Every decision we've summarized from United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed a district court ruling that unexercised, future rights under a floating easement for a natural gas pipeline are not fixed to a specific location under Indiana law. The court declined to certify the question to the Indiana Supreme Court, concluding that existing state law provides sufficient certainty on the issue.
The Seventh Circuit reversed a district court's grant of habeas relief, holding that the Wisconsin Court of Appeals reasonably applied federal standards in rejecting a defendant's claims regarding excluded evidence and ineffective assistance of counsel. The appellate court found that the state court's decision was not an unreasonable application of Supreme Court precedent under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act.
The Seventh Circuit held that the Internal Revenue Service may assess and collect criminal restitution as a civil tax liability under 26 U.S.C. § 6201(a)(4)(A), even when doing so accelerates payment beyond the original criminal sentencing schedule. The court affirmed the Tax Court's rejection of the taxpayer's challenge, ruling that Congress intended to empower the IRS to enforce restitution for tax-related crimes to ensure full recovery of Treasury losses.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed the denial of Chong Lee's habeas corpus petition, holding that while the State of Wisconsin likely violated his due process rights by failing to disclose and intentionally destroying evidence, the state court's chosen remedy was not an unreasonable application of federal law. The court emphasized that although the State's conduct undermined foundational justice principles, the petitioner failed to meet the high bar required under AEDPA to overturn the state court's decision.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed Tommie L. Haney's sentence, finding no clear error in the district court's application of a two-level sentencing enhancement for possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug conspiracy. The court held that intercepted communications and DNA evidence supported the finding that Haney possessed the weapon, and his alternative theories were either waived or insufficient to rebut the presumption of furtherance.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed Charles Denton's conviction for possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, ruling that the gun's proximity to his drug operation was sufficient to establish the required legal nexus. The court rejected Denton's argument that the weapon was merely stored in a closet and not connected to his drug sales.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed a jury verdict for police officers in a Section 1983 civil rights case, upholding the legality of a traffic stop and arrest. The court rejected the plaintiff's arguments that jury instructions were legally erroneous and that a new trial was warranted due to witness testimony inconsistencies.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed Adam Power's conviction and sixty-year sentence for thirty-four counts of child pornography offenses. The court rejected claims that the district court lacked a factual basis for the pleas and found the sentence substantively reasonable given the heinous nature of the crimes.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed the denial of Social Security disability benefits for Laurie Yokosh, ruling that the Administrative Law Judge properly discounted the opinion of her treating psychologist. The court held that the ALJ provided well-supported reasons for finding inconsistencies between the psychologist's conclusions and the broader medical record.
The Seventh Circuit reversed a district court order confirming an arbitration award because the arbitrator failed to conduct a mandatory post-award review of punitive damages. The court held that ignoring express contractual terms regarding this review procedure constituted an excess of authority rather than a permissible interpretation of the agreement.