Every decision we've summarized from United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed Richard Price's conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm, rejecting his Second Amendment challenge to the indictment. The court further held that Price's prior Arkansas convictions properly supported an enhanced base offense level under the sentencing guidelines.
The United States Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Eighth Circuit dismissed an appeal because the document being challenged was not a court order. The court held that an appointment of a trustee made by the U.S. Trustee is not a final judgment or decree of the bankruptcy court subject to appeal.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the revocation of Anthony Brown's supervised release after finding he committed assault and violated a no-contact order. The court upheld the district court's 11-month prison sentence, concluding the government met its burden of proof under the applicable legal standards.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed Jimmy Clyde Timberlake's conviction and 180-month sentence for felon in possession of a firearm and drug trafficking offenses. The court rejected challenges regarding the admission of a non-testifying witness's statement and the use of a prior drug-trafficking conviction, finding no reversible error in the district court's proceedings.
The Eighth Circuit vacated a district court's dismissal of a prisoner's civil rights action for failure to pay an initial filing fee, ruling that such dismissal constitutes an abuse of discretion when the inmate lacks available funds. The court held that the Prison Litigation Reform Act prohibits barring civil actions solely due to indigence when no assets exist to satisfy the fee requirement.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the revocation of Kevin Adams's supervised release and the imposition of a 22-month prison sentence. The court found no abuse of discretion, holding that the district court properly considered relevant factors and accorded a presumption of substantive reasonableness to the sentence within the Guidelines range.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment in a pro se Federal Tort Claims Act action alleging medical negligence. The court held that under Arkansas law, the plaintiff failed to provide the necessary expert testimony to establish the standard of care and proximate cause for his alleged medical injury.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed Oscar Navarro-Zepeda's conviction and 204-month sentence for drug trafficking and firearm possession. The court held that the defendant's waiver of Federal Rule of Evidence 410 allowed the government to use plea stipulations against him after he contradicted them during the change-of-plea hearing.
The Eighth Circuit dismissed the appeal because the defendant's valid plea agreement waived her right to challenge the sentence. The court further held that she could not challenge the voluntariness of her guilty plea on direct appeal without first moving to withdraw the plea in the district court.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's revocation of Cody Ray Leveke's supervised release and its imposition of a within-Guidelines prison term. The court held that the lower court did not clearly err in finding a mental health treatment violation and did not abuse its discretion in weighing sentencing factors.