In a drug prosecution, suppression of evidence found in a warrantless search is affirmed where the Fourth Amendment prohibits the warrantless search of a private home to investigate minor offenses, such as this one, that do not pose any threat of imminent violence or result in an ongoing injury to the community. Read US v. Washington, No. 08-3317 Appellate Information Argued: June 12, 2009 Decided and Filed: July 22, 2009...
Like the Second Circuit, the Third Circuit holds a special place in my heart as I spent five years of my life in Philadelphia. And though reading Third Circuit opinions does not sate my appetite for cheese steaks or hoagies, there is never a lack of interesting cases coming out of the Third (yes, I’m looking at you Tenth Circuit and Federal Circuit). Third Circuit in the News The Third Circuit made headlines with important cases being decided including a student free speech case that centered on students’ right to wear bracelets proclaiming “I Heart Boobies” as part of a breast cancer awareness campaign....
When the 99 percent were occupying Wall Street, one-percenter Jay-Z tried to make a buck with t-shirts that read, “Occupy All Streets.” People were not happy about it and he stopped promptly. Now he is unhappy about a French company making money off his image and is suing for trademark infringement, among other things. Jay-Z, Beyonce, Kanye, Rihanna, and Pharrell are all in on it. All five filed suit together against ElevenParis, which has printed and sold goods with the artists’ images....
Traveling on an international flight, Juan Pablo Price sat down next to a female passenger who was sleeping and fondled her. He was arrested, charged, and convicted of sex abuse. In his appeal to the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, he argued that his victim seemed to invite the encounter. In USA v. Price, the appeals court said – in more legal terms – you have got to be kidding....
Today, the Supreme Court decided two cases, one in a capital habeas matter and the other dealing with a prisoner’s claim of excessive force (covered here). In Thaler v. Haynes, No. 09-273, a capital habeas case, a court of appeals had reversed a denial of petitioner’s habeas petition. The Supreme Court outlined the issue presented as follows: “This case presents the question whether any decision of this Court ‘clearly establishes’ that a judge, in ruling on an objection to a peremptory challenge under Batson v....
What does it take to get disciplined by the Supreme Court Bar? How about letting your client write the briefs? Back in December, the Court issued an order to attorney Howard Shipley to show cause why he shouldn’t be sanctioned for his conduct in connection with a cert. petition in the case Sigram Schindler Beteiligungsgesellschaft MBH v. Lee. That was a patent case dealing with claim construction, but patent watchers like the website Patently-O thought the petition looked a little weird....
Question: How do you know when you’ve been blogging way too long? Answer: When the topic of rabbis providing orally assisted circumcisions crosses your desk twice – first as a deceased baby case, then as a Second Circuit case addressing a New York City regulation passed in the wake of the tragedy. The practice at issue is called metzizah b’peh, which involves removing blood from the circumcision wound with the rabbi’s mouth....
We can’t rule in your favor, a split panel on the Eleventh Circuit told a group of 30 women victimized by notorious sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein, but we don’t like it either. That was the crux of a recent Eleventh Circuit decision finding that the Crime Victims Rights Act does not apply to Epstein victims linked to the non-prosecution of Epstein in 2008. This is because rights under the CVRA do not trigger until the government prosecutes an alleged crime, at least in the Eleventh Circuit....
The ACLU of Nebraska filed a lawsuit against Nebraska prison officials for preventing two engaged inmates from getting married. The lawsuit, against the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services, Director Michael Kenney, and two wardens, was filed on behalf of inmates Paul Gillpatrick and Niccole Wetherell, who have been engaged for more than two years. The merits of their “right to marry” case will turn on whether the restrictions are related to a legitimate penological interest and the prison’s willingness to use technology....
Since Prince died late last month, little time has been wasted addressing the handling of his estate. His sister filed documents with the Minnesota courts stating that Prince left no will just days after he died, and last Friday, reports ABC News, the singer’s mysterious vault was drilled open by the Bremer Trust, appointed the administrator of his estate. The vault reportedly contains enough unpublished music to release an album by Prince every year for the next century, some of it pre-dating Purple Rain, the album that catapulted him to fame....
