Correspondent
Federal courthouse correspondent, covers civil rights, employment discrimination, housing rights, and Second Amendment disputes.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a prisoner's civil action due to procedural failures. The court held that untimely and non-specific objections to a magistrate judge's recommendation waived the right to appellate review.
The Ninth Circuit dismissed a petition for review of a Board of Immigration Appeals decision denying cancellation of removal. The court found the petitioner failed to exhaust claims regarding ineffective assistance of counsel and lacked jurisdiction to review discretionary agency determinations.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a pro se civil rights complaint because the appellant failed to challenge the specific legal basis for the lower court's order in his informal brief. Under Fourth Circuit Rule 34(b), this omission forfeited appellate review, leaving the district court's dismissal and denial of postjudgment motions intact.
The Fourth Circuit dismissed Yu Hin Chan's appeal because he failed to file specific objections to the magistrate judge's recommendation after receiving proper notice. This failure forfeited his right to appellate review of the district court's dismissal for failure to state a claim.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a plaintiff's Bivens claim, ruling that the complaint failed to allege sufficient facts to establish a cognizable constitutional violation. The court further held that the U.S. Attorneys involved were protected by absolute prosecutorial immunity from liability.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court ruling upholding Rock Hill, South Carolina's short-term rental regulations. The court held that the plaintiff lacked standing to assert his guests' constitutional rights and that the city's zoning rules satisfied rational basis review.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit dismissed an appeal filed by a Texas prisoner due to the untimely filing of a notice of appeal. The court held that the timely filing of a notice of appeal is a jurisdictional requirement that was not met in this case.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment against Faline Arnold's employment discrimination and leave claims. The court found no reversible error in the lower court's adoption of the magistrate judge's recommendation after reviewing the record de novo.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a Title VII religious accommodation claim because the plaintiff failed to prove extraordinary circumstances excused her failure to meet the 90-day administrative exhaustion deadline. The court also upheld the dismissal of state law fraud and punitive damages claims due to insufficient pleading particularity and the absence of a freestanding cause of action under North Carolina law.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a voting rights complaint, ruling that the plaintiff failed to demonstrate the concrete and particularized injury required for Article III standing. The court held that the alleged harms were conjectural rather than actual or imminent, rendering the claims non-justiciable.
