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Drug Trafficking Sentence Partially Vacated In US v. Brown, No. 08-1207, the court affirmed in part defendant’s drug trafficking sentence, holding that the district court properly found that defendant’s motions seeking to force the government to recommend a downward departure were meritless because no plea agreement requiring such a motion was ever entered and defendant alleged no unconstitutional motive for the government declining to recommend a downward departure. However, the court vacated in part where the district court erred by refusing to hear defendant’s ineffective assistance of counsel claim, raised after his conviction but before sentencing, until after he had been sentenced....

Denial of incarcerated appellant’s motion to vacate an order of civil contempt that has been in effect for over five years, which stemmed from a criminal proceeding in which defendant was convicted of conspiracy and fraud and sentenced to 188 months’ imprisonment, is affirmed where: 1) the court permissibly structured the order of contempt so that it tolled the commencement of appellant’s criminal sentence, such that only if and when the contempt order is lifted will he begin serving that sentence; 2) an order of civil contempt will only become punitive if a contemnor is unable to comply with the order, or if the circumstances indicate that a court is maintaining the contempt for an impermissible punitive purpose; 3) in this case, appellant can comply with the order in question at any time and the order will be lifted....

District court judgment denying defendant’s motion to withdraw his guilty plea to charges of bribery and smuggling bulk cash is affirmed where: 1) the court properly found there was a factual basis for his plea; and 2) defendant received effective assistance of counsel, and any ineffective assistance did not prejudice him. Read US v. Peleti, No. 08-1507 Appellate InformationAppeals from the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois....

Conviction for wire fraud is affirmed where: 1) the district court did not err in giving the conscious or deliberate avoidance instruction as substantial evidence showed defendant deliberately avoided learning the truth; 2) the court did not err in refusing to include negligence language, and the jury was appropriately instructed that it could not convict absent a finding that defendant acted knowingly; and 3) any error in the instructions was harmless given the extensive evidence of defendant’s direct knowledge....

It seems that the Veluchamy family just can’t win. Literally. The family behind the Harvey-based Mutual Bank lost control of their bank to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) in 2009. As a result of the FDIC-receivership, they also lost their priority claim to about $30 million dollars. And this week, the Veluchamys lost their Administrative Procedure Act (APA) appeal before the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. The Veluchamys may not be the world’s best bankers....

Will the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals find that the military has a duty to protect the public from soldiers sufferings from post-traumatic stress disorder? Next week, the Sixth Circuit will hear arguments in Estate of Smith v. U.S., a summary judgment appeal involving an $8.75 million negligence lawsuit against the U.S. military. The suit was previously dismissed based on sovereign immunity. Army Spc. Gerald Polanco, an Iraq veteran, allegedly shot and killed 18-year-old Ezra Gerald Smith in a Fort Bliss shooting spree in 2009....

What is the difference between a break and a recess? That was the issue that the Third Circuit had to grapple with in their latest opinion. President Obama made a recess appointment for the National Labor Relations Board during an intrasession break of Senate – but did he have the power to do so? The Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel issued its own opinion claiming that an intrasession recess qualifies as a recess of the Senate for recess appointment purposes....

If you’re anything like us, the Save the Date cards are starting to pile up on the fridge, and you’re trying to sort out your summer travel plans to attend all of the weddings you’ve been invited to. And if you’re one of the happy couples sending out one of these notices, you’re trying to sort out all of the last details for your special day. But amongst all of the bridesmaids’ dresses, groomsmen’s ties, and flower and musical arrangements, don’t forget there might be some legal details to sort out as well....

If you are filing an American with Disabilities Act (ADA) employment discrimination claim on a client’s behalf, sue under Title I. Title I authorizes the disabled to bring employment discrimination claims. Title II offers no recourse for employees, according to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. Of course, some employee had to learn that lesson the hard way so everyone else could learn it the easy way. Judy Elwell had an office job at the University of Oklahoma....

In plaintiffs’ Fair Housing Act (FHA) suit against their condo association for being required to remove a mezuzah from their doorpost under a new rule requiring that common hallways and outside of the doors be kept free of any objects, district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor the condo association and its president is reversed for the most part where: 1) the judgment of the district court with respect to plaintiffs’ claims under sections 3604(b), 3617 and 1982 is reversed as a trier of fact could conclude that the condo association’s reinterpretation of the hallway rule and clearing of all objects from doorposts was intended to target only group of residents for which the prohibited practice was religiously required; 2) plaintiffs can therefore proceed on an intentional discrimination theory under sections 3604(b), 3617 and 1982; and 3) district court’s judgment granting summary judgment against the plaintiffs on their section 3604(a) claim is affirmed....

