Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals - Published Opinions

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Insignares: Habeas Petition after new judgment is not "second or successive"

In Insignares v. Sec., Fla. Dep’t of Corrections, No. 12-12378 (June 23, 2014), the Court affirmed the denial of habeas relief to a Florida inmate convicted of attempted murder. The Court agreed with Insignares that because the State trial court entered a new sentence, and therefore a new judgment, after Insignares filed a first federal § 2254 habeas petition, his subsequent federal § 2254 habeas petition which challenged the new judgment was not “second or successive” for purposes of AEDPA limitations. Turning to the merits, the Court rejected Insignares’ ineffective assistance of counsel claim, finding the representation to be neither deficient, nor to have prejudiced his defense.