Demetrius Osbourne v. Sec'y, Florida Dep't of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261 (11th Cir. 2020). · Go Syfert
Demetrius Osbourne v. Sec'y, Florida Dep't of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261 (11th Cir. 2020). Cases Citing This Book View Copy Cite
196 citation events (196 in the last 25 years) across 10 distinct courts.
Strongest positive: Tyree A. Jenkins v. Ricky D. Dixon (flmd, 2026-02-02) · Strongest negative: Burns v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (Duval County) (flmd, 2025-06-17)
Treatment trajectory · 2020 → 2026 · click a year to view as-of
2020 2023 2026
Top citers, strongest first. 50 distinct citers. How cited ↗
discussed Cited "but see" Burns v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (Duval County)
M.D. Fla. · 2025 · signal: but see · confidence high
But see Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261 (11th Cir. 2020). 7 See Sup. Ct. R. 13.3 (“The time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari runs from the date of entry of the judgment or order sought to be reviewed, and not from the issuance date of the mandate.”). in the appeal from the summary denial of the Rule 3.850 motion.
examined Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Tyree A. Jenkins v. Ricky D. Dixon
M.D. Fla. · 2026 · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
ecause the correction to the sentence was imposed nunc pro tunc, under florida law the 2014 amended sentence related back to the date of the initial judgment and was not a 'new judgment' for purposes of 2244.
examined Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Kenneth Alfred Bicking, III v. Secretary, Florida Department of Corrections
M.D. Fla. · 2025 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
ecause the correction to the sentence was imposed nunc pro tunc, under florida law the 2014 amended sentence related back to the date of the initial judgment and was not a 'new judgment' for purposes of 2244.
examined Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Spivey v. Secretary, Department of Corrections
M.D. Fla. · 2025 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
ecause the correction to the sentence was imposed nunc pro tunc, under florida law the 2014 amended sentence related back to the date of the initial judgment and was not a 'new judgment' for purposes of 2244.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) WATKINS v. STATE OF FLORIDA
N.D. Fla. · 2024 · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
in light of the trial court's nunc pro tunc designation when issuing osbourne's amended sentence, the date of osbourne's sentences and conviction remained april 21, 2003.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Keelan v. United States
S.D. Fla. · 2024 · signal: see also · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
absent authorization from this court, the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition
examined Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Merritt v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (Hillsborough County)
M.D. Fla. · 2024 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
ecause the correction to the sentence was imposed nunc pro tunc, under florida law the 2014 amended sentence related back to the date of the initial judgment and was not a 'new judgment' for purposes of 2244.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Cuffy v. Dixon (2×) also: Cited as authority (rule)
S.D. Fla. · 2023 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
absent authorization from , the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition.
examined Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Johnson v. Secretary, Department of Corrections
M.D. Fla. · 2023 · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
ecause the correction to the sentence was imposed nunc pro tunc, under florida law the 2014 amended sentence related back to the date of the initial judgment and was not a 'new judgment' for purposes of 2244.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Restricted Filer - Alfred v. Dixon
S.D. Fla. · 2023 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
absent authorization from , the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition.
examined Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Richardson v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (Hillsborough County)
M.D. Fla. · 2023 · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
ecause the correction to the sentence was imposed nunc pro tunc, under florida law the 2014 amended sentence related back to the date of the initial judgment and was not a 'new judgment' for purposes of 2244.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Gonzalez v. United States
S.D. Fla. · 2023 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
absent authorization from , the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Atkins v. United States
S.D. Fla. · 2023 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
absent authorization from , the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Smith v. United States
S.D. Fla. · 2023 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
absent authorization from , the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Pendergrass v. United States
