Correspondent
Federal courthouse correspondent, covers civil rights, employment discrimination, housing rights, and Second Amendment disputes.
The Fifth Circuit dismissed Katie Young's appeal as frivolous, ruling that she failed to meaningfully argue that releasing her academic transcript violated her Fourteenth Amendment privacy rights. The court denied her motion to proceed in forma pauperis and affirmed the district court's dismissal for failure to state a claim.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court order dismissing a pro se civil action as frivolous. The appellate court found no reversible error in the lower court's decision after reviewing the record.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of Pakuja Crystal Vang's pro se civil action as frivolous but modified the order to allow amendment of claims against non-government defendants. The court held that Vang forfeited appellate review of the dismissal reasons by failing to challenge them in her informal brief.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for law enforcement officers in a civil rights lawsuit brought by a man arrested for domestic violence-related offenses. The court held that the plaintiff failed to present sufficient evidence to dispute probable cause for his arrest, discriminatory intent in his enforcement, or personal participation in firearm restrictions.
The Ninth Circuit denied a petition for review of a BIA order, holding that substantial evidence supported the agency's finding that the petitioner failed to prove a nexus between her harm and a protected ground. The court also affirmed the dismissal of her ineffective assistance of counsel claim because she did not demonstrate that her attorney's performance was fundamentally unfair or prejudicial.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the employer in a Title VII discrimination and retaliation case because the plaintiff failed to prove pretext or establish protected activity. The court also upheld the district court's denial of motions for recusal, reconsideration, and vexatious litigant designation.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of an employment discrimination lawsuit because the plaintiff failed to file a timely charge with the EEOC. This failure to exhaust administrative remedies also barred her parallel claims under the Immigration and Nationality Act.
The Ninth Circuit granted the petition in part and remanded the case to the Board of Immigration Appeals regarding a withholding of removal claim. The court found legal error in the agency's application of the more likely than not standard and its failure to consider specific evidence of the petitioner's individualized risks.
The Sixth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel affirmed the lower court's judgment, holding that elderly investors received funds in good faith and that a garnishment perfected their claims outside the bankruptcy preference period. The court rejected the Trustee's attempt to recover settlement proceeds, emphasizing that actual knowledge of a Ponzi scheme is required to defeat the good faith defense.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a commercial fisherman's claims against Ohio state officials, ruling that sovereign immunity bars suits against the state for takings and state law claims. The court reversed the dismissal with prejudice, instructing the district court to dismiss the claims against state defendants without prejudice due to lack of subject matter jurisdiction.
