Source: http://dc.findacase.com/research/wfrmDocViewer.aspx/xq/fac.20130617_0001004.DDC.htm/qx
Timestamp: 2017-01-23 23:08:35
Document Index: 595842637

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 371', '§ 1512', '§ 1513', '§ 22', '§ 2255', '§ 1512', '§ 2255', '§ 2255', '§ 2244', '§ 2244', '§ 2255', '§ 2244', '§ 2244']

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,v.RALPH T. WILSON, Defendant. Criminal No. 96-319-02 (CKK).
In 1996, Defendant Ralph Wilson's brother, James Wilson, was charged with robbing a United States Post Office. United States v. Wilson, 160 F.3d 732, 736 (D.C. Cir. 1998). Upon learning that an individual named Leroy Copeland was scheduled to testify against James Wilson at trial, Defendant Ralph Wilson and his brother Louis Wilson set out to locate Copeland. Id. After learning of information as to Copeland's whereabouts, on the evening of March 25, 1996, Louis Wilson murdered Copeland by shooting him repeatedly. Id. A jury convicted Defendant Ralph Wilson, Louis Wilson, and Marcellus Judd of conspiracy to kill a witness (in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371), killing a witness with intent to prevent him from testifying (in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1512(a)(1)(A)), retaliating against a witness (in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1513(a)(1)(B), (2)), and first degree murder while armed (in violation of D.C. Code §§ 22-201, 22-3202). Id. Louis Wilson was also convicted of two counts of using a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence and one count of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. Id. The D.C. Circuit vacated one of Louis Wilson's convictions for using a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence and reversed each of Marcellus Judd's convictions, but affirmed Defendant Ralph Wilson's convictions. Id. The Defendant moved to vacate his conviction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2255 on the grounds that his counsel was ineffective, the Government failed to timely disclose exculpatory information before trial, and that the introduction of certain statements at trial violated his Confrontation Clause rights under the Sixth Amendment. The Court denied the Defendant's motion to vacate. See generally 8/30/2005 Mem. Op. & Order, ECF Nos. [276, 277]. Several years later, the Defendant filed the present Rule 60(b) motion seeking relief from the final judgment denying his section 2255 motion, arguing that the Supreme Court's subsequent decision in Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts, 557 U.S. 305 (2009), requires the Court to vacate the Defendant's conviction based on the Confrontation Clause issues identified in his section 2255 motion. The Defendant subsequently sought to supplement his Rule 60(b) motion to include the claim that he was prosecuted under "under an incorrect interpretation of 18 U.S.C. § 1512" in light of the Supreme Court's decisions in Arthur Andersen LLP v. United States, 544 U.S. 696 (2005), and Fowler v. United States, 131 S.Ct. 2045 (2011). Def.'s Mot. to Suppl. at 2. The Government opposes the Defendant's motions on the grounds that they are second or successive petitions under section 2255, thus the Defendant is required to obtain a certification from the D.C. Circuit before this Court has jurisdiction to consider the Defendant's motions. Furthermore, the Government contends that even if the Defendant's motions are procedurally proper, they fail on the merits. The Court agrees that it lacks jurisdiction to entertain the Defendant's Rule 60(b) motion, and therefore does not reach the merits of the Defendant's request to vacate his conviction or his motion to supplement his claims for relief.
A. Motions to Vacate, Set Aside, or Correct a Sentence Section 2255 provides that
18 U.S.C. § 2255(a). "A 1-year period of limitation shall apply to a motion under this section." Id. § 2255(f). "No [] district judge shall be required to entertain an application for a writ of habeas corpus to inquire into the detention of a person pursuant to a judgment of a court of the United States if it appears that the legality of such detention has been determined by a judge or court of the United States on a prior application for a writ of habeas corpus, " except as set forth below. Id. § 2244(a); see also id. § 2244(b)(1).
Once a federal court has adjudicated a defendant's section 2255 motion, any "second or successive" motion under section 2255 must be certified by a panel of the relevant court of appeals to contain
28 U.S.C. § 2255(h); see also id. § 2244(b)(2). "Before a second or successive application permitted by this section is filed in the district court, the applicant shall move in the appropriate court of appeals for an order authorizing the district court to consider the application." Id. § 2244(b)(3)(A). The limitations on second and successive petitions under ...