O'Melveny's 2018-2019 Pro Bono Review

O’MELVENY PRO BONO PROGRAM REVIEW 2018- 2019 21 Freedom for Stoney Lester Stoney Lester had served 14 of his 22-year sentence for intent to sell 15 grams of crack cocaine when he argued that the law had changed and that mandatory sentencing guidelines no longer applied to him. He claimed that he had been misclassified and that he should not have had to serve more than a dozen years in prison. He filed a pro se habeas petition seeking relief which was denied by a district court judge. The Fourth Circuit then Prisoners’ Rights O’Melveny defends the rights of indigent prisoners in a variety of matters, including representation of those who have been incarcerated unlawfully and those who have been denied basic medical care while in custody. appointed O’Melveny to represent him on appeal. The O’Melveny team argued that the so-called “savings clause” in the federal habeas statute permitted Mr. Lester to challenge his sentence in the exceptional circumstances of his case. A panel ruled unanimously in his favor. “[His] 262-month sentence is more than nine years longer than the maximum sentence that the court rightfully had discretion to order,” In March 2019, Stoney Lester walked free for the first time in 15 years. Mr. Lester had been sentenced to 22 years in prison for possession of 15 grams of crack cocaine with the intent to distribute because at the time the law required him to be treated as a career offender under the sentencing guidelines. The relevant caselaw was later reversed, so Mr. Lester’s sentence was nearly a decade longer than the maximum appropriate sentence for his crime. He filed a habeas corpus petition pro se but it was unsuccessful. That was when Brad Garcia, counsel in O’Melveny’s Washington, DC, office, stepped in to lead a team of the firm’s lawyers to take on Mr. Lester’s case. The team was eventually able to convince the Fourth Circuit to allow the challenge to the sentence to proceed, though it took nearly five years to secure Mr. Lester’s freedom. Even after the precedent-setting victory in the Fourth Circuit, the case had PRO BONO SPOTLIGHT Brad Garcia to go back to the district court to adjust the sentence. “It’s incredibly hard for inmates to challenge their sentences even when everyone agrees that the sentence was improper,” says Brad. “There are just so many procedural barriers to getting release, even when it seems so profoundly unfair.” Brad pairs his interest in criminal law with his passion for pro bono work. He has also contributed to a number of amicus briefs in appellate courts and in the Supreme Court regarding the right to education, voting and immigrant rights, and gerrymandering. He is also part of an O’Melveny team representing four Muslim inmates in federal prison who are seeking Halal meals under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The case is complex, and has involved deposing people all over the country. Litigation is ongoing, but already the Bureau of Prisons has begun a field trial of a Halal menu at seven federal institutions. The matter has also afforded several associates the opportunity to develop skills in client management, taking depositions, and formulating litigation strategies. Brad advises associates who are interested in taking on pro bono work to “think carefully about where you can make the biggest difference.” Brad has certainly found his place.