Sanchez v. Keyser
- Ronnie Abrams
- 1:20-cv-03070
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Sanchez v. Keyser, Judge Abrams closed this action after Judge Rakoff transferred Sanchez’s COVID-19 release petition to the Second Circuit.
Felix Sanchez and the respondent in this action; the case was closed without the court deciding whether Sanchez should be released.
What happened
Sanchez v. Keyser involved Felix Sanchez’s request for release from prison under a federal law allowing challenges to state convictions, based on the health risks posed by COVID-19.
Sanchez had previously filed a federal petition that Judge Rakoff denied as untimely. Sanchez’s 2020 release petition was docketed both in this case and in the earlier case. Judge Rakoff transferred it to the Second Circuit because a later petition required that court’s permission before proceeding.
Judge Ronnie Abrams did not decide the release request because Judge Rakoff had already addressed the petition. She directed the Clerk to close this action, and the respondent did not have to file an answer.
The detailed version
- Sanchez v. Keyser · No. 1:20-cv-03070
- Ronnie Abrams
- Apr. 28, 2020
Background
In 1992, Felix Sanchez was convicted in New York Supreme Court of murder, attempted murder, and gun possession. He received an aggregate sentence of 50 years to life in prison, and his convictions were affirmed on appeal in 1995.
Sanchez filed an earlier federal petition challenging his imprisonment in 1998. Judge Rakoff denied that petition as untimely on January 12, 2000. On January 4, 2020, Judge Rakoff also denied Sanchez’s motion seeking relief from that judgment.
2020 Petition and Transfer
Sanchez later filed a petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 seeking release because of the extraordinary circumstances and health risks associated with COVID-19. The petition was docketed both in this action and in the earlier case before Judge Rakoff.
Before the respondent’s answer was due in this action, Judge Rakoff transferred the petition to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit under 28 U.S.C. § 1631. The transfer was based on the rule that a second or later federal petition generally must be certified by a Second Circuit panel before the district court may consider it.
Ruling
Judge Ronnie Abrams stated that she would not address the petition because it had been docketed in both actions and Judge Rakoff had already addressed it. The court directed the respondent not to file an answer and directed the Clerk of Court to close this action. The order did not decide whether Sanchez was entitled to release because of COVID-19.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.