In Nebraska, it doesn’t matter who you are, if you are injured on the job, you are eligible for Nebraska workers compensation. That’s the ruling of a Nebraska Court of Appeals, handed down Tuesday. The decision in this case, Visoso v. Cargill Meat Solutions, says that state workers comp includes everyone, even undocumented workers. Odilon Visoso was injured in May of 2006 on the job at Cargill, when a 100 lb....
Defendant’s child pornography conviction is affirmed where: 1) the evidence was sufficient for the district court to reasonably find, beyond a reasonable doubt, that defendant knowingly possessed the images of child pornography found on his computer; 2) the evidence was more than sufficient to support the district court’s finding that the images depicted real minors; and 3) the district court reasonably found that one or more of the twenty-seven images depicted sexually explicit conduct, and that defendant knew that fact based on his knowing possession of the images and his admissions when arrested....
Defendant’s drug and firearm convictions and sentence are affirmed where: 1) a rational jury could have found beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant exercised dominion and control over the drugs and firearm found in his apartment; and 2) 18 U.S.C. section 994(h) does not require a district court to remain within the Guidelines range in crack cocaine matters. Read US v. Michael, No. 07-2187 Appellate Information Argued: March 9, 2009...
In habeas proceedings arising from petitioner’s murder conviction, district court’s denial of relief is vacated and remanded as three of petitioner’s claims have not been properly exhausted because the claims were not fairly presented to the state courts. Read Wagner v. Smith, No. 07-2129 Appellate Information Argued: July 31, 2009 Decided and Filed: September 24, 2009 Judges Opinion by Judge Kennedy Counsel For Appellant: Robert A. Amicone II, Squire, Sanders & Dempsey LLP, Cincinnati, Ohio...
Remember when we thought social media platforms were a path to global peace, love, and understanding? Boy, were we wrong. Sure, they’re great for many things — keeping up with friends and family, sharing useful or amusing information, etc. But we never imagined the dark side: as havens for people with destructive agendas and ulterior motives. We never imagined that instead of being a force for enlightenment and wise decision-making, social media would create and deepen political polarization resulting in violence....
Advancements in orthopedic surgery mean that almost anyone can return to normal life after devastating injuries. People can live without chronic pain from damaged bones, muscles, ligaments, and tendons. But not all orthopedic surgeries result in miraculous recoveries. So are orthopedic surgeons legally liable if you can’t return to your workout or daily life at 100%? And where do courts draw the line between a bad surgeon and a bad result?...
District court’s decision to grant defendant’s request for habeas relief and to vacate his capital murder conviction concluding that a Brady violation had occurred is affirmed as, in light of the importance of the testimony of three witnesses and the significant impeachment value of the undisclosed information, defendant’s right to due process, as set forth in Brady, was violated by the Commonwealth’s failure to disclose the information. Read Wilson v. Beard, No....
If you own any Apple device made in the last decade, you’re probably familiar with the App Store. The App Store app allows Apple users to download both first- and third-party software for their Apple devices. Unfortunately for Apple, a few years ago, a group of iPhone owners filed a class action antitrust action alleging that Apple’s 30 percent commission on apps sold through their app store violates antitrust laws as there is no other platform to purchase apps....
Is obstruction of justice an “invented legal theory” that doesn’t rise to the level of criminal conduct? That’s the argument on deck in the Barry Bonds appeal; whether or not it’s a home run is up to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Plenty of defendants have been convicted of obstruction of justice, so why would Bonds’ attorneys think they could win by challenging the charge as a non-crime? Because – to put it in baseball terms – obstruction of justice is like walking to first; it’s just lame....
In a procedural due process action involving an allegedly unconstitutional delay in holding a juvenile dependency hearing, district court judgment is reversed where defendants are entitled to qualified immunity, as it was objectively reasonable for defendants to have believed that their particular conduct in this case did not violate clearly established law, and that they had discharged their responsibilities with respect to plaintiffs’ procedural due process rights by advancing the case to the point where a hearing could take place within the constitutionally prescribed time frame....
