Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of a motion for compassionate release filed by Matthew Darnell Pittman. The appellate court found no abuse of discretion in the lower court's conclusion that Pittman failed to establish extraordinary and compelling reasons for sentence reduction.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the conviction of Antonio Dixson for drug trafficking and firearm offenses. The court held that a law enforcement officer with specialized experience may testify as an expert on general drug trafficking practices without being an active participant in the specific investigation.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted a motion by appointed counsel to withdraw from representing the defendant. The court dismissed the appeal after finding no nonfrivolous issues for appellate review.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed in part and vacated in part the supervised release conditions imposed on a defendant convicted of child pornography offenses. The court found that two conditions restricting proximity to children were constitutional but struck down a condition prohibiting possession of adult sexual materials as overbroad.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a district court's grant of summary judgment in a products liability and premises liability case involving a tanker trailer accident. The court held that the general contractor lacked knowledge of a dangerous condition and that the trailer manufacturer had no duty to warn trained commercial drivers of obvious risks.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted a motion by the Federal Public Defender to withdraw from representing the defendant. The court dismissed the appeal after finding no nonfrivolous issues for appellate review.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a district court ruling that a post-release supervision violator must exhaust administrative remedies before filing a civil rights lawsuit. The court held that the plaintiff qualified as a prisoner under the Prison Litigation Reform Act while detained for a probation violation.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the sentence imposed on a defendant convicted of illegal reentry into the United States. The court rejected arguments that the district court failed to provide sufficient reasons for the sentence or that the sentence was substantively unreasonable.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a thirty-six-month sentence for illegal reentry after the appellant conceded his constitutional challenge was foreclosed by Supreme Court precedent. The court granted the government's motion for summary affirmance, rejecting the argument that the sentencing enhancement is unconstitutional.
The Seventh Circuit reversed a district court injunction that had blocked Illinois from enforcing its ban on assault weapons and large-capacity magazines. The appellate court held that these restrictions are consistent with the Nation's historical tradition of firearm regulation under the Second Amendment.
