Jerry Yeager v. City Water & Light

*The Honorable Ronald E. Longstaff, United States District Judge for the
Southern District of Iowa.
United States Court of Appeals
FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT
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No. 05-2941
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George Paul Skinner, *
*
Appellant, * Appeal from the United States
* District Court for the Southern
v. * District of Iowa.
*
United States of America, * [UNPUBLISHED]
*
Appellee. *
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Submitted: June 19, 2006
Filed: June 20, 2006
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Before MELLOY, FAGG, and BENTON, Circuit Judges.
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PER CURIAM.
George Paul Skinner appeals the district court’s * order denying Skinner's 28
U.S.C. § 2255 motion. The district court granted a certificate of appealability (COA)
on whether United States v. Booker, 543 U.S. 220 (2005), is retroactively applicable
on collateral review, and we have since held it is not. See Never Misses A Shot v.
United States, 413 F.3d 781, 783-84 (8th Cir. 2005) (per curiam). Skinner also
challenges the denial of his claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, upon which the
court also granted a COA, and we agree with the district court Skinner made no

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showing he suffered prejudice as a result of counsel’s deficient performance. See
Brown v. United States, 311 F.3d 875, 878 (8th Cir. 2002) (counsel’s decision not to
raise issue unsupported by then-existing precedent did not constitute ineffective
assistance), cert. denied, 540 U.S. 891 (2003); Nguyen v. United States, 114 F.3d 699,
703-04 (8th Cir. 1997) (ineffective-assistance claim in guilty plea context).
We affirm the judgment of the district court. See 8th Cir. R. 47B.
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