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Do accusations of an unfair conviction, tainted by juror racism, justify breaching the confidentiality of jury deliberations? The Supreme Court will answer that question in its next term. On Monday, the Court granted cert to Pena-Rodriguez v. Colorado, a challenge to state and federal rules that prohibit evidence about juror statements made during deliberations. The so-called “no impeachment” rules have been criticized for impeding defendants’ ability to show that their right to a fair trial has been violated, though their supporters argue that the rules protect jurors from later coercion and uphold the integrity of deliberations....

The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a sentence of 144 months in prison and a lifetime of supervised release for a Minnesota man convicted of one count of traveling to have sex with a minor. Darrin Anderson, a 36-year-old resident of Middle River, Minnesota, received the lengthy sentence for targeting young girls on Facebook for sex. The victim Anderson was arrested for contacting was 13 at the time. After receiving reports of the incident with the young teen, authorities obtained a search warrant of the Facebook profile and chats of a fictitious person Anderson had created....

Billionaire Elon Musk has terminated his agreement to buy Twitter. He claims that Twitter misled him about the number of fake or spam accounts on the platform and failed to give him the information he needed to independently verify its estimates. Twitter responds that this is all pretext, and that the real reason why Musk wants out is that the market has tanked and his net worth has plummeted. Recall that when Musk offered to buy Twitter for $54....

Under federal law, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has the power to issue a rule refusing entry to people and property from countries where a communicable disease poses a “serious danger” to the United States. As an early response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Trump Administration first used these powers in 2020 under 42 U.S.C. § 265, which authorizes the Executive Branch to “prohibit, in whole or in part, the introduction of persons and property from such countries or places as he shall designate....

Defendant’s conviction for conspiracy to possess heroin with intent to distribute is affirmed where: 1) the district court did not commit plain error in admitting evidence of flight as it supported an inference of consciousness of guilt of the crimes charged; and 2) the district court did not abuse its discretion in rejecting defendant’s attempted guilty plea, based on sound reasoning provided by defendant’s denial of his guilt. Read US v....

In a prosecution of defendant for conducting an illegal gambling business and sponsoring and exhibiting animals in cockfights, district court’s denial of his motion for acquittal is affirmed as there was significant evidence in the record that defendant derived economic benefits from the fact that he knowingly allowed and encouraged gambling to take place at his establishment. Read US v. Frazier, No. 08-5211 Appellate Information Argued: January 20, 2010 Decided and Filed: February 12, 2010...

In an appeal from a district court’s denial of defendant’s motion to suppress drug and firearm evidence against him, the order is affirmed where the district court did not err in holding that the drugs and firearm would have been uncovered during a routine inventory search of the vehicle upon impound. Read US v. Ruckes, No. 08-30088 Appellate Information Submitted November 9, 2009 Filed November 9, 2009 Judges Opinion by Judge Tallman...

District court’s sentence and conviction of defendant on five drug-related crimes is affirmed where: 1) district court did not err by denying defendant’s motion to retain a fingerprint expert as not only was defendant’s motion untimely, but also unnecessary for his defense; 2) district court properly admitted agent’s testimony regarding attributes of drug trafficking as the testimony was general in nature and not prejudicial; and 3) court did not commit clear error in calculating defendant’s base offense and criminal history levels....

When Elena Fridman authorized her mortgage payment online, she thought she’d met her obligations to pay on time. But her mortgage servicer, NYCB Mortgage Co., disagreed. Because it took NYCB two days to process her payment, they did not consider it received “on time” and charged Fridman a late fee. Fridman sued, and the Seventh Circuit recently ruled that her payment was valid on the day she authorized it. Under the ruling, mortgage services must credit payments made on their websites at the time the borrower approves it, not at the point they actual electronic transfer of funds is completed....

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals all but sided with a pair of Pennsylvania construction businessmen by vacating their sentences and overruling the sentencing court. To their credit, however, the panel was simply applying court rules. The case involved defrauding the government by taking advantage of government benefits outlined in the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Act. The Court’s ruling clarifies how damages are to be properly calculated when funds are illicitly secured and work is actually completed....

