Every decision we've summarized from United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
The Fifth Circuit granted appointed counsel's motion to withdraw and dismissed the appeal after finding no nonfrivolous issues for review. However, the court declined to adjudicate the defendant's ineffective assistance claims on direct review due to an insufficient record.
The Fifth Circuit granted Louisiana's motion to stay the FDA's 2023 regulation allowing remote dispensing of mifepristone. The court held that the agency's admission of failing to study remote dispensing safety created irreparable harm that outweighed the public interest in maintaining the rule.
The Fifth Circuit denied the petition for rehearing en banc in Jamaion Wilson's machinegun possession case, leaving the panel's conviction intact. While nine judges acknowledged that existing circuit precedent may conflict with the Second Amendment, they ruled that the specific arguments raised in this appeal were procedurally insufficient to warrant a full court review.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a 42-month prison sentence for a defendant who brandished a knife while fleeing a Border Patrol agent. The court held that the district court did not clearly err in finding the defendant intended to cause bodily injury, not merely frighten the officer.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of State Farm Lloyds regarding insurance claims stemming from Hurricane Nicholas damage. The panel found no error in the lower court's determination that the insurer properly fulfilled its obligations and dismissed the plaintiff's procedural challenges.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the Benefits Review Board's award of permanent total disability benefits to a longshoreman, finding substantial evidence supported the lower tribunal's conclusion that the worker reached maximum medical improvement and could not return to the workforce. The court rejected the employer's arguments regarding alternative employment and job retraining, noting the employer failed to meet its burden of proof and forfeited the retraining argument.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of an inmate's Eighth Amendment claim regarding prison conditions, ruling that the complaint failed to allege personal involvement by the named officials. The court held that the plaintiff did not provide sufficient facts to demonstrate that the defendants were deliberately indifferent to a substantial risk of serious harm.
The Fifth Circuit dismissed the appeal of a former Texas prisoner seeking to challenge his conviction, ruling that his claims were untimely and failed to state a valid cause of action. The court held that the appellant's allegations of conspiracy and discrimination were conclusory and that he cannot raise new theories of relief for the first time on appeal.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for a vessel owner, holding that a longshoreman failed to provide sufficient evidence of a latent defect in a walkway railing. The court ruled that without proof the owner knew of the danger, the vessel did not breach its narrow safety duties under the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a 240-month statutory maximum sentence for child pornography possession, rejecting claims that the district court unreasonably weighed the defendant's prior sexual assault conviction. The court held that the district court properly considered the defendant's lack of remorse and the need to protect the public under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a).