Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's sentence for illegal reentry and the consecutive term of supervised release. The court found no plain error in the district court's explanation of its sentencing decision.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the sentence imposed on Edgar Julian Antunez-Perez for illegal reentry and the consecutive term following supervised release revocation. The court found no plain error in the district court's explanation for consecutive sentences or its imposition of supervised release on a deportable alien.
The First Circuit affirmed the denial of a motion to reduce a life sentence under the First Step Act. The court held that the district court did not abuse its discretion in weighing the defendant's heinous criminal record against his rehabilitative efforts.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the conviction and sentence of a defendant who pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm after a felony conviction. The court rejected the defendant's arguments regarding sentencing guidelines and constitutional challenges to the statute.
The Eleventh Circuit granted appointed counsel's motion to withdraw under Anders v. California after an independent review found no arguable issues of merit. The court affirmed the defendant's conviction and sentence.
The Sixth Circuit reversed a district court denial of a preliminary injunction, ruling that a school board president violated the First Amendment by silencing a speaker. The court found the board engaged in viewpoint discrimination and ratified a heckler's veto by cutting off the speaker's microphone in response to crowd hostility.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed a conviction for threatening a federal official, finding sufficient evidence that a voicemail constituted a true threat. The court also held that the district court's jury instructions on the required mental state were not plainly erroneous.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted a motion by appointed counsel to withdraw from representing Gustavo Armando Amaya. The court dismissed the appeal after finding no nonfrivolous issues for review.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the sentence of Jeffrey Gray for possession of child pornography and sexual exploitation of a minor. The court rejected Gray's arguments regarding sentencing enhancements and supervised release conditions.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the denial of a federal prisoner's motion for compassionate release. The court held that the defendant failed to demonstrate extraordinary and compelling reasons warranting a sentence reduction under the First Step Act.
