Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit issued an errata sheet to amend its opinion in this civil appeal. The court corrected specific textual errors regarding claims, statutory references, and party descriptions within the original June 11 decision.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a district court's imposition of a special condition prohibiting a defendant convicted of child pornography offenses from having contact with animals inside her home. The court held that the condition was reasonably related to the defendant's offense conduct and did not constitute an abuse of discretion.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court's resentencing of a defendant convicted of firing at military sites. The appellate court held that the defendant forfeited his primary legal arguments by failing to object at the sentencing hearing and that the remaining challenges lacked merit under the applicable standards of review.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit affirmed the conviction and sentence of Gregory Miller for producing child pornography. The court held that the district court properly denied Miller's motion to withdraw his guilty plea and imposed a thirty-year sentence.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted a motion by the Federal Public Defender to withdraw from representing Cheri Ann Palmer. The court dismissed the appeal after finding no nonfrivolous issues for appellate review.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed the convictions of three doctors for operating a pill mill that prescribed controlled substances without legitimate medical purpose. The court rejected challenges regarding evidence sufficiency, evidentiary rulings, and jury instructions, finding no reversible error.
The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed a criminal sentence despite finding the government breached a plea agreement. The court held that the breach did not affect the outcome because the district court provided independent reasons for the upward variance.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit vacated a district court dismissal based on the statute of limitations in a product liability case. The court held that the Texas Savings Statute applies to multiple suits dismissed for lack of personal jurisdiction.
The Ninth Circuit reversed a district court's dismissal of a negligence claim arising from an accident at a church. The appellate court held that factual disputes regarding breach and causation precluded resolution on a motion to dismiss.
The Sixth Circuit reversed a district court ruling that had asserted personal jurisdiction over Florida-based defendants in a civil RICO suit filed in Michigan. The appellate court held that convenience factors alone cannot satisfy the statutory requirement that the ends of justice necessitate litigation in a forum where defendants lack minimum contacts.
