Joseph Michael Diaz v. United States

Whether the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals erred in holding that counsel was not ineffective assistance for failing to object to the application of a USSG Guideline provision for “sexual contact” where the counts of conviction and relevant conduct as defined by the United States Sentencing Guidelines did not involve “sexual contact,” and where the error effectively turned a 30 year sentence of imprisonment into a 60 year sentence of imprisonment. Whether the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals erred in denying the Petitioner an evidentiary hearing on his claim of ineffective assistance of counsel where counsel failed to file a notice of appeal and failed to provide meaningful consultation regarding an appeal, and where all of the attendant circumstances indicated that the Petitioner wished to appeal his sentence.