Topic
Every decision we've filed under Firearms.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a criminal sentence despite a challenge to the denial of a sentencing reduction. The court held that any error in declining the reduction was harmless because the district court would have imposed the same sentence regardless.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the convictions of a noncitizen for unlawful firearm possession, false statements, and silencer violations, rejecting Second Amendment challenges based on binding precedent.
The Eighth Circuit reversed a felon-in-possession conviction because the district court erred by admitting an anonymous tip that violated the defendant's Confrontation Clause rights. The court held that the error was not harmless given the evidence's direct relevance to the disputed element of possession.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit dismissed an appeal seeking early termination of supervised release as moot. The dismissal occurred because the defendant's original supervised release terms expired while the appeal was pending.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed a conviction and sentence for a felon in possession of a firearm. The court held that while the district court erred by not submitting the different-occasions finding to a jury, the error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the denial of a motion to suppress evidence found during a traffic stop. The court held that the stop was constitutionally permissible based on a red-light violation and that the defendant had voluntarily consented to a frisk.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the conviction of a defendant for possessing a firearm after a felony conviction. The court held that the defendant's constitutional challenges to the federal statute were foreclosed by existing circuit precedent.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed a within-Guidelines-range sentence for a defendant who pleaded guilty to a firearm offense. The court rejected arguments that the district court erred in applying a cross-reference for attempted murder or in imposing a substantively unreasonable sentence.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held that district courts possess inherent authority to set and enforce deadlines for the government to file a notice of intent to seek the death penalty. The court further ruled that territorial offenses from the Virgin Islands qualify as predicate crimes of violence under federal firearm statutes.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the conviction of a defendant who pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a machinegun. The court held that the defendant failed to demonstrate plain error regarding the sufficiency of the plea colloquy and advisement on forfeiture and special assessments.