Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted a motion to withdraw filed by the Federal Public Defender. The court dismissed the appeal after finding no nonfrivolous issues for review.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit denied a certificate of appealability to a state prisoner challenging the timeliness of his federal habeas petition. The court found the petitioner failed to demonstrate that reasonable jurists would debate the district court's procedural ruling that his claim was time-barred.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a criminal sentence involving drug distribution. The court rejected the defendant's argument regarding a sentencing enhancement for maintaining a premises.
The Fourth Circuit dismissed Deanna Sharp's appeal from a district court order denying her habeas petition because she filed her notice of appeal past the mandatory thirty-day deadline. The court held that strict adherence to the filing period is a jurisdictional requirement, leaving the appellate court without authority to hear the case.
The First Circuit vacated a defendant's sentence for firearm possession by a prohibited person due to reliance on an invalid rationale. The court affirmed the defendant's supervised release revocation sentence because he waived his challenges to that ruling.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit dismissed an appeal filed by a state prisoner seeking to challenge a district court order. The court held that the order denying a motion to disqualify a judge was not a final or appealable interlocutory order.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit dismissed an appeal from a district court order denying a habeas corpus petition. The court held that the petitioner forfeited his right to appellate review by failing to file specific objections to a magistrate judge's recommendation.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court order denying a defendant's motion for compassionate release. The appellate court found no abuse of discretion in the lower court's determination that the defendant failed to establish extraordinary and compelling reasons for release.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the conviction and twenty-year sentence of Anthony Blair, rejecting multiple challenges to the sufficiency of evidence and the legality of digital forensics. The court held that the government proved Blair's guilty knowledge through his recruitment scheme and financial gains, and that the warrantless passcode guess did not violate the Fourth Amendment.
The Fourth Circuit denied a certificate of appealability and dismissed Kevin M. Lydon's appeal because he failed to demonstrate that the district court's procedural dismissal was debatable. Consequently, the prisoner is barred from further appellate review of the untimeliness ruling.
