Stewart v. United States
- Alison Nathan
- 1:16-cv-05111
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Stewart v. United States, Judge Nathan granted Michael Stewart’s petition, vacated his firearm conviction, and closed the civil case.
Michael Stewart’s conviction for possessing a firearm during a crime of violence was vacated; the related federal civil case was ordered closed.
What happened
In Stewart v. United States, Michael Stewart challenged his conviction for possessing firearms during a crime of violence. He filed the federal petition without a lawyer in 2016.
The Government later told the court that the conviction could not stand after the Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Davis. It agreed to vacate the conviction because the underlying Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy qualified as a crime of violence only under a provision the Supreme Court had found unconstitutionally vague.
Judge Alison J. Nathan vacated Stewart’s firearm conviction, granted his petition, directed the Clerk to enter judgment and close the civil case, and ordered the parties to report whether any issues remained.
The detailed version
- Stewart v. United States · No. 1:16-cv-05111
- Alison Nathan
- Sept. 18, 2020
Background
Michael Stewart was convicted on June 4, 2013, of possessing firearms during a crime of violence, violating 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A). On June 21, 2016, he filed a petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2255, a federal procedure for challenging a conviction or sentence. The proceedings were stayed while the courts considered related decisions.
Government’s Position
On September 22, 2019, the Government stated that Stewart’s § 924(c) conviction could no longer stand after the Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Davis. The Government explained that the Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy qualified as a “crime of violence” only under § 924(c)(3)’s residual, or risk-of-force, clause, which Davis declared unconstitutionally vague. The Government consented to vacating Stewart’s conviction on that count.
Ruling
The court vacated Stewart’s § 924(c) conviction, citing Davis, and granted his petition. It directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment and close the related civil docket, No. 16-cv-5111. The court also ordered the parties to meet and confer and submit a joint status letter stating whether any issues remained for the court to resolve.
Disposition
The petition was granted, the firearm conviction was vacated, judgment was to be entered, and the civil case was to be closed. The order did not describe the disposition of any other conviction or sentence.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.