Felder v. United States

Background

On August 10, 2021, the court denied Tyrone Felder’s motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 to vacate, set aside, or correct his sentence. On October 26, 2021, Felder filed a motion asking the court to reconsider and amend that order under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 52(b) and 59(e).

The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit later directed the district court to treat Felder’s motion as both a notice of appeal and a motion under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 4(a)(5) to extend the time to appeal. The deadline for filing the notice of appeal had been October 11, 2021.

Reasoning

Rule 4(a)(5) permits a court to extend the appeal deadline when the request is made within 30 days after the deadline and the party shows excusable neglect or good cause. The court found that Felder’s request was filed within that 30-day period. It also found that his explanation—that a prison staff member collected his notice of appeal late because of a COVID-19 lockdown in his unit—constituted good cause.

Ruling

The court granted Felder’s motion to extend the time to appeal. It stated that no further notice of appeal was required from him. The court directed the Clerk of Court to notify the Clerk of the Second Circuit and to mail copies of the order and docket entries 8 and 10 to Felder. This order addressed the timing of the appeal and did not reconsider the earlier denial of Felder’s § 2255 motion.