Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_04-cv-06141/USCOURTS-caed-1_04-cv-06141-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 510
Nature of Suit: Prisoner Petitions - Vacate Sentence
Cause of Action: 28:2255 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus (Federal)

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26 1No written plea agreement was executed. 

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

FERNANDO LOPEZ-GONZALEZ, )

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Petitioner, )

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vs. )

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, )

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Respondent. )

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No. CV-F-04-6141 REC

(No. CR-F-03-5136 REC) 

ORDER DENYING PETITIONER’S

MOTION TO VACATE SENTENCE

PURSUANT TO 28 U.S.C. § 2255

AND DIRECTING ENTRY OF

JUDGMENT FOR RESPONDENT

On May 2 and 3, 2005, the court conducted an evidentiary

hearing in connection with petitioner's claim of ineffective

assistance of counsel because of counsel's failure to file a

notice of appeal made pursuant to a timely motion to vacate, set

aside or correct sentence pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2255.

Petitioner was charged with being a deported alien found in

the United States in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326. On March 13,

2003, petitioner pleaded guilty.1 No appeal was filed.

Case 1:04-cv-06141-REC Document 7 Filed 05/26/05 Page 1 of 4
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2The court did not find petitioner to be a credible witness.

For example, one of his statements at the evidentiary hearing is

demonstrably untrue, i.e., his testimony that he told the court at

sentencing that he wanted to file an appeal and that the court told

petitioner to talk to Ms. Moses about that. No such statements are

in the transcript of petitioner’s sentencing. The court also

concludes that Ms. Moses was more credible than petitioner’s

witnesses and accepts her testimony as true.

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The court finds from the record in this action, including

the evidentiary hearing,2 that petitioner’s counsel, Carol Moses,

advised petitioner prior to entry of the guilty plea that his

sentencing range would be 77 to 96 months and advised him

generally of his appeal rights, including that she would file the

notice of appeal if he desired to appeal but that she would not

prosecute the appeal. Petitioner told Ms. Moses prior to

sentencing that he did not want to file an appeal unless his

sentence exceeded the guideline range. After sentence was

imposed and the court advised petitioner of his appeal rights,

petitioner did not tell Ms. Moses that he wanted to file an

appeal. Because petitioner had previously told Ms. Moses that he

did not want to file an appeal if his sentence was within the

guideline range, Ms. Moses did not contact petitioner again to

verify his decision. After sentence was imposed, petitioner’s

family, many members of which were in the courtroom, were upset

about the sentence imposed on petitioner and vocally expressed

their displeasure in the courtroom. Petitioner was in the

process of being escorted from the courtroom by the U.S. Marshals

when this outburst occurred. Consequently, he was physically

separated from Ms. Moses at the time and could not have been in

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3The court has listened to the recording of petitioner’s

sentencing. No commotion or outburst is audible during imposition

of sentence or immediately thereafter. Therefore, although the

outburst described by the witnesses undoubtedly occurred, the court

concludes that it did not occur during sentencing or while

petitioner was still at the podium with counsel. 

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the process of advising her to file a notice of appeal.3 Ms.

Moses met with several of those family members in the hallway

outside the courtroom immediately after sentencing. Petitioner’s

mother, who speaks only Spanish, was very upset and started

speaking to Ms. Moses, causing Ms. Moses some unease. Although

petitioner’s ex-wife testified that she told Ms. Moses to file an

appeal and that Ms. Moses said she would go see petitioner at the

jail, Ms. Moses testified that she has no recollection that any

members of petitioner’s family told her to file the appeal or

that she told any member of petitioner’s family that she would

start the appeal process. 

There is no question that a defense attorney’s failure to

file a notice of appeal upon sentencing after being specifically

instructed to do so by his client is ineffective assistance of

counsel. See Rodriguez v. United States, 395 U.S. 327 (1969);

Peguero v. United States, 526 U.S. 23, 28 (1999)(“[W]hen counsel

fails to file a requested appeal, a defendant is entitled to [a

new] appeal without showing that his appeal would likely have had

merit.”). However, a defendant who tells his attorney not to

file an appeal cannot later complain that counsel was ineffective

by following his instructions. See Roe v. Flores-Ortega, 528

U.S. 470, 477 (2000), citing Jones v. Barnes, 463 U.S. 745, 751

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(1983). Here, because petitioner told Ms. Moses that he did not

want to file a notice of appeal if his sentence was within the

guideline range prior to sentencing and did not tell her to file

a notice of appeal after sentence was imposed, petitioner has

failed to establish his claim of ineffective assistance of

counsel.

ACCORDINGLY, petitioner Fernando Lopez-Gonzalez’s motion to

vacate, set aside or correct sentence pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §

2255 is denied.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: May 25, 2005 /s/ Robert E. Coyle 

668554 UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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