Every decision we've summarized from United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed Xavion Watts's conviction and ten-year sentence for possession of a machinegun, finding no procedural or substantive error in the district court's sentencing decision. The court also rejected Watts's unpreserved constitutional challenges to the federal machinegun ban under the Second Amendment and Commerce Clause.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's dismissal of Northside Pharmacy's challenge to the DEA's suspension of its registration. The court held that the administrative record supported the agency's decision under the deferential standard of review required by the Administrative Procedure Act.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the revocation of Maurice Coleman's supervised release and his 18-month prison sentence. The court held that Coleman's constitutional challenge to 18 U.S.C. § 3583(g) is foreclosed by its prior decision in United States v. Garner.
The Fifth Circuit granted appointed counsel's motion to withdraw and dismissed the appeal after finding no nonfrivolous issues for review. The court simultaneously denied the defendant's separate motion to dismiss as moot, resolving the case by excusing counsel from further representation.
The Fifth Circuit denied the plaintiffs' motion to proceed in forma pauperis and dismissed their appeal as frivolous because their filings failed to present any nonfrivolous legal issues. This dismissal counts as a strike against prisoner Jeremy Allen under the Prison Litigation Reform Act's three-strikes rule.
The Fifth Circuit granted appointed counsel's motion to withdraw after an independent review found no nonfrivolous issues for appeal. The court dismissed the appeal, leaving the district court's judgment in effect.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed Dante Delray Vecera's conviction and sentence for possessing a firearm as a felon, rejecting all constitutional challenges to the statute. The court held that Vecera's facial, as-applied, and Commerce Clause arguments were foreclosed by binding precedent.
The Fifth Circuit granted the Federal Public Defender's motion to withdraw from representing Bennie Ferrell, Jr., after determining the appeal presented no nonfrivolous issues. The court dismissed the appeal without addressing the merits of the underlying criminal conviction.
The Fifth Circuit held that the federal prohibition on home distilling of consumable spirits violates the Constitution's Taxing and Necessary and Proper Clauses. However, the court reversed the district court's broad injunction, remanding the case for a narrower remedy that strikes only the unconstitutional provisions while preserving the statutory framework.