In US v. King, No. 08-3822, the Eighth Circuit vacated defendant’s firearm possession sentence, on the ground that the court of appeals was unable to resolve, without conjecture, whether defendant’s prior adjudication of juvenile delinquency qualified as a conviction for a violent felony under the Armed Career Criminal Act, because the court could not determine in the first instance whether defendant’s juvenile adjudication involved possessing a sawed-off rifle as opposed to possessing some “other implement,” such as a knife....
In re: Roser, No. 09-1341, involved a creditor’s appeal from the bankruptcy court’s order holding that the trustee in a Chapter 7 proceeding could avoid a creditor’s lien. The court of appeals reversed on the ground that the Colorado Certificate of Title Act (CCTA) did not supersede Colorado UCC section 4-9-317(e) because the provision did not govern the manner or timing of the perfection of liens, and governed only the priority of a lien and was not inconsistent with the CCTA....
Tennesseans voted abortion rights out of the state constitution, and that settles it, a federal appeals court said. Fifty-three percent of the voters approved the constitutional amendment, but opponents sued for a recount. The U.S Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously to reject the lawsuit in George v. Hargett. “Although the subject of abortion rights will continue to be controversial in Tennessee and across our nation, it is time for uncertainty surrounding the people’s 2014 approval and ratification of Amendment 1 to be put to rest,” Judge David McKeague wrote....
While most states in the Northeast recognize the rights of same-sex couples to marry, Pennsylvania, whose motto ironically is “Virtue, Liberty and Independence,” only recognizes marriage between a man and woman. The Supreme Court’s Windsor decision earlier this year has been the small pebble in the pond whose ripple effects are getting wider and wider. That case has spurred five lawsuits in Pennsylvania alone, some in state and some in federal court, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette....
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals had bad news for Dooney & Bourke founder Frederic Bourke, Jr. on Wednesday: Two years after his Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) conspiracy conviction, it looks like Bourke is finally heading to jail. Bourke was convicted in 2009 of conspiracy to violate the FCPA for his involvement in a scheme to illegally purchase Azerbaijan’s state-owned oil company, SOCAR, by bribing the Azerbaijani president and other officials, reports The Washington Post....
Federal prosecutors have indicated they will appeal to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals to restore the death sentence given to Alfonso Rodriguez Jr. for the 2003 murder of Dru Sjodin. Judge Ralph Erickson, who oversaw Rodriguez’s trial as a U.S. District Court judge and is now on the Eighth Circuit, ordered a new sentencing phase in the case last year, finding that misleading expert testimony and a limited mental health evaluation violated Rodriguez’s constitutional rights....
In an action seeking a declaratory judgment that plaintiff, an Irish national, was entitled to naturalize in the U.S., summary judgment for defendant is affirmed where: 1) the one-year absence bar in 8 U.S.C. section 1427(b) applied both to the period preceding the naturalization interview and the period following the interview; and 2) plaintiff was neither exempt from the continuous residence requirement, nor did he present a set of facts that would warrant an estoppel....
Do police interrogators knowingly lie to minors to gain confessions that might be false? The answer, at least sometimes, appears to be yes. And now some states are taking steps to halt the practice. In July, the governors of Illinois and Oregon signed bills into law making their states the first to bar police from lying to minors during questioning. In New York, a similar bill would go even further, barring police interrogators from lying to anyone....
In Chapter 11 proceedings filed by two companies involved in oil and gas explorations, district court’s order dismissing the bankruptcy petitions for lack of good faith is affirmed as there is ample evidence supporting the finding of the court that the debtors’ bankruptcy petitions served no valid bankruptcy purpose and were used primarily as a litigation tactic to protect debtors and their parent companies from liability in pending litigation. Read In re: 15375 Memorial Corp....
US v. Williams, 09-3174, concerned a challenge to a defendant’s conviction for illegal possession of a firearm and various drug distribution offenses. In affirming, the court held that, because defendant cannot satisfy his burden under either prong of the Strickland standard, the district court’s abuse of discretion in dismissing defendant’s concerns regarding his attorney’s performance, was harmless. Also, because defendant was convicted of a violent felony, his claim that section 922(g)(1) unconstitutionally infringes on his right to possess a firearm is without merit....
