Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The Fourth Circuit vacated and remanded a district court order because the defendant filed a second or successive habeas petition without first obtaining appellate authorization. The court held that the district court lacked jurisdiction to consider the motion and denied the request to file the successive petition.
The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed an appeal from a federal prisoner's 28 U.S.C. § 2255 motion because the appellant failed to obtain a certificate of appealability. The court found that Holt did not make a substantial showing that the district court denied a constitutional right.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed the denial of a motion to suppress evidence of child pornography, ruling that officers had a reasonable belief the arrest suspect was inside the apartment. The court held that hearing movement inside and the suspect's unemployment status justified a forcible entry to execute an arrest warrant.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed a 420-month prison sentence for Dustin Newsome, rejecting his challenge to the application of multiple sentencing enhancements for child pornography offenses. The court held that the district court properly calculated the Guidelines range and that the sentence was substantively reasonable given the severity of the crimes.
The Tenth Circuit enforced an appeal waiver in a plea agreement, dismissing the defendant's appeal as frivolous after a thorough review. The court granted the government's motion to enforce the waiver and allowed appointed counsel to withdraw.
The Tenth Circuit denied Maurice Moore's application to file a second or successive habeas corpus petition because he failed to meet the strict statutory requirements of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act. The court held that Moore's claims did not rely on a new retroactive rule of constitutional law nor did they present previously undiscoverable facts establishing actual innocence.
The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals denied a certificate of appealability for Vincent H. Small's federal habeas petition challenging his state conviction for lewd molestation. The court held that no reasonable jurist could debate the state court's determination that the evidence was sufficient to support the conviction.
The Third Circuit affirmed Lekesha Hill's sixty-three-month sentence and restitution order, finding no error in the District Court's application of sentencing enhancements. The court held that the lower court correctly applied a two-level obstruction of justice enhancement and a sophisticated-means enhancement based on the facts of the case.
The Third Circuit summarily affirmed the denial of Nathaniel Coleman's petition for a writ of error coram nobis, ruling that his appeal failed to present a substantial question. The court held that Coleman could not use the writ to bypass the strict standards required for filing a second or successive habeas motion.
The Third Circuit affirmed Quaheem Bethea's 70-month sentence for felon-in-possession of a firearm, rejecting claims that the District Court failed to adequately consider his youth and impulse control. The court held that the sentencing judge's detailed discussion of Bethea's persistent criminal history satisfied the requirement to consider all relevant factors under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a).
