Anderson v. Ormond

352 F. Supp. 3d 767
District Court, E.D. Kentucky·Decided December 14, 2018·No. Civil Action No. 6:18-CV-254-CHB·Published·Cited by 4 cases

Opinion

CLARIA HORN BOOM, UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT JUDGE

Inmate David F. Anderson has filed a pro se petition for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241 to challenge the enhancement of his federal sentence based upon prior state felony convictions. [R. 1] The Court must screen the petition pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2243. Alexander v. Northern Bureau of Prisons , 419 F. App'x 544, 545 (6th Cir. 2011).1

*770In October 2008, Anderson pled guilty in Miami, Florida to federal charges of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of cocaine base. In his sentencing memorandum, his attorney asserted that Anderson's role in the offense was minor, but conceded that he was a career offender under § 4B1.1(a) of the Sentencing Guidelines based upon prior felony convictions imposed by the State of Florida in 2002 and 2003. Specifically, Anderson had been convicted of battery upon a police officer and resisting or obstructing with violence in one case, and of aggravated assault, two counts of battery upon a police officer, and resisting or obstructing with violence in another.2 Although the Sentencing Guidelines established a sentencing range of 262 to 327 months imprisonment, the trial court departed below the guidelines range and in December 2008 imposed a sentence of 210 months imprisonment, a term below the 20-year statutory maximum applicable to his offense under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C). United States v. Anderson , No. 1: 08-CR-20601-JIC-4 (S.D. Fla. 2008) [R. 105, R. 125, R. 133, R. 144 therein] Anderson challenged the reasonableness of his sentence on direct appeal, but in June 2009 the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit found no error and affirmed. United States v. Anderson , 334 F. App'x 275 (11th Cir. 2009).

Although Anderson sets forth a wide variety of arguments in his petition, none of them provide a basis for habeas relief. He first contends that his "[s]tate predicates are not crimes of violence for the purpose of enhancements," an assertion he initially supports only with unexplained references to various decisions by the United States Supreme Court and different federal courts of appeal:

"Vague statutes unconstitutional, See "Johnson/Welch" "Dimaya" under New Intervening change of Law and "Camp v. US" 6th Cir. 2018 for Circuit precedent effecting Career Offenders, Lenity Allowed under Beckles, "Edling 9th Cir." "U.S v Wheeler" 4th Cir 2017 allows Circuit precedent to be held retroactive for collateral review."

[R. 1 at 5] While this argument challenges the enhancement of Anderson's sentence on constitutional grounds, in an attached memorandum3 he separately challenges the enhancement on statutory grounds. Anderson argues that his three Florida convictions for battery upon a law enforcement officer pursuant to Fl. Stat. § 784.07(2)(B) are not "crimes of violence" within the meaning of § 4B1.2(a) because the statute does not require a violent or forceful touching when it is inflicted upon a police officer. [R. 1-1 at 8-10 (citing Johnson v. United States , 559 U.S. 133, 130 S.Ct. 1265, 176 L.Ed.2d 1 (2010) and United States v. Arroyo , 636 F. App'x 989 (11th Cir. 2016) ] Anderson separately argues that his convictions for aggravated assault are not crimes of violence because the state statute of conviction, Fl. Stat. § 784.07(2)(c), proscribes a broader range of conduct than the generic definition of assault.4 [R. 1-1 at 17-18 (citing *771Descamps v. United States , 570 U.S. 254, 133 S.Ct. 2276, 186 L.Ed.2d 438 (2013) and Mathis v. United States , --- U.S. ----, 136 S.Ct. 2243, 195 L.Ed.2d 604 (2016) ] As will be discussed below, Anderson's arguments fail on both procedural and substantive grounds.

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Anderson v. Ormond, 352 F. Supp. 3d 767 (E.D. Ky. 2018).

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