United States v. Hahn
Split Score
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Case Summary
Disposition
Affirmed
The Tenth Circuit affirmed the district court’s dismissal of Marcus Hahn’s second-or-successive § 2255 motion challenging his drug-related convictions after Sessions v. Dimaya. Although Hahn’s Dimaya argument was jurisdictionally proper, the panel held the motion was untimely and that Hahn failed to satisfy the miscarriage-of-justice (actual innocence) exception because he did not show innocence of equally serious child-exploitation charges that were dismissed as part of his plea agreement.
Circuit Split Identified
Legal Issue
Whether, under Bousley v. United States, a habeas petitioner invoking the miscarriage-of-justice exception must prove actual innocence of dismissed charges that are equally serious (as well as more serious) than the convictions being challenged.
Circuit Positions
Actual innocence must cover equally serious and more serious dismissed charges obtained through the plea agreement.
Actual innocence need be shown only for dismissed charges that are more serious; equally serious charges are irrelevant.
Conflict Summary
The 6th, 7th, and now 10th Circuits hold that the actual-innocence showing must extend to any dismissed charges that are equally serious or more serious than the conviction at issue, while the 8th Circuit requires the petitioner to address only dismissed charges that are more serious, not those of equal seriousness.