Within a few days of one another in 2019, brothers Stewart and Michael Parnell filed separate 2255 Motions for release from their convictions and sentences, which were handed down in relation to their roles in a nationwide outbreak traced to peanut butter products. Ever since these Habeas Corpus motions alleging violations of constitutional rights have been on parallel tracks. Until now.
Elliott M. Harding, attorney for Michael Parnell, has filed a motion asking to consolidate his client’s case with Stewart Parnell’s for oral argument. Stewart Parnell v.
United States is scheduled for oral arguments in September before a panel of judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in Atlanta.
Harding, an attorney from Charlottesville, VA, said the motion for consolidation is “without objection from opposing counsel or counsel for Mr. Stewart Parnell.” The motion also asks for a “certificate or appealability” from the District Court’s final judgment, which adopted a Report and Recommendation but denied his 2255 petition.
In May, the appellate court scheduled Stewart Parnell’s case to “Calendar 23” for oral arguments on Sept. 23, 2024. It has not scheduled oral arguments for Michael Parnell, which is why he Is asking for the consolidation.
Harding’s motion continues: “To ensure the provision of oral arguments on the merits for Mr. Michael Parnell, and to eliminate the prospect of these materially similar cases being considered by alternative p.
