Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The Fourth Circuit dismissed a prisoner's appeal because he failed to obtain a certificate of appealability. The court held that the prisoner did not make a substantial showing that reasonable jurists could find the district court's procedural ruling debatable or wrong.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted a motion to withdraw counsel and dismissed the appeal. The court found that the appointed attorney properly filed a brief under Anders v. California showing no nonfrivolous issues for review.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed Brandon Byner's 540-month sentence for producing and possessing child sexual abuse material, ruling that the district court did not abuse its discretion. The appellate court held that the severity of the crimes and the need to protect vulnerable victims justified the lengthy term despite the defendant's history of abuse.
The Fourth Circuit denied a certificate of appealability and dismissed Tony Bryan Smith's habeas appeal because he failed to meet the statutory requirements for challenging a procedural dismissal. The court found that Smith did not demonstrate that the district court's ruling on the successive nature of his petition was debatable or that he substantially showed a denial of a constitutional right.
The Fifth Circuit dismissed the defendant's appeal regarding a final forfeiture order due to lack of standing. The court affirmed the district court's denial of a sentence reduction motion because the defendant was sentenced after the relevant sentencing guideline amendment took effect.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the drug conspiracy and possession convictions of Philip Beck, Florence Beck, and Joshua Martinez, rejecting challenges to evidence admission and sentencing. The court held that the defendants' confrontation and evidentiary objections were either unpreserved or lacked merit under controlling precedent.
The Fourth Circuit dismissed an appeal by a federal prisoner because he failed to demonstrate that reasonable jurists could find the district court's denial of his habeas claims debatable. Without a certificate of appealability, the district court's order denying relief under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 remains in full effect.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a forty-eight-month prison sentence for a defendant convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States. The court held that the district court acted within its discretion by imposing an upward variance based on the defendant's defiance of federal court orders and his central role in a large-scale tax fraud scheme.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court's sentence revoking supervised release for a defendant who violated terms by using controlled substances and committing new offenses. The court found the sentence procedurally and substantively reasonable under established precedent.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed a conviction for possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute, ruling that the defendant forfeited his challenge to the exclusion of video recordings. Because the defendant failed to preserve the evidentiary issue under Federal Rule of Evidence 106, the court applied a plain error standard and found no manifest injustice.