No thanks to himself, Robert Alexander got lucky. Shortly after three in the morning, he was outside his house with a bottle of vodka in his hand standing next to a car when police officers approached. They saw drugs in the vehicle and arrested the passengers. “Out of respect,” Alexander, a convicted felon, told the officers, he was “just going to put the liquor bottle in the back.” Naturally the officers checked his backyard and found two guns, but Alexander got a break in United States of America v....

High school slumber parties, despite what Judge Philip Simon believes, are often tame affairs marked by pizza, Twilight, and Bravo’s Real Housewives franchise. The racier ones might include a Sex and the City marathon on DVD rather than the TV-edited TBS syndication. On the rare occasion that a slumber party graduates from PG to PG-13, sleepover snapshots can turn a 6-game suspension from a high school volleyball schedule into an ACLU lawsuit on students’ free speech rights in federal court....

Porter v. Ollison, No. 07-55305, involved a state prosecution for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court of appeals vacated the denial of petitioner’s habeas petition, on the ground that further development of the facts may ultimately show that petitioner was or was not entitled to equitable tolling because of lack of diligence or because his former attorney’s egregious conduct did not prevent petitioner from filing a timely federal petition....

‘Pretextual’ Traffic Stops ‘Hit Rates’ Are Low Greater Use of Technology? A Checklist if You Are Stopped Try to remain calm. Stop your car as quickly as possible in a safe place. Turn off the car, open the window part way, and place your hands on the steering wheel. Upon request, show the officer your driver’s license, vehicle registration, and proof of insurance. Keep your hands in plain sight and don’t make any sudden moves....

Securities Fraud Action Against Accounting Firm In Dronsejko v. Grant Thornton, No. 09-4222, a securities fraud class action against an accounting firm claiming improper revenue recognition that materially overstated a corporation’s revenues and earnings, the court affirmed the district court’s denial of plaintiffs’ Rule 60(b) motion where the complaint failed to give rise to a cogent and compelling inference that defendant’s actions constituted an extreme departure from the standards of ordinary care, or that no reasonable accountant would have made the same decisions if confronted with the same facts....

In an action brought under the Federal Odometer Act, district court judgment denying defendant’s motion for a new trial is affirmed where: 1) the damages award against defendant is supported by substantial evidence; 2) the court did not err in refusing to bifurcate the case into liability and damages proceedings as it was a relatively simple case involving only one claim and one defendant that did not warrant bifurcation; 3) there was no error in the court’s verdict form or in the jury instructions; 4) the court did not abuse its discretion denying defendant’s motions for continuance; 5) the court’s disputed comments during trial did not prejudice the jury or constitute judicial misconduct; and 6) the court did not err in awarding attorneys’ fees award or in awarding plaintiff prejudgment interest....

The system of checks and balances in our nation has really been being put through the paces. Recent reports explain that President Trump’s policies have resulted in more lawsuit losses than any other president in recent history. Shockingly, as reported by the Washington Post, whereas, on average, presidents have about a 70 percent win rate, President Trump is sitting at about a 70 percent loss rate. In fact, in cases rooted in the Administrative Procedures Act, the current administration wins only about 6 percent of the time....

A diamond may be forever, but it shouldn’t be so expensive. The multi-million dollar settlement is part of an agreement by De Beers to remedy injuries suffered by U.S. jewelry makers, retailers and consumers who purchased diamonds and diamond jewelry beginning in 1994. The plaintiffs claimed De Beers had unlawfully monopolized the supply of diamonds; conspired to fix, raise, and control diamond prices; and issued false and misleading advertising. According to the agreement, $22....

Roosevelt Moore was convicted of 24 charges related to a string of sexual assaults that he committed in 1991, when he was 16. The full list of crimes is too lengthy, and graphic, to list, but suffice it to say that he deserved a lengthy sentence. In fact, his sentence of 254 years wasn’t particularly shocking, other than one minor quibble: There is no realistic possibility of parole, unless, in a Methuselah-esque feat, he lives beyond the age of 144....

Halloween and other holiday sex-offender restriction laws are a growing trend amongst that states, but at least in Missouri, the law will have a limited reach. After the Missouri State Supreme Court weighed in on the matter, anyone convicted before the law was passed in 2008 cannot be prosecuted for violating the law’s restrictions, which include not celebrating Halloween, turning out the lights for that evening, and posting a “No Candy” sign at the registered sex offender’s residence....