Lin v. USA
Filing
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MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER sustaining 6 Motion for Reconsideration. Signed by Judge John G. Heyburn, II on 6/12/13. cc:counsel (JBM)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY
AT LOUISVILLE
CIVIL ACTION NO. 3:12-CV-813-H
JIAN TIAN LIN
PLAINTIFF
v.
UNITED STATE OF AMERICA
DEFENDANT
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
In a prior Memorandum Opinion, this Court granted Plaintiff Jian Tian Lin’s writ of error
coram nobis on the grounds that Padilla v. Kentucky, 130 S.Ct. 1473 (2010) applied retroactively
to Lin’s case. (the “Order”). ECF No. 1.1 The retroactive application of Padilla permitted Lin
to establish a claim for ineffective assistance of counsel, because his counsel failed to warn him
of the deportation consequences of his conviction.
In its Order, the Court acknowledged that Chaidez v. United States was then pending
before the Supreme Court, a case that would decide this very issue.
Considering the
consequences of delaying the ruling, and “mindful of the possibility that the Supreme Court’s
decision will fall the other way,” the Court issued the Order, applied Padilla retroactively, and
allowed Lin’s claim for ineffective assistance of counsel to progress forward, ultimately finding
that Lin was entitled to relief.
The Supreme Court subsequently held that Padilla was not retroactive. Id. Specifically,
the Supreme Court held that a petitioner could not maintain an ineffective assistance of counsel
claim for his counsel’s failure to advise him of the deportation consequences of his conviction
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Briefly, the United States Supreme Court in Padilla held that “counsel must inform her client whether his plea
carries a risk of deportation” and failure to do so violates the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of effective assistance of
counsel. Padilla, 130 S.Ct. at 1486. Prior to this decision, counsel’s failure to advise her client of deportation
consequences did not necessarily render counsel ineffective. The Court handed down Lin’s conviction before the
Supreme Court issued Padilla, and his counsel, like Padilla’s, failed to inform him of the deportation consequences
of his conviction. Arguably, then, the holding in Padilla did not provide Lin relief. Lin nevertheless moved this
Court for a writ of error coram nobis on the grounds that Padilla should apply retroactively, such that the decision in
Padilla would govern his case. This Court granted the writ.
prior to the rendering of the Padilla decision, as is the case here. Chaidez v. United States, 133
S.Ct. 1103 (2013). This Court directed the United States “to appeal this decision or move for
reconsideration of it” should the Supreme Court find that Padilla was not retroactive. The
United States has now moved for reconsideration of this Court’s Order.
I.
Lin opposes the United States’ motion to reconsider on two grounds. First, Lin contends
that the motion is a procedurally improper mechanism to attack this Court’s order. The Federal
Rules of Civil Procedure do not explicitly provide for a motion for reconsideration. Ward v.
Travelers Ins. Co., 835 F.2d 880, *4 n.1 (6th Cir. 1987) (“There is nothing in the Federal Rules
of Civil Procedure formally denominated a ‘motion to reconsider. . . .’”). However, Courts have
generally cast such motions as Rule 59 motions to alter or amend a judgment when filed within
30 days of the Court rendering that judgment. Id. Additionally, Courts have also recognized the
availability of a motion for reconsideration pursuant to Rule 60, which affords courts discretion
to relieve a party from final judgment, order or proceeding, if the party makes the motion within
a reasonable period of time. Lewis v. Mekko, 2011 WL 754887, *2 (W.D. Ky. Feb. 24, 2011);
Feathers v. Chevron U.S.A., Inc., 141 F.3d 264, 268 (6th Cir. 1998) (“Where a party’s Rule 59
motion is not filed within the mandatory . . . period, it is appropriate for a court to consider the
motion as a motion pursuant to Rule 60 for relief from judgment.”). The Court can grant relief
under Rule 60 for the following reasons:
(1) mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect;
(2) newly discovered evidence that, with reasonable diligence, could not have
been discovered in time to move for a new trial under Rule 59(b);
(3) fraud (whether previously called intrinsic or extrinsic), misrepresentation, or
misconduct by an opposing party;
(4) the judgment is void;
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(5) the judgment has been satisfied, released or discharged; it is based on an
earlier judgment that has been reversed or vacated; or applying it prospectively
is no longer equitable; or
(6) any other reason that justifies relief.
FED. R. CIV. P. 60(b). Though relief under Rule 60 is available and subject to fairly broad
definition and discretion, courts should only grant such relief in extraordinary circumstances.
