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Wooden v. United States
| Docket No. | Op. Below | Argument | Opinion | Vote | Author | Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20-5279 | 6th Cir. | Oct 4, 2021 | Mar 7, 2022 | 9-0 | Kagan | OT 2021 |
Holding: William Dale Wooden’s ten burglary offenses arising from a single criminal episode did not occur on different “occasions” and thus count as only one prior conviction under the Armed Career Criminal Act.
Judgment: Reversed and remanded, 9-0, in an opinion by Justice Kagan on March 7, 2022. Justice Kagan delivered the opinion of the court, in which Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kavanaugh joined, and in which Justices Thomas, Alito, and Barrett joined as to all but Part II-B. Sotomayor filed a concurring opinion. Kavanaugh filed a concurring opinion. Barrett filed an opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgment, in which Thomas joined. Justice Gorsuch filed an opinion concurring in the judgment, in which Sotomayor joined as to Part II, III, and IV.
SCOTUSblog Coverage
- Perhaps defining an “occasion” is not so difficult after all (Daniel Harawa, March 8, 2022)
- Court rejects enhanced sentence under Armed Career Criminal Act for man who broke into storage facility (James Romoser, March 7, 2022)
- A hypothetical-filled argument proves how tricky it is to define an “occasion” (Daniel Harawa, October 5, 2021)
- In-person arguments come out of storage (Mark Walsh, October 4, 2021)
- After 19 months, eight justices return to the courtroom (Amy Howe, October 4, 2021)
- What’s an “occasion”? Scope of Armed Career Criminal Act depends on the answer. (Daniel Harawa, October 1, 2021)
- Cases on Boston Marathon bomber, CIA secrets headline October argument calendar (Amy Howe, July 13, 2021)
- Justices add new cases, turn down Pennsylvania election disputes (Amy Howe, February 22, 2021)
- Disputes over church property and ACCA ambiguity (John Elwood, February 18, 2021)
| Date | Proceedings and Orders |
|---|---|
| Jul 24 2020 | Petition for a writ of certiorari and motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis filed. (Response due September 4, 2020) |
| Aug 12 2020 | Waiver of right of respondent United States to respond filed. |
| Aug 27 2020 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/29/2020. |
| Sep 22 2020 | Response Requested. (Due October 22, 2020) |
| Oct 14 2020 | Motion to extend the time to file a response from October 22, 2020 to November 23, 2020, submitted to The Clerk. |
| Oct 15 2020 | Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including November 23, 2020. |
| Nov 09 2020 | Motion to extend the time to file a response from November 23, 2020 to December 23, 2020, submitted to The Clerk. |
| Nov 10 2020 | Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including December 23, 2020. |
| Dec 21 2020 | Brief of respondent United States in opposition filed. |
| Jan 06 2021 | Reply of petitioner William Dale Wooden filed. (Distributed) |
| Jan 07 2021 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/22/2021. |
| Feb 12 2021 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 2/19/2021. |
| Feb 22 2021 | Motion to proceed in forma pauperis GRANTED. Petition for a writ of certiorari GRANTED limited to Question 2 presented by the petition. |
| Mar 05 2021 | Joint motion for an extension of time to file the briefs on the merits filed. |
| Mar 22 2021 | Joint motion to extend the time to file the briefs on the merits granted. The time to file the joint appendix and petitioner's brief on the merits is extended to and including May 3, 2021. The time to file respondent's brief on the merits is extended to and including June 28, 2021. |
| May 03 2021 | Brief of petitioner William Dale Wooden filed. |
| May 03 2021 | Joint appendix filed (statement of cost filed.) |
| May 10 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of National Association Of Criminal Defense Lawyers filed. |
| May 10 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of Roderick & Solange MacArthur Justice Center filed. |
| May 10 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of National Association of Federal Defenders filed. |
| May 10 2021 | Brief amici curiae of Professors of Criminal Law filed. |
| May 10 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of FAMM filed. |
| May 10 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of Human Rights For Kids filed. |
| Jun 28 2021 | Brief of respondent United States filed. |
| Jul 13 2021 | ARGUMENT SET FOR Monday, October 4, 2021. |
| Jul 28 2021 | Record requested from the U.S.C.A. 6th Circuit. |
| Jul 28 2021 | Reply of petitioner William Dale Wooden filed. |
| Jul 28 2021 | Record received from the U.S.C.A. 6th Circuit has been electronically filed. |
| Aug 03 2021 | CIRCULATED |
| Oct 04 2021 | Argued. For petitioner: Allon Kedem, Washington, D. C. For respondent: Erica L. Ross, Assistant to the Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. |
| Mar 07 2022 | Judgment REVERSED. Kagan, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Roberts, C. J., and Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kavanaugh, JJ., joined, and in which Thomas, Alito, and Barrett, JJ., joined as to all but Part II–B. Sotomayor, J., filed a concurring opinion. Kavanaugh, J., filed a concurring opinion. Barrett, J., filed an opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgment, in which Thomas, J., joined. Gorsuch, J., filed an opinion concurring in the judgment, in which Sotomayor, J., joined as to Parts II, III, and IV. |
| Apr 08 2022 | JUDGMENT ISSUED. |