S.D. Fla. · 2023 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
absent authorization from , the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Randolph v. Florida Department of Corrections
S.D. Fla. · 2022 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
absent authorization from , the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) CROSS v. INCH (2×) also: Cited as authority (rule)
S.D. Fla. · 2020 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
absent authorization from , the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition.
discussed Cited as authority (quoted) Mikheal Christopher Gilliam v. John Crow, et al., Elmore Warden
N.D. Ala. · 2026 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
although generally appeals from 2254 proceedings require a certificate of appealability ("coa
discussed Cited as authority (quoted) Smith v. Toney
N.D. Ala. · 2021 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
although generally appeals from 2254 proceedings require a certificate of appealability ("coa
discussed Cited as authority (quoted) Otero v. Florida Department of Corrections
S.D. Fla. · 2021 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
although generally appeals from 2254 proceedings require a certificate of appealability ("coa
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Aray Donell Levine v. Ricky Ddixon
N.D. Fla. · 2026 · confidence medium
Cassidy v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 119 F.4th 1336 , 1341–42 (11th Cir. 2024) (state court’s designation of amended sentence as nunc pro tunc related back to the date of the original judgment and was not a new judgment for purposes of § 2244(d)); Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1267 (11th Cir. 2020) (same).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Reginald Burrell v. Catrina Hooks-Robbins
M.D. Ala. · 2026 · confidence medium
Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020) (citing 28 U.S.C. § 2244 (b)(3)(A)). “[I]n general, once the district court has entered its judgment with respect to the first habeas petition, a second-in-time application waives the exhaustion requirement.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Daniel Carnett v. State of Florida
S.D. Fla. · 2026 · confidence medium
Under the AEDPA, “before a petitioner may file a second or successive § 2254 habeas petition, the petitioner first must obtain an order from [the Eleventh Circuit] authorizing the district court to consider the petition.” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020) (alterations added) (citing 28 U.S.C. § 2244 (b)(3)(A)).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Joseph W. Bullard v. Secretary, Department of Corrections
M.D. Fla. · 2026 · confidence medium
Bar on a Second or Successive Petition Under AEDPA, “before a petitioner may file a second or successive Section 2254 habeas petition, the petitioner first must obtain an order from [the court of appeals] authorizing the district court to consider the petition.” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t Corrs., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020) (citing 28 U.S.C. § 2244 (b)(3)(A)).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Doyle L. Heard v. Secretary, Florida Department of Corrections
11th Cir. · 2025 · confidence medium
We must give prior authorization before a petitioner may file a second or successive § 2254 petition. 28 U.S.C. § 2244 (b)(3)(A); Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Troy M. Griffin v. United States of America
M.D. Fla. · 2025 · confidence medium
Generally, “where . . . there is a ‘new judgment intervening between the two habeas petitions,’ . . . an application challenging the resulting new judgment is not ‘second or successive[.]’” Magwood v. Patterson, 561 U.S. 320 , 341–42 (2010) (citations omitted). “[H]owever, not every action that alters a sentence necessarily constitutes a new judgment[.]” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dept. of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1265 (11th Cir. 2020) (holding that a Florida court’s corrected sentence, imposed nunc pro tunc, did not qualify as a new judgment because the nunc pro tunc designati…
examined Cited as authority (rule) Johnson v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (Hillsborough County) (3×) also: Cited "see"
M.D. Fla. · 2025 · confidence medium
(Doc. 6-2 at 306, 410) “‘[T]he judgment that matters for purposes of Section 2244 is the judgment authorizing the petitioner’s confinement.’” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t Corrs., 968 F.3d 1261, 1265 (11th Cir. 2020) (quoting Patterson v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t Corrs., 849 F.3d 1321, 1325 (11th Cir. 2017)).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Silas Martin v. Warden, Kilby Correctional Facility (2×) also: Cited "see"
11th Cir. · 2025 · confidence medium
“Absent authorization from this Court, the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition.” Osbourne, 968 F.3d at 1264. “[T]he bar on second or successive petitions ordinar- ily prevents a prisoner from twice contesting the judgment author- izing his confinement.” Patterson v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 849 F.3d 1321, 1325 (11th Cir. 2017) (en banc).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Griffin v. United States
