# NousResearch/hermes-agent · JSONDecodeError misclassified, bypassing agent retry logic

## Open now

- Nothing open on GitHub.

Multiple reports and fixes address a bug where json.JSONDecodeError, due to its ValueError inheritance, was incorrectly treated as a local validation error and aborted without retrying. Most members focus on excluding JSONDecodeError from that classification so provider failures trigger proper retry behavior.

## TL;DR

- 7 member(s): 0 open issue(s), 2 closed issue(s), 0 open PR(s), 1 merged PR(s), 4 PR(s) closed without merging.
- A fix was merged to main in PR #15107. Verify it addresses your case.
- **Recommended:** read PR #15107 (and any competing PRs below) before filing. Confirm the merged change covers your symptom.

## Maintainer resolution verdict

- Internal-tracker verdict over this cluster's issue members: `partially_resolved` · deciding PR(s): `pr-15107`. This is distinct from the fix status above. Weigh it yourself.

## How this cluster was grouped

- Link evidence (`STRUCTURAL_SPANNING`): every member is connected by structural evidence: shared changed files, or a closing/superseded reference.
- Pairwise link density `0.35`: the share of member pairs that carry a link, counting a structural link in full and a relevance-only link at 0.36. `1.00` means every pair is linked.

## Closed / duplicate issues

- #14271: JSONDecodeError misclassified as local validation error causes non-retryable abort (HTTP None)
- #14782: \[Bug\]: JSONDecodeError bypasses retry logic due to ValueError inheritance

## Prior & competing PRs

- **#15107: fix(agent): retry on json.JSONDecodeError instead of treating it as a local validation error**. merged to main · fix tier `verified`
  - maintainer direction: category `merged`; implication `superseded`
  - files: `run_agent.py`, `tests/run_agent/test_jsondecodeerror_retryable.py`
- **#14293: fix(agent): retry provider JSON decode failures**. closed without merge
  - maintainer direction: category `implemented_elsewhere`; implication `superseded`; refs `c2b3db48f`, `c2b3db48f5b44c2a93cf8eed369d8891de37ab57`, `#14271`, `#15107`, `#14782`, `#14271`
- **#14366: fix: exclude json.JSONDecodeError from local validation error check**. closed without merge
  - maintainer direction: category `duplicate_of`; implication `duplicate`; refs `#14293`, `#14271`
- **#14778: fix(agent): exclude JSONDecodeError from local validation error classification**. closed without merge
  - maintainer direction: category `merged_via`; implication `superseded`; refs `c2b3db48f`, `c2b3db48f5b44c2a93cf8eed369d8891de37ab57`, `#15107`, `#14782`
- **#16952: fix: preserve tool-turn context and harden issue follow-ups**. closed without merge
  - maintainer direction: category `superseded_by_pr`; implication `superseded`; refs `#52618`, `#14185`, `#14785`

## Fix status

- Merged to main in PR #15107 (cited above). No release data is tracked. Verify downstream.
- Fix last verified (merged) `2026-04-24`. This confirmation is old and may be out of date (a revert/reopen would not have invalidated it here); re-verify.
- Subsystem: `agent`