Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a federal prisoner's petition challenging delays in medical treatment. The court held that such claims regarding conditions of confinement are not cognizable under the habeas statute.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a sentence for the receipt of child sexual abuse material. The court held that any error in applying a sentencing enhancement was harmless given the record.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's judgment revoking supervised release and imposing a ten-month prison sentence. The court held that the defendant's constitutional challenge to the statute was foreclosed by binding precedent.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a sixty-month prison sentence for a defendant convicted of escaping custody. The court rejected challenges to the sentencing guidelines calculation and the substantive reasonableness of the term imposed.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a twenty-three-five-month prison sentence for drug conspiracy. The court rejected the defendant's challenge to an importation enhancement and dismissed his argument regarding the enforceability of his plea agreement waiver.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed the conviction of a defendant who challenged a search warrant based on probable cause and alleged police misrepresentation. The court held that even if the warrant lacked probable cause, the officers acted in good faith reliance on the warrant, saving the search under the good-faith exception.
The First Circuit affirmed the conviction of Dimitri McKenzie for attempted sex trafficking of a child, clarifying that the mens rea requirement is satisfied by either actual belief or reckless disregard regarding the victim's age, even when no actual minor is involved.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed a sixty-month prison sentence for a felon in possession of a firearm, rejecting the defendant's claim that the sentence was substantively unreasonable. The court held that the district court properly weighed the statutory factors and did not abuse its discretion in granting an upward variance based on the defendant's history of violent conduct.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed the district court's imposition of a prison sentence following the fourth revocation of supervised release for a defendant with a history of repeated violations.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed a sentence enhancement for a felon in possession of a firearm. The court held that an Arkansas second-degree battery conviction qualified as a violent felony under federal law.