M.D. Fla. · 2025 · confidence medium
“Importantly, however, not every action that alters a sentence necessarily constitutes a new judgment.” Osbourne, Sec’y, Fla. Dept. of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1265 (11th Cir. 2020) (holding that a Florida court’s corrected sentence, imposed nunc pro tunc, did not qualify as a new judgment because the nunc pro tunc designation “related back to the date of the initial judgment”); see also Cassidy v. Sec’y, Dept. of Corr., 119 F.4th 1336 , 1341 (11th Cir. 2024) (“We stated that ‘the determining factor as to whether the state court judgment is a new judgment for purposes of Section…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Smith v. Secretary, Florida Department of Corrections (Duval County)
M.D. Fla. · 2025 · confidence medium
Instead, the Court found the “determining factor” was the nunc pro tunc designation, which, under Florida law “means ‘now for then’ and when a legal order or judgment is imposed nunc pro tunc it refers, not to a new or de novo decision, but to the judicial act previously taken.” Osbourne, 968 F.3d at 1266 (internal quotation marks omitted) (distinguishing Magwood v. Patterson, 561 U.S. 320 (2010); Insignares v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 755 F.3d 1273 (11th Cir. 2014)); see Cassidy v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 119 F.4th 1336 , 1340 (11th Cir. 2024) (recognizing that unde…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Viverette v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (Hillsborough County) (2×) also: Cited "see"
M.D. Fla. · 2025 · confidence medium
However, “not every action that alters a sentence necessarily constitutes a new judgment for purposes of Section 2244.” Osbourne, 968 F.3d at 1265. “‘[T]he judgment that matters for purposes of Section 2244 is the judgment authorizing the petitioner’s confinement.’” Id. (quoting Patterson v. Secy, Fla. Dep’t Corrs., 849 F.3d 1321, 1325 (11th Cir. 2017)).
examined Cited as authority (rule) Funk v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (Hillsborough) (3×) also: Cited "see"
M.D. Fla. · 2025 · confidence medium
However, “‘where . . . there is a new judgment intervening between the two habeas petitions, an application challenging the resulting new judgment is not second or successive[.]’” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t Corrs., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020) (quoting Magwood v. Patterson, 561 U.S. 320 , 341–42 (2010)). “[N]ot every action that alters a sentence necessarily constitutes a new judgment for purposes of Section 2244.” Osbourne, 968 F.3d at 1265 . “‘[T]he judgment that matters for purposes of Section 2244 is the judgment authorizing the petitioner’s confinement.�…
examined Cited as authority (rule) Theresa Batson v. Florida Department of Corrections (4×) also: Cited "see"
11th Cir. · 2024 · confidence medium
Although Osbourne requires us to defer to a state court’s des- ignation of an amended judgment or sentence as nunc pro tunc, id. at 1266–67, 1266 n.4, the state court must have, in fact, classified the order as nunc pro tunc for this deference to apply, see id. at 1266 (explaining that the date of the original judgment controlled “[i]n light of the trial court’s nunc pro tunc designation when issuing Os- bourne’s amended sentence” (emphasis added)).
examined Cited as authority (rule) Theresa Batson v. Florida Department of Corrections (4×) also: Cited "see"
11th Cir. · 2024 · confidence medium
Although Osbourne requires us to defer to a state court’s des- ignation of an amended judgment or sentence as nunc pro tunc, id. at 1266–67, 1266 n.4, the state court must have, in fact, classified the order as nunc pro tunc for this deference to apply, see id. at 1266 (explaining that the date of the original judgment controlled “[i]n light of the trial court’s nunc pro tunc designation when issuing Os- bourne’s amended sentence” (emphasis added)).
examined Cited as authority (rule) Cummings v. Secretary, Florida Department of Corrections (Duval County) (4×) also: Cited "see"
M.D. Fla. · 2024 · confidence medium
In Osbourne, the Eleventh Circuit held that the trial court’s 2014 “amended sentence,” which deleted a ten-year mandatory minimum on one count, “was not a ‘new judgment’ for purposes of § 2244” because it was imposed nunc pro tunc to the date of the original 2003 judgment, and thus the district court lacked jurisdiction over the petitioner’s unauthorized second or successive habeas petition. 968 F.3d at 1263, 1266-67 .
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Reginald Grimes, Sr. v. FPC Pensacola Warden (2×) also: Cited "see"
11th Cir. · 2023 · confidence medium
Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) KIRK v. DIXON
N.D. Fla. · 2023 · confidence medium
Upon due consideration of the Report and Recommendation and the case file, the Court agrees with the magistrate judge’s determination that Petitioner’s amended judgment is not a “new judgment” for habeas purposes, see Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020), and, thus, his §2254 petition is “successive” and must be dismissed because he did not receive permission from the Eleventh Circuit to file it.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Brown v. Florida Department of Corrections (2×) also: Cited "see"