Muslim and Arab men who were wrongfully detained can sue former attorney general John Ashcroft and other Bush-era officials for violating their constitutional rights, the Second Circuit ruled yesterday. The class action lawsuit, filed by former 9/11 detainees, alleges that Ashcroft and others established a discriminatory policy of arresting and detaining Muslim and Arab men following the attacks and keeping them in abusive conditions. In a lengthy ruling, Second Circuit said that under the alleged facts, based largely on a government investigation, the Department of Justice and FBI put in place policies which violated the detainees civil rights and took no steps to stem the abuse when they knew detainees were not terrorism suspects....

The Center for Medical Progress released a video from inside Planned Parenthood that brought on a social maelstrom. The video, which showed the abortion providers talking about selling fetal tissue, shocked legislators, the media and others. But privacy rights lawyers and a coalition of Planned Parenthood groups fought back. In Planned Parenthood Federation of America v. Center for Medical Progress, the plaintiffs say the anti-abortion activists wrongfully captured the videos by posing as investigative journalists....

If the Second Circuit was personified, and had a hand, the slap it gave the Board of Immigrations Appeals (“BIA”) would have left a hand print on the BIA’s cheek. Why? Well … Ellya Indradjaja Seeks Asylum Ellya Indradjaja is a Chinese Christian who is a native, and citizen, of Indonesia. She spent many years studying her religion outside of Indonesia, and when she returned to Indonesia to practice and minister her faith, she was met with persecution....

In a state robbery prosecution, grant of petitioner’s habeas petition is reversed where the district court erred in reducing petitioner’s sentence instead of remanding to the California trial court for resentencing, because the district judge’s role in the habeas proceeding was solely to ensure that petitioner’s sentence was constitutionally determined. Read Chioino v. Kernan, No. 08-15265 Appellate Information Submitted July 16, 2009 Filed September 21, 2009 Judges Opinion by Judge Smith...

After 22 years on death row, in March, Debra Jean Milke was granted relief by the Ninth Circuit. That relief may be short-lasting however, as earlier this week, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Rosa Mroz set Sept. 30 as the date for her retrial, reports the Associated Press. Prosecutors, meanwhile, are scrambling to patch together enough evidence for a conviction, especially in light of the circuit court’s decision, which recapped the investigating detective’s prior misconduct and lack of creditability....

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is now facing 17 new criminal charges, according to a superseding indictment released today. The U.S. Justice Department charged Assange with crimes under the Espionage Act, based on claims Assange worked with former intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning “in unlawfully obtaining and disclosing classified documents related to the national defense.” The new charges are in addition to a previously changed count of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion, and you can read the full indictment right here:...

It looks like racism is still alive and rampant in parts of the South. Now, an employee who inadvertently ended up looking racist in a work-related misunderstanding can bring a lawsuit for defamation against her former employer, reports the Insurance Journal. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals held that Jessica Cockram can bring a lawsuit against Genesco Inc. for firing her, after she inadvertently gave a customer a receipt with racial slurs on it....

In plaintiff’s suit against the defendant for violations of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) in land development near a reservoir and the environmental impact of increased boating on, and community use of, reservoir water, dismissal of the case without prejudice is affirmed as plaintiff failed to demonstrate standing to bring its claim alleging ongoing harm to its members’ aesthetic and recreational enjoyment of the reservoir. Read Friends of Tims Ford v....

In an action by an insurer seeking a declaration that defendant-excess insurer was required to reimburse plaintiff for part of a settlement of a personal injury action, summary judgment for defendant is reversed where the district court erred in deciding that the underlying state-court judgment established legal liability against the insured and thus precluded recovery under the policy. Read General Star Nat’l Ins. Co. v. Universal Fabricators, Inc., No. 07-4443...

In a case involving allegations of a Fourth Amendment violation against city and numerous police officers, summary judgment for defendants is reversed where: 1) the district court erred in ruling that the defendants had probable cause as a matter of law to arrest plaintiffs for mob action as there are disputes of material fact with respect to the elements of mob action; 2) it erred in finding that defendants had probable cause to arrest plaintiffs for resisting arrest or obstructing a peace officer as there were dispute of facts as to whether the plaintiffs knowingly resisted or obstructed the officers’ work; 3) it erred in finding that there was probable cause for arresting plaintiffs for battery as there are accounts, including police videotape, that create a genuine issue of material fact; 4) taking the facts in the light most favorable to the plaintiffs, a jury could find that defendant officers used excessive force in the course of plaintiffs’ arrest; 5) district court erred in dismissing plaintiffs’ claim against officers standing by that they were culpable for failing to intervene in the beatings....