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Significant IAC ruling from Tenth Circuit based on counsel?s failure to understand guidelines

By Douglas A. Berman

A split panel of the Tenth Circuit today handed down an interesting and important Sixth Amendment ineffective assistance of counsel ruling today in US v. Washington, No. 08-3313 (10th Cir. Sept. 30, 2010) (available here).  Here is how the majority opinion starts: Petitioner Patrick E. Washington requests reversal of the district court?s denial of his 28 U.S.C. § 2255 motion to vacate, correct, or set aside his sentence, claiming the district court erred in not holding his counsel?s performance constitutionally deficient.  We conclude that counsel?s failure to understand the basic mechanics of the sentencing guidelines and, in particular, his failure to advise Mr. Washington regarding the impact of relevant conduct on his potential sentence prior to meeting with the probation officer, amounted to constitutionally deficient performance under Strickland v...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on September 30, 2010 (boomark / email).