S.D. Fla. · 2023 · confidence medium
Under AEDPA, “before a petitioner may file a second or successive § 2254 habeas petition, the petitioner first must obtain an order from th[e] [Eleventh Circuit] authorizing the district court to consider the petition.” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020) (alterations added) (citing 28 U.S.C. § 2244 (b)(3)(A)).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Batson v. Florida Department of Corrections (2×) also: Cited "see"
S.D. Fla. · 2023 · confidence medium
Furthermore, “not every action that alters a sentence necessarily constitutes a new judgment for purposes of § 2244.” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1265 (11th Cir. 2020).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Richard Sealey v. Warden Georgia Diagnostic Prison
11th Cir. · 2023 · confidence medium
Osbourne v. Secretary, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Perkowski v. Florida Department of Corrections
S.D. Fla. · 2023 · confidence medium
The Eleventh Circuit recently clarified that “not every action that alters a sentence necessarily constitutes a new judgment[.]” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1265 (11th Cir. 2020).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Burgess v. Florida Department of Corrections
S.D. Fla. · 2022 · confidence medium
Under state law, a nunc pro tunc sentencing order is meant “to correct the record of an order actually made” and “refers, not to a new or de novo decision, but to the judicial act previously taken, concerning which the record was absent or defective.” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1266 (11th Cir. 2020).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Branton v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (Hillsborough County)
M.D. Fla. · 2022 · confidence medium
(Doc. 12) “‘[W]here . . . there is a new judgment intervening between the two habeas petitions, an application challenging the resulting new judgment is not second or successive[.]’” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t Corrs., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020) (quoting Magwood v. Patterson, 561 U.S. 320 , 341–42 (2010)).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Kleckley v. State of Florida
S.D. Fla. · 2022 · confidence medium
The Eleventh Circuit has clarified that “not every action that alters a sentence necessarily constitutes a new judgment.” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1265 (11th Cir. 2020).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Drago v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (Pinellas County)
M.D. Fla. · 2022 · confidence medium
Fla. Jan. 29, 2014). “[B]efore a petitioner may file a second or successive § 2254 habeas petition, the petitioner first must obtain an order from [the court of appeals] authorizing the district court to consider the petition.” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t Corrs., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020) (citing 28 U.S.C. § 2244 (b)(3)(A)).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Shawn G. Adderley v. United States
11th Cir. · 2022 · confidence medium
Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020); USCA11 Case: 21-13038 Date Filed: 02/09/2022 Page: 4 of 6 4 Opinion of the Court 21-13038 Boyd v. United States, 754 F.3d 1298 , 1301–02 (11th Cir. 2014).
examined Cited as authority (rule) Arseles D. Miller v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (3×) also: Cited "see"
11th Cir. · 2022 · confidence medium
Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corrs., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Heiser v. Secretary, Department of Corrections (Manatee County)
M.D. Fla. · 2021 · confidence medium
(Doc. 10-3, Ex. 77 pp. 4-5) but to the judicial act previously taken, concerning which the record was absent or defective.” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1266 (11th Cir. 2020) (internal quotation marks, brackets and citation omitted); see also Goodloe v. Sec’y, Dep’t of Corr., 823 F. App’x 801 , 804 (11th Cir. 2020) (“[T]he [Florida] state court entered the correction [to the prisoner’s sentence] nunc pro tunc which take[s] effect as of the date of the judgment . . . so corrected.”) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).
examined Cited as authority (rule) Baldwin v. Secretary, DOC (Charlotte County) (4×) also: Cited "see"
M.D. Fla. · 2021 · confidence medium
In Osbourne, the trial court ordered an amended sentence to reflect the deletion of a ten year minimum mandatory sentence as to a single count in a multi-count judgment. 968 F.3d at 1263.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Tracy L. Collier v. Mark S. Inch
11th Cir. · 2020 · confidence medium
We have explained that “[a]bsent authorization from this Court, the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition.” Osbourne v. Sec’y, Florida Dep’t of Corr., 968 F.3d 1261, 1264 (11th Cir. 2020).
Retrieving the full opinion text from the archive…
Demetrius Osbourne
v.
Secretary, Florida Department of Corrections
18-11004.
Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Aug 7, 2020.
968 F.3d 1261
1

