Opinion
C/A No. 5:03-3117-MBS.
November 29, 2005
ORDER OPINION
Plaintiff United States of America, on behalf of the Farmers Home Administration (FmHA), n/k/a Rural Development, United States Department of Agriculture, brought this action for foreclosure of a real estate mortgage on property of Defendant Nellie H. Roberson located in Bamberg, South Carolina ("property"). See 28 U.S.C. § 1345. This matter is before the court on Defendant's "Motion for Stay" pending a decision on her motion for a rehearing by the Supreme Court of the United States of America.
On February 12, 2004, Plaintiff filed for Summary Judgment. On September 27, 2004 the court granted Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment and issued a decree of foreclosure and ordered the sale of the property. A foreclosure sale was scheduled for November 2, 2004. On October 14, 2004, Defendant filed a motion for reconsideration. Defendant also filed a motion to stay the foreclosure while her appeal was pending. On November 1, 2004, the court denied the motion for reconsideration but granted the stay of the foreclosure pending appeal.
On February 17, 2005, the decision of this court was affirmed by the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and a sale of the property was ordered. U.S. v. Roberson, 122 Fed.Appx. 53 (2005). Defendant appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States of America but did not seek to stay the sale of the property. On October 3, 2005, the Supreme Court denied Defendant's petition for a writ of certiorari.Roberson v. U.S., 126 S. Ct. 78; 163 L. Ed. 2d 99 (2005). On October 28, 2005, Defendant filed a motion for a rehearing in the Supreme Court. The U.S. Marshal conducted a foreclosure sale of the property on November 8, 2005 where the property was sold to a third party for $28,000.00. Subsequent to the foreclosure sale, Defendant filed the instant motion to stay the transfer of the property pending a decision on her motion for a rehearing in the Supreme Court. Plaintiff filed a response on November 22, 2005.
As a threshold matter, this court lacks jurisdiction to stay the judgment of the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit pending the decision of the Supreme Court. "[A] district court has no jurisdiction to stay a circuit court's mandate simply to await the outcome of a certiorari petition seeking review of the circuit court's decision on appeal." United States v. Lentz, 352 F. Supp. 2d 718, 728 (D. Va. 2005). Further, "it is indisputable that a lower court generally is `bound to carry the mandate of the upper court into execution and [may] not consider the questions which the mandate laid at rest.'" United States v. Bell, 5 F.3d 64, 66 (4th Cir. 1993) (quoting Sprague v. Ticonic Nat'l Bank, 307 U.S. 161, 168 (1939)). The Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit reviewed the record in this case and ordered the foreclosure and sale of Defendant's property. Roberson, 122 Fed. Appx. at 54. The Supreme Court denied Defendant's application for a writ of certiorari. Accordingly, this court does not have jurisdiction to stay the decision of the higher court in this matter and the motion must be denied.
Defendant's motion to stay foreclosure pending the decision of the United States Supreme Court on Defendant's motion for a rehearing is DENIED.
IT IS SO ORDERED.