Knowles 1 v. United States
- Kenneth Karas
- 7:18-cv-01950
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Knowles 1 v. United States, Judge Karas did not issue a certificate of appealability and certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
Steven Knowles, who sought appellate review of the denial of his Rule 59(e) motion.
What happened
Knowles 1 v. United States involves Steven Knowles’s effort to appeal the court’s earlier denial of his motion asking the court to reconsider its decision under Rule 59(e). The opinion does not describe the underlying decision in detail.
The court said Knowles had not made the required substantial showing that a constitutional right was denied. It also certified that an appeal from the judgment on the merits would not be taken in good faith.
Judge Kenneth M. Karas therefore did not issue a certificate of appealability and made the required good-faith certification against the appeal. The order was dated December 30, 2022.
The detailed version
- Knowles 1 v. United States · No. 7:18-cv-01950
- Kenneth Karas
- Dec. 30, 2022
Background
The caption identifies Steven Knowles as the petitioner and the United States of America as the respondent. It also displays a related criminal case, No. 11-CR-630 (KMK), in which the United States is the plaintiff and Knowles is the defendant. On December 20, 2022, the court had denied Knowles’s motion for reconsideration under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 59(e). Knowles then sought to appeal that denial to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Court’s Analysis
The court stated that a certificate of appealability could not be issued because Knowles had not made a substantial showing that a constitutional right had been denied. A certificate of appealability is a document required for certain appeals from federal post-conviction proceedings.
The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from its judgment on the merits would not be taken in good faith. The opinion explains that an appeal is taken in good faith when it seeks appellate review of an issue that is not frivolous.
Disposition
Judge Kenneth M. Karas did not issue a certificate of appealability. He also certified that an appeal from the judgment on the merits would not be taken in good faith. This order addresses the proposed appeal and does not provide a new ruling on the underlying merits of Knowles’s case.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.