Correspondent
Capitol Hill correspondent, covers legislative and political stories.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a drug trafficking sentence where the district court's initial oral pronouncement exceeded the statutory maximum. The court held that a lawful written judgment controls over an oral pronouncement that violates the plain language of the statute.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed Robert Charles Kay's conviction for possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute. The court held that the warrantless search of Kay's vehicle was constitutional under the plain view doctrine and the automobile exception to the Fourth Amendment.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of Phosavan Khamnivong's motion to vacate his sentence, ruling that the district judge did not abuse his discretion by declining to recuse himself. The court held that the judge's minimal contacts with a witness were insufficient to cause a reasonable person to question his impartiality.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed Amos Christolin's drug trafficking convictions, rejecting his claim that his ambiguous statement in Haitian Creole constituted an unequivocal invocation of his right to remain silent. The court further held that the district court's admission of an agent's translations did not violate the Confrontation Clause under plain error review.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed an 87-month sentence for a convicted felon found in possession of a firearm, ruling that the district court properly applied sentencing guidelines and did not abuse its discretion. The court also remanded the case solely to correct a clerical error in the judgment document that incorrectly cited the Armed Career Criminal Act.
The Eleventh Circuit dismissed Wilfredo Moreno Ferrer's appeal as moot because he completed his term of imprisonment. The court held that without a live sentence to reduce, there is no continuing injury to support Article III jurisdiction.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a 180-month sentence for attempted coercion of a minor, ruling that the district court did not commit plain error by failing to expressly recite the Sentencing Guideline range. The court held that judges retain discretion to weigh statutory factors and are not required to explicitly discuss each factor or the specific guideline calculation on the record.
The Eleventh Circuit vacated Jason Edward Lopez's sentence because the district court miscalculated his advisory guideline range by applying only a one-level acceptance-of-responsibility reduction when he was entitled to two. The court held that this miscalculation was reversible error rather than harmless because the district court failed to clearly state it would have imposed the same sentence regardless of the error.
The Eleventh Circuit summarily affirmed Eibe Scott's conviction for felon-in-possession, rejecting his Second Amendment challenges as foreclosed by binding precedent. The court held that its prior decision in United States v. Rozier remains controlling law despite recent Supreme Court rulings.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed the denial of Matthew Sheehan's motion to suppress evidence, ruling that police possessed reasonable suspicion to stop his vehicle based on corroborated informant tips and cell-site data. The court held that the totality of the circumstances supported the inference that Sheehan was engaged in an ongoing drug trafficking operation.
