Correspondent
Federal courthouse correspondent, covers civil rights, employment discrimination, housing rights, and Second Amendment disputes.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of Michael Townes's complaint against federal agencies for lack of Article III standing and because the claims were premature. The court held that Townes failed to allege a real and immediate threat of future harm and that his request for relief would necessarily imply the invalidity of his existing conviction.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment against a taxpayer for willfully failing to file Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts Reports. However, the court reversed and remanded the portion of the case regarding the constitutionality of the penalties under the Excessive Fines Clause.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a pro se civil rights complaint filed by Izik Aliya against numerous state and local officials. The court held that the complaint was an impermissible shotgun pleading and that amendment would be futile due to various immunity and abstention doctrines.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court order granting summary judgment in a civil rights action. The appellate court held that the appellant waived review of several claims by failing to present properly developed arguments.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed in part and dismissed in part a federal prisoner's appeal of a denied Section twenty-two hundred fifty-five motion. The court held that the appellant failed to prove his trial counsel provided ineffective assistance regarding plea negotiations on mandatory minimum sentences.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a former police officer's federal civil rights claims as time-barred. The court held that the plaintiff knew or should have known of the causal connection between his non-hiring and his prior grievance filing in 2019, triggering the statute of limitations.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a district court's dismissal of a civil rights lawsuit. The appellate court held that the plaintiff's repeated refusal to comply with court orders and obstruction of discovery warranted dismissal with prejudice.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a district court ruling that no Fourth Amendment violation occurred when an officer shot a man he mistakenly believed to be an active shooter. The court held that the officer's split-second decision to use deadly force was objectively reasonable under the totality of the circumstances.
The Fifth Circuit reversed a district court dismissal that applied secular corporate law to a religious organization's governance structure. The appellate court held that the First Amendment's church autonomy doctrine bars civil courts from reinterpreting a church's internal polity to determine diversity jurisdiction.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed a district court's grant of summary judgment in an Americans with Disabilities Act case. The court held that the plaintiff failed to prove she was disabled or that she suffered an adverse employment action.
