Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit dismissed an appeal after appointed counsel filed a brief asserting no nonfrivolous issues existed. The court granted the motion to withdraw and denied the defendant's request to proceed pro se.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the sentence of a defendant convicted of traveling in interstate commerce to engage in a sexual act with a minor. The court rejected challenges to a sentencing enhancement for a vulnerable victim and a claim regarding conditional sentencing language.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed a district court order hospitalizing a defendant for a dangerousness evaluation after finding him incompetent and unrestorable for trial. The court reversed the portion of the order that directed a formal psychiatric examination and report, ruling that step was premature and beyond the district court's authority.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed the conviction and sentence of Sean Christopher Williams for manufacturing child pornography. The court rejected Williams's challenges regarding the admission of prior bad acts evidence, the sufficiency of evidence for interstate commerce, and the length of his within-Guidelines sentence.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's revocation of Devin Allen Wolfe's supervised release. The court held that Wolfe was barred from challenging the reimposed conditions and that the conditions were not erroneous on the merits.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit dismissed an appeal after appointed counsel filed a motion to withdraw under Anders v. California. The court agreed that the appeal presented no nonfrivolous issues for review.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a district court's decision to revoke supervised release and impose a twenty-four-month prison sentence. The appellate court found no plain error in the district court's consideration of sentencing factors.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed a condition of supervised release requiring substance abuse testing. The court found no plain error in the district court's imposition of the condition despite the defendant's lack of documented substance abuse.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit denied a petition for a writ of mandamus filed by Antonio Davis. The court found the petition moot because the district court had recently entered an order denying Davis's underlying motion.
The Sixth Circuit reversed a district court ruling that denied qualified immunity to jail officials in a death-in-custody case. The court held that the pretrial detainee's medical needs were not obvious to a layperson, so the officials did not violate clearly established law.
