Boulb v. United States, No. 15-1383 (7th Cir. 2016)
Annotate this CaseIn 2008, Boulb was charged with three counts related to methamphetamine manufacturing materials, appeared in an Illinois court via video conference, and waived his right to appointed counsel. Boulb alleges that he met Hyde, his public defender in a 1998 DUI case, and that when Hyde offered him a plea deal, Boulb thought Hyde was his attorney discussing the prosecutor's offer. In fact, in 2008, Hyde was the State’s Attorney. Boulb entered a negotiated plea for a sentence of four years’ imprisonment. Weeks later, Boulb sought transcripts from his case, permission to proceed as a poor person, and appointment of counsel. The court ordered preparation of transcripts. Boulb took no further action. In 2012, Boulb pled guilty under 21 U.S.C. 846; 841(c)(2); and 843(a)(6), in connection with a methamphetamine conspiracy. The court classified him as a career offender based on his prior state court convictions, including his 2008 conviction. In 2013, Boulb appealed his 2008 conviction, with a motion to withdraw his plea because there was no verbatim transcript of his waiver of counsel, as required. The Illinois appellate court dismissed the request as untimely. Boulb filed an affidavit in his federal criminal case concerning his interactions with Hyde. Relying on 28 U.S.C. 2255’s one-year limitations period, the court dismissed. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, rejecting an argument that the court should have held a hearing to determine whether the limitations period was equitably tolled by Boulb’s purported mental incompetence.
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.