United States v. Horner
United States v. Horner
Opinion of the Court
MEMORANDUM
The district court granted a certificate of appealability
There is no constitutional infirmity in the equivalency system as applied to Horner. The Supreme Court has held in Harmelin v. Michigan
On the record before us, however, we cannot affirm the constitutional adequacy of Horner’s counsel in failing to appeal. Horner pled guilty to conduct involving 4055 pills of Dilaudid, but was sen
The presentence report’s drug total is arguably defective in two respects. First, it counts all drugs acquired by Horner and his co-defendants without regard to whether they were distributed or consumed. Personal consumption is not relevant conduct to a distribution offense under U.S.S.G. § 1B1.3.
Although we do not have a copy of the objection, the addendum to the presentence report indicates that counsel did file an objection to the quantities. The presentence report addendum states that “Horner was held accountable for drugs beginning in 1983 based on information provided from the Government and the case agent. According to Guideline lB1.3(a)(2) relevant conduct does include ‘all such acts and omissions that were part of the same course of conduct or common scheme or plan as the offense of conviction.’ ” This statement is insufficient to support a sentence under our precedents. “Although the court may adopt the factual findings of the presentence report[,] it may not adopt conclusory statements unsupported by facts..."
These defects present a colorable issue for appeal. Horner’s counsel at sentencing nonetheless told him that he could see no grounds for appeal. An explanation for what happened may be found in a letter counsel wrote to the attorney who represented Horner in all other stages of the case:
As you know, Mr. Horner has had a variety of inquiries regarding the status of this matter since the date of his sentencing. As you will recall, I agreed to stand in on your behalf at sentencing as a courtesy both to you and to Mr. Hor-ner. I did not agree then and I am not in a position now to act as counsel on behalf of Mr. Horner with respect to any other matters. Indeed, I have a very limited knowledge of the history of this ease and do not believe it appropriate for me to intervene.
Horner’s counsel at sentencing similarly admitted at the hearing that he was “not serving Mr. Horner’s interests ... like [he] should be” because he “took over the case” from Horner’s former counsel. In light of his own admissions that he had limited knowledge of the case, and the unsupported expansion from 4,055 to 146,-430 pills, Horner’s counsel lacked a basis for advising Horner that he could see no grounds for appeal. There was an obvious
Horner has sufficiently alleged prejudice. He claims that no appeal was filed because counsel told him he could see no grounds for an appeal. If Horner would have appealed but for counsel’s ineffective assistance, he suffered prejudice.
Horner’s counsel was not constitutionally ineffective for failing to object to the drug quantity at the sentencing hearing. The district judge considered but overruled the written objection to the presen-tence report. Although Horner’s counsel should have advised Horner that the court’s decision presented an appealable issue, he was not required to argue the point further before the district court.
We decline to expand the certificate of appealability to the other issues raised by Horner.
AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, AND REMANDED FOR PROCEEDINGS CONSISTENT WITH THIS MEMORANDUM DISPOSITION.
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and may not be cited to or by the courts of this circuit except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
. See 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c).
. 501 U.S. 957, 997-98, 111 S.Ct. 2680, 115 L.Ed.2d 836 (1991) (Kennedy, J., concurring); United States v. Bland, 961 F.2d 123, 128-29 (9th Cir. 1992) (Justice Kennedy's Harmelin concurrence was the holding of the Court).
. See United States v. Harding, 971 F.2d 410, 412-14 (9th Cir. 1992).
. United States v. Rodriguez-Sanchez, 23 F.3d 1488, 1495-96 (9th Cir. 1994).
. United States v. Newland, 116 F.3d 400, 404 (9th Cir. 1997).
. United States v. Culps, 300 F.3d 1069, 1078 (9th Cir. 2002) (ellipses and internal quotation marks omitted).
. Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984).
. Roe v. Flores-Ortega, 528 U.S. 470, 484, 120 S.Ct. 1029, 145 L.Ed.2d 985 (2000).
. See Hiivala v. Wood, 195 F.3d 1098 (9th Cir. 1999).
Reference
- Full Case Name
- UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff—Appellee v. Edgar Dale HORNER, Defendant—Appellant
- Status
- Published