Bradford: Denial of SOS application is jurisdictional

In In re Brad Bradley Bradford, No. 16-14512-J (July 27, 2016), after the Eleventh Circuit denied a post-Johnson application for leave to file a second or successive § 2255 motion, Bradford filed another application, presenting the same claim. The Court held that it lacked jurisdiction to consider an application “premised exclusively on a claim that was presented in a prior application.” The Court recognized that it might have previously ruled on applications presented a second time. But these cases did not address the jurisdictional bar, and were therefore not binding on the jurisdictional issue. Citing Anderson and Baptiste, the Court held that a dismissal of a successive application is “with prejudice.” The Court noted the caselaw that holds that when it denies a successive application, the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider the § 2255 motion. The Court denied Bradford’s application. The Court stated that the grant of certiorari in Beckles was not a basis for granting a successive application, or holding a case in abeyance. The Court stated: “If the Supreme Court decides in Beckles, or some other decision, that the residual clause of § 4B1.2(a)(2) of the career offender provisions of the guidelines is unconstitutional, Bradford will have a new claim under § 2255(h)(2) for which he can then file an application to file a second or successive § 2255 motion. It will not be a Johnson/Welch claim, but a Beckles claim.” The Court therefore denied Bradford’s request that his application be held in abeyance pending Beckles.