[PUBLISH]

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
_______________________

No. 18-11004
________________________

D.C. Docket No. 2:16-cv-14325-RLR

DEMETRIUS OSBOURNE,

Petitioner-Appellant,

versus

SECRETARY, FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS,
ATTORNEY GENERAL, STATE OF FLORIDA,

Respondents-Appellees.

________________________

Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of Florida
________________________

(August 7, 2020)

Before ROSENBAUM, JILL PRYOR, and BRANCH, Circuit Judges.

BRANCH, Circuit Judge: Demetrius Osbourne, a Florida prisoner, appeals the district court’s dismissal of his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 petition for a writ of habeas corpus for lack of jurisdiction as an unauthorized second or successive petition. He argues on appeal that his petition was not second or successive because a new judgment was entered in 2014. As discussed in further detail below, the state trial court granted in part his motion to correct sentence, pursuant to Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.800(a), and issued an amended sentence nunc pro tunc, which removed a 10-year mandatory minimum term on one of his counts of conviction. After careful review, we conclude that because the amended sentence was entered nunc pro tunc under Florida law, it related back to the date of the original judgment and it was not a “new judgment” for purposes of 28 U.S.C. § 2244(b). Consequently, the district court properly determined that Osbourne’s latest § 2254 petition was an unauthorized second or successive petition over which it lacked jurisdiction, and we affirm.

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I. Background

In 2003, a Florida jury convicted Osbourne of robbery with a deadly weapon (firearm) and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon (a firearm). He was sentenced to life imprisonment on the robbery offense and a concurrent 15-year term on the aggravated battery offense. Each respective sentence included a

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10-year mandatory-minimum term of imprisonment for possession of a firearm. [1] Following his sentencing, Osbourne vigorously pursued state postconviction relief, and in 2010, he filed a § 2254 federal habeas petition, which was denied on the merits.

Subsequently, in May 2014, Osbourne filed a pro se motion to correct sentence in the state trial court, pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.800(a),2 in which he argued, among other things, that the 10-year mandatory-minimum terms imposed on each count were illegal because the charging information failed to allege actual possession of the firearm or reference the relevant firearm enhancing statute. Following the State’s response, the trial court granted his motion in part and denied it in part. Specifically, the trial court agreed that the 10-year mandatory-minimum term for the robbery count “may have be in error, although moot” because more than 10 years had passed since Osbourne’s sentencing. Nevertheless, the trial court ordered that an “amended sentence” be entered, “nunc pro tunc to April 21, 2003, to reflect the deletion of

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the ten year mandatory minimum on [Osbourne’s] robbery conviction (count one) only. The defendant’s sentence remains unchanged in all other respects.” Notably, the sentencing form used by the trial court utilized various boxes to indicate the action taken, which included options for a “modified,” “amended,” or “corrected” sentence, or a “resentence.” The trial court selected “amended” sentence with the notation that the sentence was “[a]mended to reflect Court Order for deletion of the ten year mandatory firearm minimum.” The form also provided that the amended sentence was imposed “nunc pro tunc” to April 21, 2003—the date of Osbourne’s original judgment. Osbourne appealed the denial in part of his Rule 3.800 motion and Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal summarily affirmed without written opinion.

Thereafter, in July 2016, Osbourne filed the underlying pro se § 2254 petition for a writ of habeas corpus, asserting claims of ineffective assistance of trial counsel and that the remaining 10-year mandatory-minimum term on the aggravated battery conviction violates the due process clause. He maintained that the petition was timely because he “was resentenced and a new judgment was entered” in 2014. In response, the State argued that the district court should dismiss the petition as an unauthorized second or successive § 2254 petition because Osbourne had unsuccessfully litigated his initial § 2254 petition in 2010 and Osbourne had not been resentenced or subject to a new judgment. Rather, the

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2014 judgment was simply the “ministerial act of correcting the original judgment nunc pro tunc.”

