Topic
Every decision we've filed under Supervised Release.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a fifty-four-year prison sentence for a defendant convicted of producing and possessing child sexual abuse material. The court held that the district court did not abuse its discretion in weighing the need to protect the public over the defendant's history of abuse.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court's sentence revoking supervised release for a defendant who violated terms by using controlled substances and committing new offenses. The court found the sentence procedurally and substantively reasonable under established precedent.
The Third Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a federal prisoner's habeas motion, ruling that a claim based on a new Supreme Court precedent was not novel enough to excuse procedural default. The court held that the legal basis for the argument was reasonably available to the defendant at the time of his plea.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a felon-in-possession sentence but vacated part of the judgment due to a discrepancy between the oral pronouncement and written judgment. The court held that the realistic probability test remains applicable to state drug convictions despite recent Supreme Court rulings.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed a conviction for possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute, ruling that the defendant forfeited his challenge to the exclusion of video recordings. Because the defendant failed to preserve the evidentiary issue under Federal Rule of Evidence 106, the court applied a plain error standard and found no manifest injustice.
The Tenth Circuit affirmed the denial of habeas relief because the petitioner failed to prove he actually earned First Step Act time credits through qualifying programming. The court held that without evidence of successful participation in assigned programs, a prisoner cannot establish entitlement to credit adjustments.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed Julius Augillard's 70-month sentence, ruling that his prior state conviction qualified as a controlled substance offense under the realistic probability test. However, the court vacated part of the judgment because the district court failed to orally pronounce a discretionary supervised release condition that appeared in the written order.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed an 18-month supervised release revocation sentence, applying a deferential abuse-of-discretion standard to the district court's decision. The court held that the sentence was procedurally and substantively reasonable given the defendant's repeated violations and the district court's adequate explanation of its reasoning.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed a 121-month prison sentence for a large-scale drug trafficker, ruling the district court properly exercised its discretion to impose an above-Guidelines sentence. The court found no procedural or substantive unreasonableness in the sentence, which was based on the defendant's leadership role and the extraordinary volume of drugs involved.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed Julius Augillard's 70-month sentence for felon in possession of a firearm, rejecting his challenges to the sentencing guidelines' application of the realistic probability test and the firearm enhancement. However, the court vacated the judgment in part because the district court failed to orally pronounce a discretionary supervised release condition that was later added to the written judgment.