Correspondent
Federal courthouse correspondent, covers civil rights, employment discrimination, housing rights, and Second Amendment disputes.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of a habeas corpus petition challenging a murder conviction, holding that the trial judge's conduct did not demonstrate bias or render the trial fundamentally unfair.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a Merit Systems Protection Board decision upholding a settlement agreement. The court held that the petitioner forfeited arguments regarding coercion and fraud by failing to raise them during the administrative proceedings.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed the Merit Systems Protection Board's decision to uphold the removal of a Department of Veterans Affairs employee. The court found substantial evidence supported the agency's finding that it would have removed the employee regardless of any protected whistleblowing activity.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment to TC Transcontinental Tulsa in a Title VII employment discrimination case brought by a pro se plaintiff.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a Merit Systems Protection Board decision denying a whistleblower retaliation claim. The court held that the petitioner failed to prove her disclosures were a contributing factor in her adverse personnel actions.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a federal civil rights lawsuit filed by a man convicted of disorderly conduct and criminal trespass after refusing to wear a mask in a Salvation Army store. The court held that the private store employees did not act under color of state law and that the judge and prosecutor involved in the state proceedings were protected by absolute immunity.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit dismissed an appeal from a veteran's claim for disability benefits due to lack of jurisdiction. The court found that the appellant challenged factual determinations rather than presenting a reviewable legal or constitutional issue.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a pro se civil rights complaint alleging municipal code enforcement misconduct. The court held that the plaintiffs failed to state plausible claims under federal statutes and that the complaint was an impermissible shotgun pleading.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the Town of Sunset Beach in a civil rights suit alleging municipal liability for a police officer's sexual assault. The court held that the town lacked notice of a pattern of similar constitutional violations necessary to establish deliberate indifference.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed a district court ruling that a school district violated the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act by proposing to place a student with disabilities in a restrictive therapeutic day school. The court held that the student could receive a satisfactory education in a less restrictive special education classroom with the addition of a one-on-one aide.