Upon review, the magistrate judge recommended that Osbourne’s § 2254 petition be dismissed as an unauthorized second or successive petition because the 2014 order “had no effect on [Osbourne’s] underlying convictions or sentences, and did not result in a ‘new judgment’ for purposes of § 2244(b).” The district court adopted the magistrate’s report and recommendation over Osbourne’s objections. This appeal followed.[3]

II. Standard of Review

“We review de novo whether a petition for a writ of habeas corpus is second or successive.” Patterson v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 849 F.3d 1321, 1324 (11th Cir. 2017) (en banc).

III. Discussion

With certain exceptions not relevant here, the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (“AEDPA”) provides that, before a petitioner may file a second or successive §2254 habeas petition, the petitioner first must obtain an order from this Court authorizing the district court to consider the petition. See

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28 U.S.C. § 2244(b)(3)(A). Absent authorization from this Court, the district court lacks jurisdiction to consider a second or successive habeas petition. See Farris v. United States, 333 F.3d 1211, 1216 (11th Cir. 2003). However, “where . . . there is a ‘new judgment intervening between the two habeas petitions,’ an application challenging the resulting new judgment is not ‘second or successive[.]’” See Magwood v. Patterson, 561 U.S. 320, 341–42 (2010) (quoting Burton v. Stewart, 549 U.S. 147, 156 (2007)). In other words, “[w]hether a petition is second or successive depends on ‘the judgment challenged.’” Patterson, 849 F.3d at 1325 (en banc) (quoting Insignares v. Sec’y, Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 755 F.3d 1273, 1278 (11th Cir. 2014)). The conviction and sentence together make up the criminal judgment. See Burton v. Stewart, 549 U.S. 147, 156 (2007). Thus, in Osbourne’s case, we must determine whether the 2014 amended sentence resulted in a new judgment for purposes of § 2244.

We start with what constitutes a new judgment. The Supreme Court addressed this issue in Magwood. After being sentenced to death for murder and exhausting postconviction relief in the Alabama state courts, Magwood filed a federal § 2254 petition challenging both his conviction and his sentence. 561 U.S. at 323. Magwood’s § 2254 petition was conditionally granted, with directions that Magwood either be released or resentenced. Id. The state trial court subsequently held a full resentencing, but ultimately imposed the same sentence. Id. at 323, 326.

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After again challenging his new death sentence in state court, Magwood filed another § 2254 petition raising a fair-warning claim and an ineffective-assistance- of-counsel claim, both of which directly related to the resentencing proceedings. Id. at 327–28. The district court sua sponte addressed whether Magwood’s present § 2254 petition was second or successive for purposes of § 2244, concluded it was not, and proceeded to address the merits of Magwood’s claims. Id. at 328. On appeal, we reversed in part the district court’s ruling as to the successive nature of the petition, concluding that Magwood’s fair-warning claim was a prohibited second or successive claim under § 2244 because it “challenged the trial court’s reliance on the same (allegedly improper) aggravating factor that the trial court had relied upon for Magwood’s original sentence.” Id. at 329. In reversing our decision, the Supreme Court explained that the phrase “second or successive” in § 2244(b) “must be interpreted with respect to the judgment challenged.” Id. at 332–33. Accordingly, the Magwood court concluded that because a new, intervening judgment was entered following the resentencing, Magwood’s new § 2254 petition which challenged “new errors” made at the resentencing was not “second or successive” for purposes of § 2244(b). Id. at 339, 342. In reaching this conclusion, the Magwood Court left open the question of whether a petitioner could challenge the original, undisturbed conviction in a new § 2254 petition where the State imposed only a new sentence. Id. at 342.

