Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Supreme Court Makes Johnson Case Retroactive


Supreme Court Decision in Welch Case Makes Johnson Case Retroactive Nationwide

 

            Monday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision in the Welch case, which made the Johnson decision retroactive, is the decision that we have been waiting for to put the key in the lock for federal prisoners with ACCA residual clause issues.  As was predicted here not a month ago, the Supreme Court has held that the Johnson case announced a new substantive rule that has retroactive effect in cases on collateral review.

            In practical terms, this means that there is now no rush to file a Johnson case before the end of June, since the Supreme Court ruling takes precedence and must be applied by all federal courts across the nation.  We estimate that several thousand federal prisoners will qualify for relief under this new holding.

            In making the Johnson holding retroactive, the court noted in Welch, “a majority of this Court concluded that (previous decisions) did not bring sufficient clarity to the scope of the residual clause, noting that the federal courts remained mired in ‘pervasive disagreement’ over how the clause should be interpreted.”  We read that as a rebuke to the circuits who chose to ignore Johnson before today.

            Those of you who are currently represented by us may rest assured that we are examining all of our filings and pending filings to incorporate this new decision. However, if you have Johnson facts, or know someone who does, and wish to take advantage of this landmark case, please contact us immediately.

 

Federal Legal Center, Inc.

113 McHenry Rd. #173

Buffalo Grove, IL  60089

federalc@yahoo.com