Topic
Every decision we've filed under Criminal.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of RICO claims against tribal officials in their official capacities, ruling that tribal sovereign immunity remains intact for such suits. However, the court reversed the dismissal of Indian Gaming Regulatory Act claims, holding that Congress expressly abrogated tribal immunity for these specific statutory violations.
The Fifth Circuit dismissed an appeal challenging a sentencing enhancement because the defendant's plea agreement contained a valid waiver of that right. The court found the waiver's plain language covered the specific firearm possession circumstances at issue.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the denial of Joseph Gray Jr.'s motion for compassionate release, ruling that he failed to demonstrate a nonretroactive change in law affecting his culpability. The court further held that Gray did not satisfy the statutory requirement of having served at least ten years of his sentence.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed Sandra Iribhogbe Popnen's 325-month sentence for fraud and money laundering, rejecting her challenges to loss calculations and sentencing guidelines reductions. The court held that the district court properly attributed co-conspirator losses and correctly denied a reduction for acceptance of responsibility.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the denial of a federal prisoner's motion to reduce his sentence, holding that Amendment 821 to the Sentencing Guidelines provided no relief because no status points were assessed at his original sentencing. The court further determined that the defendant abandoned arguments regarding Part B of the amendment and procedural errors, leaving only a claim subject to plain error review which failed.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a sentence for illegal reentry, rejecting a constitutional challenge to a statutory enhancement because the argument is foreclosed by Supreme Court precedent. The court granted the Government's motion for summary affirmance without oral argument, leaving the district court's judgment intact.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a 21-month sentence for illegal reentry, holding that the district court provided sufficient reasons for its within-guidelines ruling. The court applied plain error review to the defendant's forfeited procedural challenge and found no reversible error.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of claims against city officials for failing to state a claim due to insufficient factual specificity regarding municipal liability. However, the court vacated the dismissal against county officials, ruling that the complaint sufficiently alleged malicious prosecution and failure to train under qualified immunity standards.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed a defendant's resentencing, rejecting her claim that the increased sentence resulted from judicial vindictiveness. The court held that because a different judge imposed the new sentence, the presumption of retaliatory motivation does not apply, and the defendant failed to prove actual animus.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed a 96-month sentence for a felon in possession of ammunition, ruling that any error in applying a sentencing enhancement was harmless. The court held that the district court would have imposed the same sentence based on statutory factors regardless of the disputed Guidelines calculation.