Mena v. United States
- John Keenan
- 1:16-cv-05135
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 5
In Mena v. United States, Judge Keenan granted Mena’s sentence challenge, vacated and dismissed Count Two, and kept a 108-month sentence on Count One.
Kelvin Mena, whose firearm conviction in Count Two was vacated and dismissed; his 108-month sentence was reimposed on Count One, and he may receive a $100 refund if he paid Count Two’s special assessment.
What happened
In Mena v. United States, Kelvin Mena challenged his federal conviction and sentence under a law allowing prisoners to seek correction of unlawful sentences. He had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery and to using and carrying a firearm in connection with a crime of violence.
The Government agreed that the firearm conviction could no longer stand. It explained that Supreme Court and Second Circuit decisions established that Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy did not qualify as a crime of violence under the part of the firearm statute used for Mena’s conviction.
Judge John F. Keenan granted Mena’s motion to the extent described in the order. The court vacated and dismissed Count Two, resentenced Mena on Count One to 108 months in prison and three years of supervised release, and ordered an amended judgment. If Mena had paid the $100 special assessment for Count Two, he was entitled to a refund.
The detailed version
- Mena v. United States · No. 1:16-cv-05135
- John Keenan
- Mar. 25, 2021
Background
Kelvin Mena pleaded guilty on December 8, 2010, to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery under 18 U.S.C. § 1951 (Count One) and using and carrying a firearm in relation to a crime of violence under 18 U.S.C. §§ 924(c)(1)(A)(i) and 2 (Count Two). On May 5, 2011, the court sentenced him to a total of 108 months’ imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release.
Mena filed a motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255, which allows a federal prisoner to seek correction of a sentence imposed in violation of federal law or the Constitution. The court stayed the motion while courts considered challenges to the firearm statute’s residual, or risk-of-force, clause. The opinion states that Mena was released from prison on June 12, 2018, and that his supervised release was later terminated early after he successfully completed the Re-Entry through Intensive Supervision and Employment Court program. Mena did not file a response after the court gave him an opportunity to respond to the Government’s position.
Issue
The issue was whether Mena’s Count Two conviction remained valid after United States v. Davis and United States v. Barrett. The Government conceded that conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery was not a crime of violence under the residual clause of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(3), because that clause had been declared unconstitutionally vague.
Ruling
The court held that Count Two could no longer stand. Judge John F. Keenan granted Mena’s motion to vacate, set aside, or correct his sentence to the extent provided in the order. The court vacated Count Two, dismissed Count Two, and resentenced Mena to a total of 108 months’ imprisonment and three years of supervised release on Count One. The supervised release was subject to early termination based on Mena’s successful completion of the program. The court directed that an amended judgment be entered.
If Mena had already paid the mandatory $100 special assessment associated with Count Two, the order stated that he was entitled to a refund. The clerk was directed to terminate the motion and close the civil case.
Read the full 5-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.