Fernandez v. United States · ¶116

One could easily imagine similar difficulties arising in other cases. Consider, for instance, a federal prisoner who files a § 2255 motion arguing that his conviction and sentence are unconstitutional because a chronic mental illness rendered him incompetent to plead guilty or stand trial. In resolving the §2255 motion, the district court might reject as unreliable the evidence supporting the severity of the prisoner's condition. See, e. g., Cohn v. United States, 2023 WL 4670839, *13 (NDNY, July 10, 2023) (rejecting §2255 motion on these grounds). Under the majority's rule, would that prisoner be precluded from citing his mental condition in a subsequent § 3582(c)(1)(A) motion? Maybe. But that would certainly be an odd result, given the majority's suggestion that chronic illnesses are “heartland `extraordinary and compelling reasons' that might warrant an early release from prison.”…

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