Christopher R. Gish v. Randall Hepp, Warden
HabeasCorpus Immigration
Whether Lee v. United States represents a narrow exception to Hill v. Lockhart's more general rule that is focused on the likelihood of success at trial, which exception is applicable only where a defendant's decision on whether to go to trial was focused on a collateral matter like immigration?
QUESTION PRESENTED In Lee v. United States,__ U.S. __, 187 S. Ct. 1958, 1965 (2017), this Court held that in assessing whether a defense attorney’s deficient advice that led a defendant to plead guilty was prejudicial, courts focus on how the particular defendant made the plea decision, not necessarily the likelihood of success at trial. This case involves the interaction of Lee with an earlier case: Hill v. Lockhart, 474 U.S. 52 (1985). The specific question presented is whether Lee represents a narrow exception to Hill’s more general rule that is focused on the likelihood of success at trial, which exception is applicable only where a defendant’s decision on whether to go to trial was focused on a collateral matter like immigration?