Appeals

Florida man, among the hundreds that entered the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was chanting “Whose house? Our house!” D.C. Circuit (unanimously): Not your house. The United States Capitol building is most definitely not your house. There's a reason entry to the Capitol is “strictly regulated” and members of the public typically must reserve a tour and face security screening before entering. Nor is it a traditional public forum. So this Florida man's various First Amendment challenges to his convictions for "parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building" all fail.

In a shocking twist, biotech CEO who compares himself to both Steve Jobs and Jesus Christ and claims his company's products cure paralysis and opioid addiction is convicted of fraud. In an even more shocking twist, he dies while his case is on appeal. So what happens to his conviction—and, more importantly, the more than $7.5 mil order of restitution? First Circuit: Vacated!

A jury has awarded $16 million to a Philadelphia man whose murder conviction was overturned after he spent 25 years on death row — the largest wrongful conviction payout in city history. (view full article).

James Dennis, 53, always insisted he was innocent and had been sentenced to death for a 1991 murder he did not commit.

The relentless pursuit of “non-stop executions” by a rump of death penalty states is exposing prison staff to extreme levels of psychological and physical stress, according to traumatized corrections officers who are appealing for help (view full article).

Attorney Generals from across the country are urging the Supreme Court to give the “utmost” deference to Oklahoma’s admission and confession of prosecutorial misconduct in the case of Glossip v. Oklahoma, Case No. 22-7477, which resulted in Richard Eugene Glossip’s death sentence. In their amicus brief, the attorney generals are asking the Court to overturn Mr. Glossip’s conviction and death sentence noting “‘confessing error is a momentous step, one that attorneys general never take lightly. . .

Avery County, N.C. man registers as a sex offender and communicates regularly with the sheriff to make sure he's complying with registration requirements. Yet, a deputy swears out a warrant and has him arrested—including for the totally made-up crime of leaving the state for 30 days—even though he was following the sheriff's instructions. Yikes! Charges are dropped, and man sues for Fourth Amendment violations. Officers: We got a warrant though. Fourth Circuit: Whatever.

"For those who worry that qualified immunity can be invoked under absurd circumstances: Buckle up." From that opening line, you can correctly predict the Fifth Circuit is disgusted by these Houston police officers who arrested a Good Samaritan while letting a dangerous drunk driver go, and then "[p]iling insanity on irrationality," submitted a wildly misleading affidavit to kick off a baseless prosecution. Seriously!

If you lend your car to a family member or friend who is stopped and arrested for drug charges while driving your car in Alabama, state law permits seizure of a car “incident to an arrest” so long as the state then “promptly” initiates a forfeiture case.

Yesterday, in United States v. Duarte, No. 22-50048 (9th Cir. May 9, 2024), a split panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that  under New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen, 597 U.S. 1 (2022), § 922(g)(1) violates the Second Amendment as applied to Duarte, a non-violent offender who has served his time in prison and reentered society. The opinion, written by Judge Bea and joined by Judge VanDyke, begins:

Wisconsin man is convicted of murder in 1996 and sentenced to life imprisonment. Contrary to his instructions, his lawyer fails to file his appeal. Yikes! He spends the next two decades trying to get the state courts to let him get his appeal. In 2016, they finally give him the thumbs-up. Huzzah! To appeal, he needs a transcript of his trial. Which he tried to get in 1997 but couldn't because he lacked the money. And the court reporter's notes have since been destroyed. Yikes again! State trial court: Given the absence of a transcript, it's only fair he gets a new trial. Huzzah!