Thursday, January 28, 2010

2241s and restitution

Can a prisoner use 28 U.S.C. §2241 to challenge only the restitution portion of his sentence? The answer is "no," according to Arnaiz v. Warden. The Court rejected a savings clause analysis of §2241 in light of its recent decision in Mamone v. United States, 559 F.3d 1209 (11th Cir. 2009)(finding that petitioner could not use §2255 to challenge restitution, even if coupled with claim seeking release from custody). As for §2241 itself, a successful challenge to the restitution portion of a sentence would not provide relief from physical confinement -- which is the hook necessary for §2241 jurisdiction. Without a "signficant connection between Arnaiz' factual custody and the legal relief he seeks," §2241 could not provide a procedural vehicle for this claim.

1 comment:

  1. What if any, avenues can a federal offender use to challenge restitution, specifically one that has served his prison sentence and is now on supervised release?

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