No. 19-7947October Term 2019Decided Apr 20, 2020Updated Sep 3, 2026
Floyd v. United States
The Court declined review, leaving the lower-court result in place without deciding Floyd's legal questions.
Case status
Decided · April 20, 2020
- Current stage
- Decided
- Latest event
- Decision released Apr 20, 2020
- What it's about
This is a pending case where the petitioner is asking the Supreme Court to review a lower court decision involving the United States government, while also requesting permission to proceed without paying standard court fees.
Question presented
Whether a criminal offense that can be committed with a mens rea of mere recklessness can qualify as a "violent felony" under the Armed Career Criminal Act’s "elements clause," 18 U.S.C. § 924(e)(2)(B)(i)?
- Case path
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit / Decision released Apr 20, 2020
- Area
Decided Supreme Court case
Decision
What the Court decided
The Court declined review, leaving the lower-court result in place without deciding Floyd's legal questions.
Impact
The lower-court result remains in place for Floyd. For example, federal prisoners challenging sentence enhancements under older mandatory sentencing rules do not get a new Supreme Court answer from this case.
Not official Court text.
Briefing
What it's about
On April 20, 2020, the Supreme Court declined to review Floyd's challenge to a federal sentence enhancement and did not decide the merits. The petition raised questions related to Johnson v. United States and challenges to sentencing rules.
Impact
The lower-court result remains in place for Floyd. For example, federal prisoners challenging sentence enhancements under older mandatory sentencing rules do not get a new Supreme Court answer from this case.
What's next
The Supreme Court has finished its action on this petition. Floyd's lower-court outcome remains in effect.
What did the Supreme Court rule in Floyd v. United States?
The Court declined to review the case. It did not decide the merits of Floyd's legal arguments.
Who is affected by the outcome in Floyd v. United States?
Floyd and similarly situated federal prisoners remain subject to the lower-court result. The case creates no new Supreme Court decision on their sentence challenges.
What happens next in Floyd v. United States?
The Supreme Court's action is complete. The lower-court result remains in place.
Timing
Decided April 20, 2020
The Court released its decision on April 20, 2020 without hearing oral argument.
Documents
Activity
Docket activity2
AI analysis generated: Case Briefing
Sep 3, 2026 | Generated
Brief added: Petition
Mar 6, 2020 | Court records
Related cases
Grounding
- Grounding
- Primary materials plus reporting.
- Note
- Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.
- Checked
- Sep 3, 2026
- Method
- Methodology