Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca10-16-02081/USCOURTS-ca10-16-02081-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Anthony Ortega
Petitioner

Document Text:

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT

_________________________________

In re: ANTHONY ORTEGA, 

 Movant.

No. 16-2081

(D.C. Nos. 1:15-CV-00610-JCH-GBW &

1:03-CR-01566-JCH-1)

(D. N.M.)

_________________________________

ORDER

_________________________________

Before KELLY, HARTZ, and MATHESON, Circuit Judges.

_________________________________

Movant Anthony Ortega, a federal prisoner proceeding pro se, seeks an order 

authorizing him to file a second or successive 28 U.S.C. § 2255 motion in the district 

court so he may assert a claim for relief based on Johnson v. United States, 135 S. Ct. 

2551 (2015). See 28 U.S.C. §§ 2255(h), 2244(b)(3). In 2005, Movant was convicted of a 

firearms offense in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g). His sentence for that offense was 

enhanced under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) based on his having three 

qualifying prior convictions, see 18 U.S.C. § 924(e)(1), at least one of which was a 

violent felony. Movant now seeks to file a § 2255 motion challenging his enhanced 

sentence based on the Supreme Court’s opinion in Johnson, which invalidated the 

residual clause in the ACCA’s definition of “violent felony” as unconstitutionally vague.

To obtain authorization, Movant must make a prima facie showing that his claim 

meets the gatekeeping requirements of § 2255(h). See 28 U.S.C. § 2244(b)(3)(C). 

Relevant here is the requirement that the claim rely on “a new rule of constitutional law, 

FILED

United States Court of Appeals

Tenth Circuit

May 9, 2016

Elisabeth A. Shumaker

Clerk of Court

Appellate Case: 16-2081 Document: 01019616798 Date Filed: 05/09/2016 Page: 1 
2

made retroactive to cases on collateral review by the Supreme Court, that was previously 

unavailable,” 28 U.S.C. § 2255(h)(2). Based on the information before us, we conclude 

that the Movant has made the required showing. Johnson announced a new rule of 

constitutional law, and the Supreme Court made Johnson retroactive to cases on 

collateral review in Welch v. United States, ___ S. Ct. ___, 2016 WL 1551144, at *8 

(Apr. 18, 2016).

Accordingly, we grant Anthony Ortega authorization to file a second or successive 

§ 2255 motion in district court to raise a claim based on Johnson v. United States.

Entered for the Court

ELISABETH A. SHUMAKER, Clerk

Appellate Case: 16-2081 Document: 01019616798 Date Filed: 05/09/2016 Page: 2