United States v. Stockdale

39 F. Supp. 2d 1250, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3518, 1999 WL 166182
CourtDistrict Court, D. Oregon
DecidedMarch 5, 1999
DocketCR 91-255-FR, CV 98-1586-FR
StatusPublished

This text of 39 F. Supp. 2d 1250 (United States v. Stockdale) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Stockdale, 39 F. Supp. 2d 1250, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3518, 1999 WL 166182 (D. Or. 1999).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

FRYE, District Judge.

The matters before the court are the petition of the defendant, Martin Temple-ton Stockdale, for habeas corpus relief under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 to vacate, set aside, or correct his sentence (# 170) and Stock-dale’s motion for the appointment of counsel (# 174).

BACKGROUND

A search warrant was executed at a marijuana growing farm in Estacada, Oregon on January 19, 1990. As a result of that investigation, on February 14, 1992, Martin Templeton Stockdale plead guilty in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon to the following four crimes: (1) knowingly possessing marijuana in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and 18 U.S.C. § 2; (2) knowingly distributing marijuana in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and 18 U.S.C. § 2; (3) knowingly manufacturing marijuana in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and 18 U.S.C. § 2; and (4) conspiracy to manufacture and distribute marijuana in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841. He also plead guilty to the crime of money laundering in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1956(a)(1)(A)®.

On June 1, 1992, Stockdale was sentenced in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon, CR No. 91-255-FR, to 121 months imprisonment.

On May 17, 1993, Stockdale’s conviction was affirmed on appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. United States v. Stockdale, 993 F.2d 886 (9th Cir.1993).

On March 10, 1996, Stockdale filed a motion (# 157) to reduce his term of imprisonment pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c) arguing that the Sentencing Commission • had altered the sentencing guidelines regarding marijuana plant equivalency. On May 24, 1996, this court issued an Opinion and Order granting Stockdale’s motion and reducing his sentence to 120 months imprisonment (# 162). An amended judgment reflecting the court’s order was entered on June 14,1996 (# 163). On November 11, 1997 the amended judgment was affirmed on appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. United States v. Stockdale, 129 F.3d 1066 (9th Cir.1997), as amended on April 20, 1998, by United States v. Stockdale, 139 F.3d 767 (9th Cir.1998), ce rt. denied, Stockdale v. United States, — U.S. -, 119 S.Ct. 377, 142 L.Ed.2d 312 (1998).

On December 15, 1998, Stockdale filed a petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 for a writ of habeas corpus (# 170) on the grounds that his conviction was obtained because of the ineffective assistance of his counsel.

On February 8, 1998, Stockdale filed a motion for the appointment of counsel (# 174).

1. Motion for the Appointment of Counsel

Stockdale filed his motion for the appointment of counsel five days after he filed his pro se reply to the government’s response to his motion for habeas corpus relief. 18 U.S.C. § 3006A(2) states that, when seeking relief under section 2255, legal representation may be provided for any financially eligible person when the interest of justice so requires. After a careful review of Stockdale’s motion for habeas corpus relief and his subsequent memorandum, as well as the memorandum provided by the government, this court concludes that Stockdale’s arguments in support of his motion for habeas corpus relief are not well taken; therefore, the motion for the appointment of counsel is *1253 denied because the interest of justice does not require that counsel be provided.

2. Motion for Habeas Corpus Relief

A. Applicable Law

28 U.S.C. § 2255 provides, in part:

A prisoner in custody under sentence of a court established by Act of Congress claiming the right to be released upon the ground that the sentence was imposed in violation of the Constitution or laws of the United States, or that the court was without jurisdiction to impose such sentence, or that the sentence was in excess of the maximum authorized by law, or is otherwise subject to collateral attack, may move the court which imposed the sentence to vacate, set aside or correct the sentence.

A petitioner is entitled to an evidentiary hearing on the motion to vacate his sentence under 28 U.S.C. § 2255, unless the:

motions and the files and records of the case conclusively show that the prisoner is entitled to no relief. This inquiry necessitates a twofold analysis: (1) whether the petitioner’s allegations specifically delineate the factual basis of his claim; and, (2) even where the allegations are specific, whether the records, files and affidavits are conclusive against the petitioner.

United States v. Taylor, 648 F.2d 565, 573 (9th Cir.1981), cert. denied, 454 U.S. 866, 102 S.Ct. 329, 70 L.Ed.2d 168 (1981) (internal quotations, citations and footnote omitted).

A defendant alleging the ineffective assistance of counsel must show (1) that counsel’s performance was deficient, and (2) that this prejudiced his defense, i.e, that counsel’s errors were so serious as to deprive the defendant of a fair trial, that is, a trial whose result is reliable. Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). For errors that were committed during the guilt phase, “the question is whether there is a reasonable probability that, absent the errors, the factfinder would have had a reasonable doubt respecting guilt.” Id. at 695, 104 S.Ct. 2052. A “reasonable probability” is less than a preponderance of the evidence. See Kyles v.

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Related

Strickland v. Washington
466 U.S. 668 (Supreme Court, 1984)
Kyles v. Whitley
514 U.S. 419 (Supreme Court, 1995)
United States v. Torres
99 F.3d 360 (Tenth Circuit, 1996)
United States v. Richard E. Taylor
648 F.2d 565 (Ninth Circuit, 1981)
United States v. Roger Franklin Cothran
106 F.3d 1560 (Eleventh Circuit, 1997)
United States v. Martin Templeton Stockdale
139 F.3d 767 (Ninth Circuit, 1998)
Stockdale v. United States
525 U.S. 950 (Supreme Court, 1998)
Musca v. Frank
525 U.S. 950 (Supreme Court, 1998)

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Bluebook (online)
39 F. Supp. 2d 1250, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3518, 1999 WL 166182, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-stockdale-ord-1999.