Topic
Every decision we've filed under Drug Trafficking.
The Third Circuit vacated a two-week sentence for a felon-in-possession of a firearm, ruling it procedurally and substantively unreasonable. The court held that the District Court failed to adequately address sentencing guidelines and the need for deterrence given the defendant's extensive drug violations during pretrial release.
The First Circuit vacated a defendant's sentence for firearm possession by a prohibited person due to reliance on an invalid rationale. The court affirmed the defendant's supervised release revocation sentence because he waived his challenges to that ruling.
The First Circuit vacated a defendant's sentence for firearm possession by a prohibited person due to reliance on an invalid rationale. The court affirmed the defendant's supervised release revocation sentence because he waived his challenges to that ruling.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the conviction and twenty-year sentence of Anthony Blair, rejecting multiple challenges to the sufficiency of evidence and the legality of digital forensics. The court held that the government proved Blair's guilty knowledge through his recruitment scheme and financial gains, and that the warrantless passcode guess did not violate the Fourth Amendment.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the denial of Denzil Stewart's motion for a new trial based on newly discovered evidence. The court held that the proffered evidence was merely cumulative impeachment that would not have altered the outcome given the overwhelming physical and testimonial proof of guilt.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed Larry Neel's conviction for felon possession of firearms, ruling that his constitutional challenges raised for the first time on appeal did not constitute plain error. The court held that the district court acted within its discretion during the suppression hearing and that binding precedent forecloses Neel's Second Amendment argument.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the denial of Denzil Stewart's motion for a new trial based on newly discovered evidence. The court held that the evidence merely constituted cumulative impeachment of a cooperating witness and was insufficient to likely change the trial's outcome given the overwhelming proof of guilt.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed Kenric W. Young's conviction and 322-month sentence, finding no plain error in the district court's denial of his suppression motion or its career offender classification. The court held that the officer's reasonable suspicion to conduct a pat-down was supported by the totality of circumstances, including flight and a visible bulge, and that Young failed to prove a realistic probability that his prior state conviction would not qualify as a predicate offense.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a district court's acceptance of a guilty plea and its denial of motions to withdraw it. The court held that the defendant knowingly and voluntarily pleaded guilty despite later claiming he was misled about sentencing consequences.
The Fifth Circuit reversed Elijah Martin's convictions under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), holding the statute unconstitutional as applied to him because his predicate offenses were simple drug possession. The court found the government failed to demonstrate a sufficient historical tradition for disarming individuals based on non-violent drug possession under the Bruen test.