No. 25-5088

Lorenzo Elias Mendez v. United States

Lower Court: Ninth Circuit
Docketed: 2025-07-11
Status: Denied
Type: IFP
Response WaivedRelisted (2)IFP
Tags: child-pornography habeas-corpus ineffective-assistance legal-innocence statutory-interpretation video-voyeurism
Key Terms:
HabeasCorpus
Latest Conference: 2026-01-09 (distributed 2 times)
Question Presented (AI Summary)

QP: Whether reasonable jurists could debate the application of 18 U.S.C. § 2251(a) to video voyeurism and the procedural and substantive challenges to the petitioner's conviction

Question Presented (OCR Extract)

This Petition seeks an order granting a certificate of appealability or. in the alternative, plenary review of the following questions: 1) Whether reasonable jurists could debate whether 18 U.S.C. § 2251(a) — statute that carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years ’ imprisonment and that applies to people who rape minors in order to produce child pornography — also applies to people who engage in video voyeurism, as the Ninth Circuit held in my case, or whether it does not, as the Third Circuit has held, where that statute's text makes clear that it does not, and where a forthcoming law review article explains that it does not. 2) Whether reasonable jurists could debate whether a defendant is estopped from raising a legal-innocence claim in habeas where he raised an claim on different grounds in direct review. 3) Whether reasonable jurists could debate whether my appellate counsel violated my right to the effective assistance of counsel and to autonomy over my own defense by incorrectly conceding over my explicit objection that I surreptitiously filmed a minor masturbating? 4) Whether reasonable jurists could debate whether my Trial Counselor provided Ineffective assistance of counsel by failing to file a Motion to Dismiss the Indictment or a Motion for Acquittal.

Docket Entries

2026-01-12
Rehearing DENIED.
2025-12-16
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/9/2026.
2025-10-20
Petition for Rehearing filed.
2025-10-06
Petition DENIED.
2025-07-24
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/29/2025.
2025-07-17
Waiver of United States of right to respond submitted.
2025-07-17
Waiver of right of respondent United States to respond filed.
2025-06-09
Petition for a writ of certiorari and motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis filed. (Response due August 11, 2025)

Attorneys

Lorenzo Elias Mendez
Lorenzo Elias Mendez — Petitioner
Lorenzo Elias Mendez — Petitioner
United States
D. John SauerSolicitor General, Respondent
D. John SauerSolicitor General, Respondent
Moez Mansoor KabaHueston Hennigan LLP, Respondent