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Santana-Diaz v. United States, 95-2011 (1996)

Court: Court of Appeals for the First Circuit Number: 95-2011 Visitors: 2
Filed: Jun. 17, 1996
Latest Update: Mar. 02, 2020
Summary:  Van Vliet, Chief, and, ______________________, Lena Watkins, Attorney, Criminal Division, Narcotic and Dangerous Drug, ____________, Section, U.S. Department of Justice, on brief for appellee.a jury trial, as he claims.that Santana was vindictively sentenced.
USCA1 Opinion









June 17, 1996
[NOT FOR PUBLICATION]

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT
____________________


No. 95-2011

RUBEN SANTANA-DIAZ,

Plaintiff, Appellant,

v.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Defendant, Appellee.

____________________


APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO

[Hon. Juan M. Perez-Gimenez, U.S. District Judge] ___________________

____________________

Before

Selya, Cyr and Lynch,
Circuit Judges. ______________

____________________

Ruben Santana-Diaz on brief pro se. __________________
Guillermo Gil, Acting United States Attorney, John C. Keeney, ______________ ________________
Acting Assistant Attorney General, Theresa M.B. Van Vliet, Chief, and ______________________
Lena Watkins, Attorney, Criminal Division, Narcotic and Dangerous Drug ____________
Section, U.S. Department of Justice, on brief for appellee.


____________________


____________________



Per Curiam. Ruben Santana Diaz appeals from the __________














district court's dismissal of his petition under 28 U.S.C.

2255. We affirm for the reasons given briefly below.

1. Santana did not raise his claim that the trial

court's failure to order identification or production of a

confidential informant prejudiced his ability to assert an

entrapment defense in his direct appeal. See United States ___ _____________

v. Panet-Collazo, 960 F.2d 256, 259 (1st Cir.), cert. denied, _____________ ____________

506 U.S. 876 (1992). Failure to raise a constitutional claim

on direct appeal ordinarily bars raising the issue on

collateral attack unless the petitioner can show cause for

the failure and actual prejudice from the alleged trial court

error. See Knight v. United States, 37 F.3d 769, 774 (1st ___ ______ _____________

Cir. 1994).

As cause, Santana asserts his appellate counsel's

ineffective assistance of counsel. However, as the district

court correctly concluded in resolving that issue, the

failure to obtain the confidential informant's testimony at

trial did not prejudice Santana's ability to assert an

entrapment defense. Even assuming that the informant would

have testified as Santana suggests, at most his testimony

would have established only one element of the entrapment

defense -- that the government induced Santana to participate

in the drug deal in question. To assert an entrapment

defense, however, Santana also had to establish at trial that

he was not predisposed to commit his crime. See United ___ ______



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States v. Panet-Collazo, 960 F.2d 256, 259 (1st Cir.), cert. ______ _____________ _____

denied, 506 U.S. 876 (1992). As we held on direct appeal, ______

he never did so. Id. at 259-60. ___

2. Santana bears the burden of showing that the

court vindictively sentenced him for exercising his right to

a jury trial, as he claims. United States v. Mena-Robles, 4 _____________ ___________

F.3d 1026, 1037 (1st Cir. 1993), cert. denied, 114 S. Ct. ____________

1550 (1994). He has not pointed to any statement by the

district court or any other evidence suggesting that there is

a "reasonable likelihood" that he received a harsher sentence

than he otherwise would have because he went to trial so as

to trigger a presumption of vindictiveness. See id. The ________

mere fact that co-defendants, who pled guilty, received

lesser sentences does not show that it is reasonably likely

that Santana was vindictively sentenced. Id. Hence, the ___

claim of vindictive sentencing fails. Id. ___

Affirmed. _________



















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Source:  CourtListener

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