Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of a motion to suppress. The court held that an unconditional guilty plea waives nonjurisdictional defects, including challenges to the validity of a search.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of Leroy Donnell Dixon, Sr.'s motion for compassionate release. The appellate court found no abuse of discretion in the lower court's analysis of Dixon's health conditions under the statutory requirements.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the denial of Denzil Stewart's motion for a new trial based on newly discovered evidence. The court held that the proffered evidence was merely cumulative impeachment that would not have altered the outcome given the overwhelming physical and testimonial proof of guilt.
The Fourth Circuit dismissed John Anthony Michael Williams's appeal for lack of jurisdiction because he filed his notice of appeal more than two years after the deadline. The court held that the 30-day filing requirement for civil appeals is a strict jurisdictional limit that cannot be extended without a specific district court order.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a 24-month federal sentence for illegal reentry ordered to run consecutively to an undischarged state sentence for child sex abuse. The court held that the district court properly weighed the need to punish unrelated conduct and did not abuse its discretion in rejecting the defendant's arguments for a concurrent sentence.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court order denying a motion for sentence reduction. The appellate court found no error in the lower court's application of the relevant legal factors.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed Larry Neel's conviction for felon possession of firearms, ruling that his constitutional challenges raised for the first time on appeal did not constitute plain error. The court held that the district court acted within its discretion during the suppression hearing and that binding precedent forecloses Neel's Second Amendment argument.
The Fourth Circuit dismissed Xavier Milton Earquhart's federal habeas appeal because he failed to make the requisite substantial showing that reasonable jurists could debate the district court's denial of constitutional relief. The court independently reviewed the record and found no debatable constitutional claims or procedural errors warranting further review.
The Eleventh Circuit vacated a federal dismissal order and remanded with instructions to dismiss without prejudice, clarifying that the Rooker-Feldman doctrine does not bar claims for damages against private parties in state court proceedings. The court held that the plaintiff's federal claims were wholly insubstantial because they lacked a plausible foundation in federal law and did not involve state action.
The Fourth Circuit denied a certificate of appealability and dismissed Timothy Bullock's appeal of his dismissed habeas petition because he failed to make a substantial showing that reasonable jurists could debate the district court's procedural ruling. The court held that Bullock's informal brief was insufficient to preserve any issues for review, resulting in the immediate termination of the appellate proceeding.
