Correspondent
Federal courthouse correspondent, covers civil rights, employment discrimination, housing rights, and Second Amendment disputes.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit denied a certificate of appealability to Jestin Tafolla, a state prisoner seeking federal habeas relief. The court dismissed the appeal after finding no substantial showing of a denial of constitutional rights across all asserted claims.
The Ninth Circuit denied in part and granted in part a petition for review of a Board of Immigration Appeals decision. The court affirmed the denial of a continuance to respond to government evidence but remanded the case regarding the abandonment of asylum applications.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for a school district that denied an employee paid sick leave for mandatory guide dog training, ruling the denial did not violate the ADA or FMLA.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a jury verdict in favor of the Bessemer City Board of Education. The court found no reversible error in the district court proceedings despite multiple arguments raised by the appellant regarding jury composition and evidence.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court's grant of summary judgment in an employment discrimination case brought by a pro se plaintiff. The appellate panel held that the plaintiff failed to raise a genuine dispute of material fact regarding adverse employment actions or standing to sue on behalf of third parties.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a pro se plaintiff's claims alleging housing discrimination and due process violations. The court held that the plaintiff failed to allege sufficient facts to support his federal and state law claims.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a civil rights action brought by California state prisoners regarding good-time credits. The court held that the claims were barred under Heck v. Humphrey because success would necessarily imply the invalidity of the inmates' sentences.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a wrongful death complaint alleging product liability. The court held that a multi-car pileup caused by a third party's independent negligence was an unforeseeable supervening cause that broke the chain of proximate causation.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for most defendants in a prisoner's Eighth Amendment claim regarding pepper spray treatment but vacated the ruling for one officer. The court remanded the case to allow consideration of evidence that the officer was aware of the prisoner's ongoing burning and refused to provide basic hygiene items.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a student's free exercise claim challenging a state tuition grant program. The court held that the Supreme Court's decision in Locke v. Davey remains controlling law despite subsequent rulings on religious funding.