California’s longest-serving death-row inmate won an appeal in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday. A 2-1 panel ruled that Douglas R. Stankewitz was entitled to a new penalty-phase trial based on ineffective counsel, The Wall Street Journal reports. Stankewitz has been on death row in California since 1978, when he was convicted of kidnapping and murdering Theresa Greybeal. Stankewitz has spent years challenging his sentence in both state and federal appeals....
With the amazing growth of the esports industry, some lawyers and law students might be wondering whether esports law is a thing yet. If you’re wondering just what an esport is, then prepare to be surprised: esports are basically competitive video games that garner the same sort of audience and fans as real sports. Yes, people are watching other people play video games (both in person, but mostly online), and the people playing the games are making money, sometimes a lot of money, doing it....
In a petition for review of the BIA’s decision denying petitioner’s application for asylum and withholding of removal, the petition is denied where the Immigration Judge properly applied the terrorism bar in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) because the definition of “terrorist activity” under the INA does not provide an exception for armed resistance against military targets that is permitted under the international law of armed conflict. Read Khan v....
Morales-Izquierdo v. Dept. of Homeland Sec., No. 08-35965, a habeas petition seeking review of the BIA’s denial of petitioner’s application to adjust his immigration status to that of a lawful permanent resident. The court of appeals affirmed the denial of the petition, holding that 1) to permit petitioner’s challenge to the denial of his adjustment-of-status application to proceed as a habeas corpus petition would be contrary to a central purpose of the REAL ID Act; 2) a Form I-212 waiver, even if granted, did not cure the inadmissibility of an alien who reentered the U....
Reversal of Indian Gaming Commission’s Decision Vacated In Nebraska v. US Dep’t of Interior, No. 09-1657, an appeal from the district court’s reversal of the National Indian Gaming Commission’s decision concluding that the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska’s five-acre parcel in Carter Lake, Iowa, was eligible for gaming under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act as land taken into trust as part of “the restoration of lands for an Indian tribe that is restored to Federal recognition” pursuant to 25 U....
Leave to File Second Habeas Writ Granted In Quezada v. Smith, No. 10-2738, an application pursuant to 28 U.S.C. section 2244(b)(3) for leave to file in the district court a second petition for a writ of habeas corpus, the court granted the petition where 1) reexamination of an untimeliness ruling that was made with respect to a first habeas corpus petition may occur only in limited circumstances, such circumstances were not present in petitioner’s case, and his current petition was properly considered “second”; and 2) petitioner made a sufficient showing to satisfy the court’s “gate-keeping” responsibility under 28 U....
In plaintiff’s breach of contract action against the defendant-Bank involving loans through a revolving line of credit supported by a promissory note, district court’s dismissal of the complaint is affirmed where: 1) the note entitles defendant to demand payment from plaintiff at will; and 2) plaintiff has failed to establish the intent element of his fraud claim. Read Reger Dev. LLC v. Nat’l City Bank, No. 09-2821 Appellate Information Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division...
Gwinnett College, a public university in Georgia, had a policy that created two “free speech zones" in which students could share their beliefs and ideas after receiving a permit. One student, Chike Uzuegbunam, was able to get a permit so he could proselytize to his fellow students. This led to complaints from students not interested in hearing about his religious beliefs. Campus security ended up prohibiting him from speaking to other students despite the permit....
The 19th century French writer Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr penned the phrase “plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose,” which is commonly translated as “the more things change, the more they stay the same.” While Karr’s words may ring true in many circumstances, they don’t apply to amendments to the Federal Rules of Practice and Procedure. Which is what we’re talking about today. The amendments propose changes to the following rules:...
There is certain to be some pushback to any new law that restricts activity on the World Wide Web. Sometimes, thanks to the web the internet has woven, unlikely allies can unite to fight a common cause. And when Ohio passed its recent internet harassment law, an unlikely duo from across the partisan aisles joined forces to challenge it. Although the challenge seems to make logical sense, it appears to suffer from some procedural defects....