McAlpin v. Lexington 76 Auto Truck Stop, Inc., 229 F.3d 491, 502-03 (6th Cir. 2000).
Consequently, the Court is comfortable considering the United States’ motion for
reconsideration as a Rule 60(b)(6) motion based on a change in applicable law.
The Supreme Court’s ruling in Chaidez is a change in applicable law, but “a change in
decisional law is usually not, in and of itself, an extraordinary circumstance that would merit
Rule 60(b)(6) relief[.] . . . [C]ourts have required an applicable change in law, coupled with
some other special circumstance, in order to grant Rule 60(b)(6).” Chambers v. Straub, 2008
WL 2782891, *2 (E.D. Mich. July 17, 2008) (citing Blue Diamond Coal Co. v. Trustees of
UMWA Combined Ben. Fund, 249 F.3d 519, 524 (6th Cir. 2001)) (internal citations omitted).
However, the change in law, coupled with this Court’s specific instruction to file a motion to
reconsider if this precise situation occurred, likely satisfies the “other special circumstance”
requirement.2
Parties may file a Rule 60(b) motion “within a reasonable time-and for reasons (1), (2),
and (3) no more than a year after the entry of the judgment or order or the date of the
proceeding.” FED. R. CIV. P. 60(b). Under both 60(b)(1) or 60(b)(6), the Court finds that the
United States brought the motion within a reasonable time, as the government filed its motion
2
The Court also recognizes that this motion could properly be considered a Rule 60(b)(1) motion based on legal
error. Clearly, based on the unequivocal outcome of Chaidez, this Court made a legal mistake in finding that Padilla
applied retroactively.
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shortly after the Supreme Court issued its Chaidez decision, and within a year of the entry of
judgment.
Alternatively, Lin apparently argues that Rule 60 cannot apply because the Court’s Order
was not final. This argument is incorrect; a decision to grant a writ of error coram nobis is a
final order. Accord United States v. Johnson, 237 F.3d 751, 754-55 (6th Cir. 2001) (“For all of
these reasons, we believe that the 60-day appeals period prescribed by Rule 4(a)(1)(B) is
applicable to petitions for a writ of error coram nobis. Mr. Johnson's notice of appeal having
been filed within 60 days of the district court's final order, this court has jurisdiction over the
appeal.”) (emphasis added); Trenkler v. United States, 536 F.3d 85, 95 (1st Cir. 2008); Wiley v.
United States, 144 F.2d 707, 708 (9th Cir. 1944).
“A final judgment is ‘one which ends the litigation on the merits and leaves nothing for
the court to do but execute the judgment.’” Riley v. Kennedy, 553 U.S. 406, 419 (2008) (quoting
Catlin v. United States, 324 U.S. 229, 233 (1945)). The issuance of a writ of error coram nobis,
which has the legal effect of vacating an underlying conviction that has already been served,
ends the proceeding on its merits. The Court is cognizant that in its Order, it directed Lin to file
a proposed final judgment in this matter, and that Lin failed to fulfill this directive. However,
the Court’s Order merely instructed Lin to use the proper procedural channel to ensure the Court
could execute the judgment. The Court will not punish the United States for Lin’s failure to
request such a final judgment, especially in light of the fact that this Court considers grants of
writs of error coram nobis to be final orders themselves.
II.
Lin next contends that the Supreme Court in Chaidez declined to address a question
integral to this case, whether the Supreme Court’s prior decision in Teague v. Lane, 489 U.S.
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288 (1989) (considering a challenge to a state law conviction on grounds that the Supreme
Court’s Batson ruling should be applied retroactively), which establishes the test for determining
whether certain decisions are retroactive, applies to cases challenging federal convictions on the
basis of ineffective assistance. To Lin’s credit, the Supreme Court applied Teague to determine
whether Padilla was retroactive, but expressly declined to address whether Teague’s
retroactivity regime should apply to federal convictions or claims for ineffective assistance of
counsel. See Chaidez, 133 S.Ct. at 1113 n.16.
In its Order, this Court conducted a similar analysis under the Teague test as to Lin’s
federal conviction. The Court engaged in a thorough discussion of whether and to what extent
Padilla fit into the Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (1984) framework for ineffective
assistance of counsel claims. Specifically, the Court evaluated whether Strickland dictated the
outcome in Padilla or whether Padilla announced a new rule, as per the Teague test for
retroactive applicability. The Court never considered whether Teague was inapplicable in the
first place, because Lin never argued to the contrary in his underlying briefs.3
Lin asks the Court to either deny the motion for reconsideration or grant the parties
additional time to brief this issue. The Court denies Lin’s request for two reasons. First, the
Supreme Court expressly decided the same issue this Court attempted to decide months ago.
