United States v. Williams

UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. No. 95-7791 HAYWOOD WILLIAMS, JR., Defendant-Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, at Norfolk. J. Calvitt Clarke, Jr., Senior District Judge. (CR-80-14-N, CA-95-957-2) Submitted: February 7, 1996 Decided: February 29, 1996 Before MURNAGHAN and WILLIAMS, Circuit Judges, and PHILLIPS, Senior Circuit Judge. _________________________________________________________________ Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion. _________________________________________________________________ COUNSEL Haywood Williams, Jr., Appellant Pro Se. Janet S. Reincke, OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Norfolk, Virginia, for Appellee. _________________________________________________________________ Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See Local Rule 36(c). OPINION PER CURIAM: Haywood Williams, Jr., appeals from district court orders denying his 28 U.S.C. § 2255 (1988) motion and denying reconsideration thereof. We affirm. Regarding the substance of the § 2255 motion, Williams's claim that his convictions under 21 U.S.C.A. §§ 846, 848 (West 1981 & Supp. 1995) violate the Double Jeopardy Clause is frivolous. This court vacated his § 846 conviction in a prior decision and properly left the § 848 conviction undisturbed. United States v. Williams, No. 88- 7400, 1991 WL 107588 at **1 (4th Cir. June 21, 1991) (as amended July 15, 1991), cert. denied, 502 U.S. 949 (1991); see also United States v. Johnson, 54 F.3d 1150, 1163 (4th Cir.) (only lesser-included offense should be vacated), cert. denied, 64 U.S.L.W. 3248 (U.S. 1995). Williams's second claim, that the § 848 conviction cannot stand because the § 846 violation served as a predicate offense is also merit- less. The § 846 violation may serve as a predicate offense. United States v. Heater, 63 F.3d 311, 318 (4th Cir. 1995), cert. denied, 64 U.S.L.W. 3485 (U.S. 1996). Regarding the motion for reconsideration, Williams contended that the district court misconstrued the motion as one under § 2255 rather than one under Fed. R. Crim. P. 35. The district court properly con- strued Williams's Fed. R. Crim. P. 35 motion as one under § 2255 because the only cognizable Rule 35 claim was frivolous and the other claim was properly considered only under § 2255. United States v. Pavlico, 961 F.2d 440, 443 (4th Cir.), cert. denied, 506 U.S. 848 (1992). Williams's other allegations in his motion for reconsideration regarded claims not raised in the § 2255 motion and were, therefore, inappropriate on motion for reconsideration. See Collison v. Interna- tional Chem. Workers Union, Local 217, 34 F.3d 233, 236 (4th Cir. 1994). Therefore, we affirm the district court orders denying Williams's § 2255 motion and denying reconsideration of that order. We dis- 2 pense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process. AFFIRMED 3