Velasquez v. United States

Background

Angel Velasquez filed a petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2255, a federal procedure allowing a person in federal custody to challenge a conviction or sentence. He sought to set aside his Count Four conviction for possessing a firearm in connection with a crime of violence or drug-trafficking crime, under 18 U.S.C. § 924(c). The court had previously paused the petition while related cases were pending.

Legal developments and the parties’ arguments

The Supreme Court held in United States v. Davis that 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(3)(B), which defined one category of “crime of violence,” was unconstitutionally vague. The Second Circuit then held in United States v. Barrett that conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery is not a qualifying crime-of-violence predicate for a § 924(c) conviction.

The government conceded that Velasquez’s guilty plea to Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy, charged in Count One, could no longer support Count Four. It argued that Velasquez had procedurally defaulted—that is, failed to raise the argument earlier on direct appeal—and that attempted Hobbs Act robbery and conspiracy to distribute narcotics, charged in Counts Two and Three, could independently support Count Four.

Ruling

The court granted the petition. Relying on its prior decisions addressing similar arguments, the court concluded that the plea record did not address any potential predicate offense other than the Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy. The court ordered Velasquez to appear for resentencing and directed the clerk to terminate the open motion in the related criminal docket.