The situation in Chaidez is nearly identical to Lin’s. The federal government convicted both Lin
and Chaidez of federal crimes, both served their sentences, and both seek reversal of their
convictions on the basis that their counsel neglected to inform them of the deportation
3
In fact, in the reply brief to Lin’s motion to vacate, ECF No. 1-10, Lin limits his discussion to the Court’s authority
to issue a writ of coram nobis and the retroactive application of Padilla. In his opposition to the present motion, Lin
argues that one sentence found in his reply brief supporting the argument that the Court maintains authority to grant
this writ actually articulated the argument that Teague should not apply. The Court finds this argument to simply be
cleverly written opportunism. It appears that Lin invites the Court to transform his previous arguments in his
opposition to the motion for reconsideration of this Court’s Order to capitalize on a question that the Supreme Court
conveniently left open. The Court finds that the Order was reasonable according to the prevailing law at the time.
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consequences of their guilty pleas. Guided by the Supreme Court’s decision, this Court will
enforce it where, as here, the ruling mandates a particular outcome.
Second, while the Court understands that the Supreme Court refrained from deciding
whether Teague applies to attacks of federal convictions and ineffective assistance claims
because the petitioner failed to raise those arguments in the underlying proceedings, the Court
nevertheless finds this argument unpersuasive.
Teague in those circumstances was reasonable.
The Supreme Court’s assumption to apply
The decision in Teague rested on two
fundamental principles: comity and finality. While cases of federal convictions do not concern
comity, the need to respect and ensure the finality of decisions is sufficient to justify the
applicability of Teague to cases contesting federal convictions. See Teague, 489 U.S. at 309
(“Application of constitutional rules not in existence at the time a conviction became final
seriously undermines the principle of finality which is essential to the operation of our criminal
justice system.”).
This principle has pronounced significance in coram nobis cases, where the convict has
already served his sentence. The federal government is entitled to reprieve from the threat of
challenge due to the persistent evolution of constitutional law. To defend or re-prosecute cases
years after the verdict has been delivered and the sentence has been served, would result in
mixed consequences, at best, and inefficiencies and disorder at worst. Moreover, federal courts
have the same interest in finality as state courts, see United States v. Frady, 456 U.S. 152, 166
(1982), so allowing individuals convicted of federal crimes the opportunity to bring collateral
challenges where those convicted of state crimes could not seems wholly inequitable and
confusing.
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Other circuits agree. See United States v. Sanchez-Cervantes, 282 F.3d 664 (9th Cir.
2002) (“Although we have not specifically held that Teague applies to § 2255 petitions, we have
applied it in that context. To clarify our position, we now hold, along with the Second, Fourth,
Seventh, and Tenth Circuits, that Teague does apply to federal prisoners.”). While the Sixth
Circuit has yet to rule on this precise issue, it has applied Teague to cases involving attacks on a
federal conviction. See Valentine v. United States, 488 F.3d 325, 342 (6th Cir. 2007) (applying
Teague to foreclose certain claims where the Petitioners were convicted of federal crimes).
Consequently, the Court finds that the holding in Teague is applicable to cases challenging
federal convictions.
The fact that Lin’s collateral attack concerns an ineffective assistance of counsel claim
does not dictate a contrary holding. The test established in Teague focuses on the effect of a
“new” decision on the already existing regime, not the nature of the cause of action itself. The
Supreme Court has purposefully carved out two narrow exceptions to the Teague rule that are
inapplicable to the case sub judice, and has never articulated or intimated that a new exception
should exist for ineffective assistance claims. This Court will not create one now.
That ineffective assistance of counsel claims are often brought collaterally does not
obviate or even diminish the overriding concern for finality, especially in coram nobis
proceedings. The Court would also point out that most ineffective assistance claims fall within
the recognized scope of current Sixth Amendment jurisprudence, such that the situation wherein
a court is required to consider a federal ineffective assistance claim within the ambit of the
Teague test for retroactivity is rare.
In sum, the Court finds Lin’s two arguments that Teague should not apply cases
involving federal convictions or ineffective assistance of counsel claims unpersuasive.
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Accordingly, the Court will not deny the government’s motion for reconsideration or amend the
Order on this basis. The Court needs no further briefing on this issue.
Being otherwise sufficiently advised,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Defendant United States of America’s motion for
reconsideration is SUSTAINED.
This is a final order.
June 12, 2013
cc:
Counsel of Record
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