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Subsequently, in Insignares, we considered the question left open in Magwood as to whether a habeas petition is “second or successive” for purposes of § 2244 where it challenges an undisturbed conviction following the imposition of only a new sentence. 755 F.3d at 1277–78. Specifically, after pursuing federal habeas relief, Insignares filed a Rule 3.800 motion to correct his sentence. Id. at 1277. The state court granted the motion, reduced the mandatory-minimum imprisonment term for one of his counts of conviction from 20 to 10 years, and “entered a corrected sentence and new judgment.” Id. Insignares then filed a new § 2254 petition. Id. Although the State did not contest that a new judgment was entered within the meaning of Magwood for purposes of § 2244, it argued that Insignares’s new § 2254 petition was nevertheless “second or successive” because it challenged the undisturbed conviction and raised the same issues as his first § 2254 petition. Id. at 1278. We concluded that because there is only one judgment, which “is comprised of both the sentence and the conviction,” a habeas petition is not second or successive where it follows a new judgment, “regardless of whether its claims challenge the sentence or the underlying conviction.” Id. at 1281.

Importantly, however, not every action that alters a sentence necessarily constitutes a new judgment for purposes of § 2244. For example, in Patterson, we emphasized that “[t]he judgment that matters for purposes of section 2244 is ‘the

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judgment authorizing the petitioner’s confinement.’” 849 F.3d at 1325 (en banc) (quoting Magwood, 561 U.S. at 332). We then concluded that the state court’s grant of a Florida Rule 3.800 motion to correct sentence and issuance of an order removing a sentencing requirement that the defendant undergo chemical castration did not constitute a new judgment for purposes of § 2244. Id. at 1325–28. In reaching this conclusion, we explained that Patterson’s circumstances were distinguishable from Magwood and Insignares because in Patterson’s case the state trial court did not issue a new prison sentence. Id. at 1325–26. Rather, the state court merely issued an order barring the imposition of the chemical castration condition, “but it did not otherwise address the term of Patterson’s imprisonment.” Id. at 1326. Consequently, unlike in Magwood and Insignares, there was no intervening judgment authorizing Patterson’s confinement, and he was still in custody pursuant to his original 1998 judgment. Id. In so holding, we rejected the argument that the test for whether there is a new judgment for purposes of § 2244 should be whether the prisoner’s sentence “has materially changed.” Id. at 1326–

27. We also rejected the argument that “any order that alters a sentence necessarily constitutes a new judgment,” noting that state courts often make many “ameliorative changes in sentences . . . as a matter of course, such as the removal of a fine or a restitution obligation,” and to say that such action results in a new judgment every time for purposes of federal habeas review would directly

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contradict the central purpose of the AEDPA: “to ensure greater finality of state and federal court judgment in criminal cases.” Id. at 1326–27 (quoting Gonzalez v. Sec’y for Dep’t of Corr., 366 F.3d 1253, 1269 (11th Cir. 2004) (en banc)). With these principles in mind, we now address whether the 2014 amended sentence entered nunc pro tunc in Osbourne’s case constitutes a “new judgment” for purposes of § 2244.

Although there are clear parallels between Osbourne’s case and Insignares, we find in this case the determining factor as to whether the state court judgment is a “new judgment” for purposes of § 2244(b) turns on the nunc pro tunc designation. Specifically, unlike in Magwood or Insignares, Osbourne’s amended sentence was imposed nunc pro tunc under Florida law to the date of the original judgment. In Florida, “[a] court may enter an order nunc pro tunc to correct the record of an order [a]ctually made, which was either entered incorrectly in the court records or not entered at all.” In re Riha’s Estate, 369 So. 2d 404, 404 (Fla. 2d Dist. Ct. App. 1979). And under Florida law, “[n]unc pro tunc means ‘now for then’” and when a legal order or judgment is imposed nunc pro tunc it “refers, not to a new or de novo decision, but to the judicial act previously taken, concerning which the record was absent or defective.” Colon v. State, 909 So. 2d 484, 487 (Fla. 5th Dist. Ct. App. 2005)(quoting Briseno v. Perry, 417 So.2d 813, 814 (Fla. 5th Dist. Ct. App. 1982)); see also Boggs v. Wainwright, 223 So.2d 316, 317 (Fla.

