US v. Aguilar-Diaz, 10-3808

Collateral attack on defendant's state's conviction for drug related offense prohibited

US v. Aguilar-Diaz, 10-3808, concerned a challenge to the district court's imposition of a 11-month sentence after increasing defendant's offense level based on a prior felony conviction for forgery and tampering with records, in a prosecution of defendant for illegal reentry after deportation.  In affirming the sentence, the court held that it is not necessary to determine whether defendant's forgery conviction is void in Ohio or, if it is, whether it would still be valid for federal sentencing purposes because defendant's claim that his Ohio felony conviction was improperly used in calculating his applicable guidelines range is a prohibited collateral attack on a state conviction.

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• Read the Sixth Circuit's Full Decision in US v. Aguilar-Diaz, 10-3808