Hattermann v. United States

743 F. Supp. 578, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17200, 1989 WL 224897
CourtDistrict Court, C.D. Illinois
DecidedJanuary 5, 1989
DocketNo. 88-1323
StatusPublished

This text of 743 F. Supp. 578 (Hattermann v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, C.D. Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hattermann v. United States, 743 F. Supp. 578, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17200, 1989 WL 224897 (C.D. Ill. 1989).

Opinion

ORDER

MIHM, District Judge.

Terence Hattermann has filed a motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 to vacate, set aside, or correct his sentence. He was arrested on October 14, 1986, convicted on May 22, 1987, and sentenced to three years in federal prison on June 15, 1987. Between the time of his arrest and the time of sentencing, Hattermann was released on bond. He is currently serving his sentence at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana. Mr. Hattermann was also released on bond pending his appeal and was taken into custody after the mandate was returned. He does not appear to raise any question regarding this period of time. (See his Argument attached to the Petition at p. 7). However, to the extent that this period is included in his motion, this order encompasses it.

In his motion, Hattermann asserts that under 18 U.S.C. § 3568 the Attorney General should give him credit toward service of his sentence for the time he spent on bond between his arrest and sentencing. He argues that the term “in custody” in § 3568 should be ascribed a meaning identical to that phrase under the habeas corpus statutes, §§ 2254 and 2255. By refusing to credit him with this time, Mr. Hattermann asserts that the Attorney General has extended his sentence by 244 days without due process, and, by applying it differently to those persons released on bond than to those suffering from other restraints on their liberty, the Attorney General has violated his equal protection rights.

Section 3568 in relevant part provides that,

The sentence of imprisonment of any person convicted of an offense shall commence to run from the date on which such person is received at the penitentiary, reformatory or jail for service of such sentence. The Attorney General shall give any such person credit toward service of his sentence for any days spent in custody in connection with the offense or acts for which sentence was imposed....

Before considering the merits of Mr. Hattermann’s arguments, however, his standing to raise those issues must be examined. Under § 3568 where the sentence imposed plus the time spent in presentence custody totals less than the maximum sentence provided for that offense, there is a presumption that the sentencing judge gave credit for any presentence custody. Holt v. United States, 422 F.2d 822 (7th Cir.1970). Accord, Parker v. Estelle, 498 F.2d 625 (5th Cir.1974), cert. denied, 421 U.S. 963, 95 S.Ct. 1951, 44 L.Ed.2d 450 [580]*580(1974); Trimmings v. Henderson, 498 F.2d 86 (5th Cir.1974), cert. denied, 420 U.S. 931, 95 S.Ct. 1135, 43 L.Ed.2d 405 (1974); Swift v. United States, 436 F.2d 390 (8th Cir.1970), cert. denied, 403 U.S. 920, 91 S.Ct. 2237, 29 L.Ed.2d 698 (1970). If Mr. Hattermann was sentenced for less than the maximum, he does not have standing to challenge this statute. Swift, 436 F.2d 390, 392-93.

Mr. Hattermann was convicted under 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and § 843(a)(3) and sentenced to three years in prison. The penalties for violations of § 841(a)(1) are prescribed in § 841(b). Although Mr. Hatter-mann’s petition does not provide enough specifics to determine with certainty what provision of subpart (b) sets forth the parameters of his punishment, it is evident that his sentence is well below the maximum. The penalties for violations of § 843(a)(3) are prescribed in § 843(c). The maximum sentence is four years. Mr. Hat-termann’s sentence of three years is also below the four year maximum even if the number of days on bond is added to his three year sentence. Therefore, Mr. Hat-termann does not have standing to challenge the unconstitutionality of the Attorney General’s refusal to credit his sentence with the time he was on bond prior to sentencing.

Even if Plaintiff had standing to raise these issues, his arguments would fail. All the circuit courts to have addressed the issue of the proper interpretation of “in custody” have concluded that this phrase means “detention or imprisonment in a place of confinement and does not refer to the stipulations imposed when a defendant is at large on conditional release.” United States v. Peterson, 507 F.2d 1191, 1192 (D.C.Cir.1974). Accord, United States v. Figueroa, 828 F.2d 70 (1st Cir.1987); Villaime v. U.S. Department of Justice, 804 F.2d 498, 499 (8th Cir.1986), cert. denied, 481 U.S. 1022, 107 S.Ct. 1908, 95 L.Ed.2d 514 (1987); Ortega v. United States, 510 F.2d 412, 413 (10th Cir.1975); Polakoff v. United States, 489 F.2d 727, 730 (5th Cir.1974). Cf., United States v. Robles, 563 F.2d 1308, 1309 (9th Cir.1977), cert. denied, 435 U.S. 925, 98 S.Ct. 1491, 55 L.Ed.2d 519 (1978) (above stated rule applied to bail pending appeal); Sica v. United States, 454 F.2d 281 (9th Cir.1971) (same rule). See also, United States v. Golden, 795 F.2d 19, 21 (3rd Cir.1986) (court agreed that sentence at issue is illegal but added that “generally, a defendant is not entitled to credit for time spent released on his own recognizance prior to entering prison”).

Mr. Hattermann’s reliance upon Hensley v. Municipal Court, 411 U.S. 345, 93 S.Ct. 1571, 36 L.Ed.2d 294 (1973), and other cases interpreting the “in custody” requirement under habeas corpus proceedings is misplaced. The Supreme Court in Hensley held only that a person released on personal recognizance is in custody for purposes of habeas corpus proceedings. Id. at 349, 93 S.Ct. at 1573. This holding has never been extended to § 3568. E.g., Cerrella v. Hanberry, 650 F.2d 606, 607 (5th Cir.1981), cert. denied, 454 U.S. 1034, 102 S.Ct. 573, 70 L.Ed.2d 478 (1981); Ortega v. United States, 510 F.2d at 413; Villaime v. United States Department of Justice, 804 F.2d at 499.

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Bluebook (online)
743 F. Supp. 578, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17200, 1989 WL 224897, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hattermann-v-united-states-ilcd-1989.