Williams v. United States

¶6*964PER CURIAM:

¶7This appeal is from the district court’s summary denial of Williams’ second motion to vacate judgment and sentence under 28 U.S.C. § 2255. We vacate the ruling below, and remand the cause for further proceedings.

¶8Appellant Williams was convicted by a jury on three counts of an indictment charging violations of 21 U.S.C. § 174,1 and was sentenced on October 2, 1969 to serve three concurrent sentences of five, ten, and ten years. He and one of his co-defendants appealed the judgment of conviction based upon the sole issue of the validity of the search which produced the contraband he was found guilty of importing. We rejected the contention and affirmed the convictions, sub nom., United States v. Reagor, 5th Cir. 1971, 441 F.2d 252.

¶9One month after this Court refused to rehear the appeal, the appellant filed a motion to vacate in the district court. He contended that the trial court erred in denying him a hearing on his competency to stand trial and that he was prejudiced by the trial judge’s conduct during the trial. On November 8, 1971, the district court concluded that the petition lacked merit, although no reasons were assigned, and summarily denied the appellant leave to proceed in forma pauperis in that court. Pursuant to Rule 24(a), F.R.A.P., the appellant addressed a motion for leave to appeal in forma pauperis to the district court. This was filed in that court on November 29, 1971, but as of this date has never been ruled upon.2

¶10In December of 1972, the appellant filed his second § 2255 motion. As grounds for relief he alleged:

(1) The requirements of the Jencks Act were not met when the court inadvertently failed to supply him or counsel with certain pretrial reports prepared by a Government witness, thereby depriving him of the right to confront the witness against him, and of his right to compulsory process for obtaining favorable witnesses;

(2) He was denied effective assistance of counsel; and

(3) The Government knowingly used perjured testimony against him.3

¶11In his motion, the appellant also claimed that “the issues presented herein have never before been presented to this or any other court or judge for the reason that petitioner has previously been without knowledge of asserting his rights or that he was entitled to redress for the errors committed by the court in the premise.”

¶12Two days after it was filed, the district court summarily denied the motion finding that “all matters set out therein have been heretofore heard and disposed of by this Court, and the Appellate Court, and presents no new matter entitling Petitioner to any relief.”

¶13 It is obvious from the aforestated brief history of Williams’ attacks on his conviction that the issues raised in his latest § 2255 motion have never been before the district court or this Court. Therefore such a finding by the district court is clearly erroneous. Accordingly, the judgment denying relief must be vacated, and the cause remanded for further consideration. Prior to the court’s consideration of the merits of the appellant’s contentions, it should *965make an initial determination of whether any of the claimed errors contained in motion filed December 6, 1972 were deliberately withheld by Williams in his previously denied § 2255 motion. See Sanders v. United States, 373 U.S. 1, 18, 83 S.Ct. 1068, 1078, 10 L.Ed.2d 148 (1963).

¶14Vacated and remanded.