Morales-Rivera v. United States

We are presented with the issue of whether the prisoner mailbox rule applies to the filing of motions under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 and § 2254. We hold that a pro se prisoner’s motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 or § 2254 is filed on the date that it is deposited in the prison’s internal mail-system for forwarding to the district court, provided that the prisoner utilizes, if available, the prison’s system for recording legal mail. 1

In 1992, the appellant pled guilty to drug charges and was sentenced to 151 months in prison. On August 5, 1997, the district court received his motion to vacate sentence…