Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed a forty-month sentence for transporting aliens, rejecting claims that the district court failed to properly apply the advisory Sentencing Guidelines. The court held that the judge adequately explained the upward variance and considered statutory factors without committing procedural error.
The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed Ronald Shaw's appeal because he failed to obtain a required certificate of appealability. The court found that Shaw did not make a substantial showing that the district court's denial of his habeas motion was debatable or wrong.
The D.C. Circuit vacated Calvin Smith's life sentences for drug conspiracy and racketeering, finding the drug sentence exceeded statutory limits and the racketeering sentence lacked required factual findings. The court also vacated a felony murder conviction on double jeopardy grounds and remanded the case for a new sentencing hearing.
The Fourth Circuit held that individuals maintain a reasonable expectation of privacy in files stored in private cloud-based accounts, requiring law enforcement to obtain a warrant before searching them. Although the court found the warrantless search of the defendant's Google Drive files unconstitutional, it affirmed the conviction because the evidence was sufficiently attenuated from the illegal search.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed a 84-month prison sentence for a felon in possession of a firearm, rejecting claims that the district court committed procedural error or imposed a substantively unreasonable sentence on remand. The court held that the judge properly relied on the defendant's boastful jail call and extensive criminal history to justify an above-Guidelines sentence, even after agreeing that evidence was insufficient to prove he fired a weapon.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed Mohammed Al-Abadi's twenty-four-month prison sentence for trafficking in counterfeit airbags and recklessly transporting hazardous materials. The court rejected Al-Abadi's challenge to the sentence's reasonableness, finding the district court properly calculated the Guidelines range and applied special supervised release conditions.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed the denial of Robert Smith's motion to suppress evidence found during a search of his home, ruling that the warrant affidavit contained sufficient probable cause. The court held that detailed, first-hand accounts from non-anonymous informants, who admitted to purchasing drugs from Smith, provided a substantial basis for the magistrate judge to issue the warrant.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed Denico Hudson's 108-month sentence for distributing machinegun conversion devices to gang members involved in shootings and drug trafficking. The court rejected Hudson's arguments that the district court erred in applying sentencing enhancements for the quantity of devices sold and their connection to other felonies.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed an 84-month prison sentence for a convicted felon who illegally possessed firearms and ammunition. The court rejected the defendant's arguments that his sentence was procedurally or substantively unreasonable, finding the district court properly applied sentencing enhancements and weighed mitigating factors.
The Eleventh Circuit granted appointed counsel's motion to withdraw from representing LaRonce Howell after an independent review found no arguable issues for appeal. The court affirmed Howell's conviction and sentence based on this assessment.
