Rodriguez
announced "a new rule of constitutional law, made retroactive to cases on collateral review ... that was previously unavailable."
In response, the government notes that the per curiam opinion in
Tharpe
"failed to mention
Pena-Rodriguez
at all." The government also highlights language in a dissenting opinion filed by three Justices in
Tharpe
,
Although Robinson's contention that
Pena-Rodriguez
(in conjunction with
Tharpe
) announced a new substantive rule that applies retroactively to cases on collateral review is exceedingly doubtful, we need not reach that issue here. Even if the rule announced in
Pena-Rodriguez
did apply retroactively to cases on collateral review, Robinson fails to make the requisite
prima facie
showing of possible merit necessary, under
In sum, the district court correctly construed Robinson's Rule 60(b)(6) motion as a second-or-successive petition for habeas relief. Because Robinson fails to meet the requisite standard for certification of a second or successive § 2255 petition, we DENY the motion for authorization and DISMISS the appeal for want of jurisdiction.
The jury also convicted Robinson on one count of conspiracy to distribute more than 100 kilograms of marihuana, in violation of
The court did not impose a sentence on Counts 1 and 2 because these counts are lesser included offenses of Count 3. Similarly, it declined to impose a sentence on Counts 4, 5, and 6 because each is a lesser included offense of Count 7. Moreover, the court did not impose a sentence on Counts 8, 9, and 10 because those three counts are lesser included offenses of Count 11. Lastly, it declined to impose a sentence on Counts 13 and 14 because they are lesser included offenses of Count 15.
See
United States v. Kalish
,
Section 2255"does not automatically require a hearing to dispose of every motion made under its statutory authority."
Coco v. United States
,
The court emphasized that "[b]ona fide contested issues of fact raised in a motion to vacate brought under § 2255 must be resolved on the basis of an evidentiary hearing.... But § 2255 does not require a hearing if the motion, files, and record of the case conclusively demonstrate that no relief is appropriate." The court also stressed that "the record before this Court, including the exhibits submitted by Robinson with his motions, do[es] not create any contested fact issues with regard to Robinson's insufficiency-of-counsel claims that must be resolved in order to decide his case." Instead, the court noted, "many of Robinson's claims are based on the record from the trial." Moreover, "with regard to the claims for which Robinson has submitted additional evidence, the Court ... decided these claims based on uncontested allegations of fact and, where facts are contested, by assuming that what Robinson alleges is true, or based on legal, not factual, bases."
Rule 60(c) states, "A motion under Rule 60(b) must be made within a reasonable time-and for reasons [in (b) ](1), (2), and (3) no more than a year after the entry of the judgment or order or the date of the proceeding."
Although
Gonzalez
addressed the application of a Rule 60(b) motion only in the context of a § 2254 habeas proceeding, we have joined "[n]early every circuit [in applying] the
Gonzalez
rationale to federal prisoners seeking habeas relief under § 2255."
Williams v. Thaler
,
A federal court makes a merits determination when it concludes that "there exist or do not exist grounds entitling a petitioner to habeas corpus relief...."
Gonzalez
,
If a Rule 60(b)"motion challenges 'not the substance of the federal court's resolution of a claim on the merits, but some defect in the integrity of the federal habeas proceedings,' then a Rule 60(b) motion is proper."
Coleman
,
The government highlights that "Robinson points to no authority holding that a ruling that precludes appellate review is the same as a ruling that precludes a merits determination."
The government also avers that Buck does not "stand for the proposition that the denial of a COA is a proper basis for a Rule 60(b) motion" because "the denial of the COA was not the basis for Buck's Rule 60(b) motion." Instead, the inverse was true: "Buck sought a COA to appeal the denial of his Rule 60(b) motion...."
See
Gonzalez,
See also
Wellons v. Hall
,
Rule 6(a) of the Rules Governing § 2255 Proceedings "does not authorize fishing expeditions."
Ward v. Whitley
,
The government also posits that "[g]iven that federal courts disfavor post-verdict interviewing of jurors except where there is some showing of an illegal or prejudicial intrusion into the jury process,
United States v. Riley
,
The district court echoed this conclusion when it stated that "Robinson conceded he had no evidence of a Sixth Amendment violation."
The cases cited by Robinson are inapposite. The decision in
Ruiz v. Quarterman
,
Even if we were to find that Robinson's impartial-jury claim did not constitute a second or successive habeas petition, we would undoubtedly conclude that he fails to show that, as a result of the denial of his discovery request, " 'extraordinary circumstances' [exist to] justify[ ] the reopening of [the] final judgment" under Rule 60(b)(6).
Gonzalez
,
The Weaver Court noted that structural error typically occurs in three instances. First, "an error has been deemed structural in some instances if the right at issue is not designed to protect the defendant from erroneous conviction but instead protects some other interest." Weaver , 137 S.Ct. at 1908. Second, "an error has been deemed structural if the effects of the error are simply too hard to measure." Id. And third, "an error has been deemed structural if the error always results in fundamental unfairness." Id .
Robinson claims that
McCoy v. Louisiana
, --- U.S. ----,
See also
United States v. Kalish
,
Notably, Robinson does not assert that the intervening Supreme Court caselaw, including
Weaver
and
Williams
, announced "a new rule of constitutional law, made retroactive to cases on collateral review by the Supreme Court, that was previously unavailable."
The court also noted that "[t]his is the type of end-run around the successive petition rules that Gonzalez prohibits."
Here, and unlike in Pena-Rodriguez , 137 S.Ct. at 869, there is no evidence of "a juror mak[ing] a clear statement that indicates he or she relied on racial stereotypes or animus to convict." Robinson seemingly concedes as much when he claims that he "should be permitted to conduct an investigation ... to determine what role, if any , racial bias played in his convictions and sentences" (emphasis added).
Reference
- Full Case Name
- In RE: Julius Omar ROBINSON, Movant. United States of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Julius Omar Robinson, Also Known as Face, Also Known as Scar, Also Known as Scarface, Defendant-Appellant.
- Cited By
- 16 cases
- Status
- Published