Patel v. United States

CUMMINGS, Circuit Judge. Manu Patel was convicted by a jury of four counts of violating federal narcotics laws in connection with the importation of hashish from India. He was sentenced to seventeen and one-half years in prison. This court affirmed his conviction and sentence. United States v. Patel, 879 F.2d 292 (7th Cir. 1989), cert. denied, 494 U.S. 1016, 108 L. Ed. 2d 494, 110 S. Ct. 1318 (1990). Patel then filed a motion to vacate, set aside or correct his sentence pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2255, which the district court denied. Patel appeals the district court's failure to hold an evidentiary hearing on his § 2255 motion. Patel also argues that he was denied the effective assistance of counsel and that the prosecutors engaged in misconduct, thereby denying him a fair trial. We affirm. I. FACTS