Correspondent
Federal courthouse correspondent, covers civil rights, employment discrimination, housing rights, and Second Amendment disputes.
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 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.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the City of Rock Hill, ruling that a short-term rental host lacks standing to assert the constitutional rights of his transient guests. The court further held that the city's zoning regulations limiting short-term rentals are a valid exercise of traditional police power subject only to rational basis review.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court order dismissing a complaint alleging violations of federal constitutional and Maryland election laws. The court found no reversible error in the lower court's ruling.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of asylum and Convention Against Torture claims because the petitioners failed to submit required biometrics despite sixteen months of notice. The court held that the Immigration Judge did not abuse his discretion in deeming the applications abandoned and rejected due process arguments regarding legal assistance.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court dismissal of a Title VII claim alleging failure to accommodate religious beliefs. The appellate court found no reversible error in the lower court's determination that the plaintiff failed to meet the statutory time limit for filing her claim.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a citizen suit under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, ruling that state agency heads lacked the required 'fairly direct' connection to alleged hazardous waste violations to overcome Eleventh Amendment immunity. The court held that general supervisory roles over agencies causing pollution are insufficient to subject officials to suit under the Ex parte Young exception.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court order granting summary judgment in an employment discrimination case. The appellate court found no reversible error in the lower court's decision to dismiss the plaintiff's claims under federal civil rights statutes.
