Unpublished Decisions

U.S. v. Velarde, 2014 WL 661422 (2/21/14) (Wyo.) (unpub'd) - The 10th reverses a meth defendant's pre-sentence release. There was no likelihood of acquittal or a new trial or a government recommendation of a non-prison sentence to justify release under 18 U.S.C. § 3143(a)(2). And there was no "exceptional" reason under § 3145(c) warranting release. That Mr. Velarde had "a few matters to take care of" was not enough. "Mere personal reasons," such as family hardships, are not exceptional.

Barnett v. Franklin, 2014 WL 642840 (2/20/14) (Okl.) (unpub'd) - A favorable procedural ruling only a habeasphile could love. No AEDPA deference applied to the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals ("OCCA") ineffective-assistance-of-counsel decision where the lower court rejected the petitioner's claims on procedural grounds and on the merits, but the OCCA only denied the claims for procedural reasons. Federal courts must look to the last reasoned decision, which was the OCCA's decision. The OCCA's procedural ruling was apparently wrong. So no procedural default in federal court. And there was no merits decision to defer to. But the petitioner loses on the merits despite the lack of deference.