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1969) (“That a court of record may, even after the term has expired, correct clerical mistakes in its own judgments and records, nunc pro tunc, and that such corrections generally relate back and take effect as of the date of the judgment, decree, order, writ, or other record, is well settled.” (quoting R. R. Ricou & Sons Co. v. Merwin, 113 So. 745, 746 (1927))). In light of the trial court’s nunc pro tunc designation when issuing Osbourne’s amended sentence, the date of Osbourne’s sentences and conviction remained April 21, 2003. 4 See Colon, 909 So. 2d at 487. In other words, because the correction to the sentence was imposed nunc pro tunc, under Florida law the 2014 amended sentence related back to the date of the initial judgment and was not a “new judgment” for purposes of § 2244. See Colon, 909 So. 2d at 487; see also Patterson, 849 F.3d at 1327 (noting that Florida Rule 3.800(a) encompasses some errors that may relate back to the original

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sentencing, and “[a]n order that relates back to an original sentence merely amends the original order and may not entitle the defendant to vacatur of the original judgment and entry of a new one”).

In conclusion, unlike in Magwood and Insignares, there is no intervening new judgment here authorizing Osbourne’s confinement. Rather, Osbourne is still confined pursuant to the 2003 judgment. Consequently, Osbourne’s latest § 2254 was an unauthorized second or successive petition over which the district court lacked jurisdiction. [5] See Farris, 333 F.3d at 1216.

AFFIRMED.


1 Under Florida law, a person who is convicted of certain felonies, including robbery and aggravated battery, “and during the commission of the offense, such person actually possessed a ‘firearm’ or ‘destructive device’ as those terms are defined in s. 790.001, shall be sentenced to a minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years[.]” Fla. Stat. § 775.087(2)(a)(1) (2002).
2 This rule provides in relevant part that: “A court may at any time correct an illegal sentence imposed by it, or an incorrect calculation made by it in a sentencing scoresheet, when it is affirmatively alleged that the court records demonstrate on their face an entitlement to that relief . . . .” Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.800(a)(1).
3 Although generally appeals from § 2254 proceedings require a certificate of appealability (“COA”), no COA is necessary to appeal the dismissal for lack of subject matter jurisdiction of a successive habeas petition because such orders are not “a final order in a habeas corpus proceeding.” See Hubbard v. Campbell, 379 F.3d 1245, 1247 (11th Cir. 2004). Instead, we may review such a dismissal as a “final decision” under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. Id.
4 We note Florida law also provides that “when the court wholly omits an order or wishes to change it, the new order cannot be entered nunc pro tunc.” Riha’s Estate, 369 So. 2d at 404. However, Osbourne did not challenge the imposition of the amended sentence nunc pro tunc in state court, despite having the opportunity to do so. Further, he does not raise any challenge to the nunc pro tunc designation now. Under these circumstances and because the propriety of labeling a Florida judgment “nunc pro tunc” is a matter of state law, we do not opine as to whether the imposition of the amended sentence in his case was the proper or correct use of a nunc pro tunc designation under Florida law. That is a matter best left to the province of the state court. See Coleman v. Thompson, 501 U.S. 722, 731 (1991) (“Because ‘it would be unseemly in our dual system of government for a federal . . . court to upset a state court conviction without an opportunity to the state courts to correct [an alleged] violation,’ federal courts apply the doctrine of comity, which ‘teaches that one court should defer action on causes properly within its jurisdiction until the courts of another sovereignty with concurrent powers, and already cognizant of the litigation, have had an opportunity to pass upon the matter.’” (quoting Darr v. Burford, 339 U.S. 200, 204 (1950))). Our decision here is limited to the effect of the nunc pro tunc designation under Florida law and what effect that designation has on whether the judgment is a new judgment for purposes of § 2244(b).
5 In support of his contention that the 2014 amended sentence constitutes a new judgment for purposes of § 2244, Osbourne primarily relies on Wentzell v. Neven, 674 F.3d 1124 (9th Cir. 2012), and Gonzalez v. Sherman, 873 F.3d 763 (9th Cir. 2017), but his case is factually distinguishable as the intervening judgments in those cases were not entered nunc pro tunc. See Wentzell, 674 F.3d at 1125; Gonzalez, 873 F.3d at 772–73. Regardless, those cases are not binding precedent in this Circuit. See Generali v. D’Amico, 766 F.2d 485, 489 (11th Cir. 1985) (“[A]uthority from one circuit of the United States Court of Appeals is not binding upon another circuit.”).