Northover v. United States

Background Anthony Northover, who was incarcerated at FCC Coleman and was proceeding without a lawyer, filed a motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255. That statute allows a federal prisoner to challenge a federal conviction or sentence. Northover sought to challenge his conviction and sentence in this case.

Court’s Analysis The court’s records showed that Northover had previously filed a § 2255 motion challenging the same conviction and sentence. The court stated that the earlier motion had been decided on its merits. Under the governing law, the new application was therefore a second or “successive” § 2255 motion.

Before a successive § 2255 motion may be filed in the district court, the applicant must obtain authorization from the appropriate federal appeals court. The court therefore determined that Northover had to seek permission from the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit before pursuing the motion in the district court.

Disposition In the interest of justice, the court transferred the § 2255 motion to the Second Circuit under 28 U.S.C. § 1631. The order closed the district-court case. It stated that if the Second Circuit authorizes Northover to proceed, he may ask to reopen the case under the same civil docket number.

The court also ruled that a certificate of appealability would not issue because the motion did not make a substantial showing that a constitutional right had been denied. It further certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without paying filing fees. The court did not decide the merits of Northover’s challenge to his conviction or sentence.