June 06th, 2017

United States v. Rodriguez

Docket: 15-40357
Opinion Date: June 5, 2017
Judge: Catharina Haynes
Areas of Law: Criminal Law

The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's dismissal of plaintiff's motion for post-conviction relief under 28 U.S.C. 2255(f)(4). The court held that the facts underlying defendant's claim -- that defense counsel was ineffective for failing to file defendant's appeal -- could have been discovered through the exercise of diligence at least one year before defendant filed for habeas relief. In this case, defendant's characterizations of the facts before the district court did not justify a determination that his habeas petition was timely under section 2255(f)(4).