Snodgrass v. USA

Filing 29

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER, The Court finds that the petitioner has not made the required showing and, accordingly, DECLINES to issue a certificate of appealability. The Court further DIRECTS the Clerk of Court to send a copy of this order to the Court of Appeals in connection with Appeal No. 14-1210. Signed by Judge J. Phil Gilbert on 1/31/2014. (jdh)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
STEVEN SNODGRASS,
Petitioner,
v.

Civil No. 12-cv-50-JPG

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Criminal No 09-cr-30039-JPG

Respondent.
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
Pursuant to Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 22(b)(1), the Court construes petitioner
Steven Snodgrass’s notice of appeal as a request for a certificate of appealability (Doc. 28). See
Ouska v. Cahill-Masching, 246 F.3d 1036, 1045 (7th Cir. 2001). A § 2255 petitioner may not
proceed on appeal without a certificate of appealability. 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(1); see Ouska, 246
F.3d at 1045. A certificate of appealability may issue “only if the applicant has made a substantial
showing of the denial of a constitutional right.” 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2); see Tennard v. Dretke,
542 U.S. 274, 282 (2004); Ouska, 246 F.3d at 1045. To make such a showing, the petitioner must
“demonstrate that reasonable jurists could debate whether [the] challenge in [the] habeas petition
should have been resolved in a different manner or that the issue presented was adequate to
deserve encouragement to proceed further.” Ouska, 246 F.3d at 1046; accord Tennard, 542 U.S.
at 282; Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473, 484 (2000) (certificate of appealability should issue if
the petitioner demonstrates “that reasonable jurists would find the district court’s assessment of the
constitutional claims debatable or wrong.”).
In this case, the Court granted the petitioner’s § 2255 motion. However, it rejected a
number of bases for the petitioner’s request. As to the rejected grounds, the Court finds that the
petitioner has not made the required showing and, accordingly, DECLINES to issue a certificate

of appealability. The Court further DIRECTS the Clerk of Court to send a copy of this order to
the Court of Appeals in connection with Appeal No. 14-1210.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATED: January 31, 2014
s/J. Phil Gilbert
J. PHIL GILBERT
DISTRICT JUDGE

2