Topic
Every decision we've filed under Constitutional.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit dismissed an appeal by a South Carolina pretrial detainee seeking relief under the habeas corpus statute. The court found that the petitioner failed to make a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right required to obtain a certificate of appealability.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the denial of a federal prisoner's motion for compassionate release. The court held that the defendant failed to demonstrate extraordinary and compelling reasons warranting a sentence reduction under the First Step Act.
The Tenth Circuit denied a certificate of appealability in a state-prisoner habeas case dismissed as untimely. The court held that the petition was filed years after the federal one-year deadline and that neither statutory nor equitable tolling made the timeliness ruling reasonably debatable.
The Fifth Circuit vacated a district court dismissal of a habeas petition because the petitioner named the wrong respondent. The court held that the proper respondent in a habeas action must be the person who has actual custody over the petitioner.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed dismissal of Red Rover Group's constitutional and related claims over Bossier City's barking noise ordinances. The court held the complaint did not plausibly allege an equal protection violation, the ordinances were not unconstitutionally vague, and the remaining claims failed without an underlying constitutional violation.
The Seventh Circuit held that an Indiana child-molesting conviction qualifies as a prior state conviction "relating to aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse, or abusive sexual conduct involving a minor or ward" under 18 U.S.C. Section 2252A(b)(2), triggering the ten-year mandatory minimum for Schatz's federal child-pornography conviction.
The Fourth Circuit dismissed Marcus L. Dixon's appeal regarding his habeas corpus petition. The court denied a certificate of appealability, finding no substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit denied a petition for writ of mandamus filed by Zannie Jay Lotharp. The court found the petition moot following the district court's denial of Lotharp's motion for relief under federal law.
The Fourth Circuit denied Curtis Watson's petition for a writ of mandamus. The court found the petition moot as the magistrate judge had already acted on Watson's motions.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of Davonta Brogdon's motion to suppress evidence. The court found no reversible error in the determination of reasonable suspicion and probable cause.