2023 Sixth Circuit US Court of Appeals Case Law
Opinions 1 - 500 of 939
Date: December 27, 2023
Docket Number: 22-2009
Justia Opinion Summary: Kejuan Pharrell Carter was convicted of distributing methamphetamine and sentenced to 108 months' imprisonment by the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan. On appeal to the United States…
Date: December 21, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3176
Justia Opinion Summary: In a case involving the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the Electric Power Supply Association and PJM Power Providers Group (collectively, PJM), the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit…
Date: December 21, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3794
Justia Opinion Summary: In a dispute involving a power grid operator, PJM Interconnection, L.L.C., and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled that the Chairman of FERC…
Date: December 21, 2023
Docket Number: 22-4056
Justia Opinion Summary: In this case heard before the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, the plaintiff, Christina Littler, a bus driver for a school district, appealed a grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendant,…
Date: December 21, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5874
Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a dispute between a family and a school district regarding the provision of special education services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The student, Jeremy Holland, who…
Date: December 21, 2023
Docket Number: 22-6091
Justia Opinion Summary: In the case involving a high school student, Jacob Bradley, and his parents, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit concluded that the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) does not require…
Date: December 20, 2023
Docket Number: 23-3422
Justia Opinion Summary: This case concerns an appeal by Edgardo Esteras against the district court’s decision to revoke his supervised release and sentence him to 24 months in prison. Esteras had pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute and…
Date: December 19, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3201
Justia Opinion Summary: The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed the decision of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, which denied Clarence Mack's petition for a writ of habeas corpus.…
Date: December 15, 2023
Docket Number: 21-2615
Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, Da’Rell Winters, a convicted petitioner, sought to appeal the district court's denial of his habeas relief application. However, due to the delayed receipt of the district court's decision, he did not file…
Date: December 13, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3419
Justia Opinion Summary: The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed the ruling of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, which had denied Adam Carson's motion to vacate his sentence under 28…
Date: December 13, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3781
Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, a prisoner named Lyle Heyward filed a complaint alleging that prison officials frustrated his attempts to celebrate Ramadan, a holy month for Muslims, in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments and…
Date: December 8, 2023
Docket Number: 23-3059
Justia Opinion Summary: This case concerns Ana Sanchez Sebastian-Sebastian, a native and citizen of Guatemala, who appealed the denial of her application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture…
Date: December 5, 2023
Docket Number: 23-1316
Justia Opinion Summary: In this case heard by the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, the plaintiff, Rudolph Betancourt, a disabled individual, filed a lawsuit against Indian Hills Plaza LLC, the owner of a shopping plaza,…
Date: December 5, 2023
Docket Number: 23-3338
Justia Opinion Summary: Bradley Peterson, a former professor at Ohio State University, claimed his procedural-due-process rights were violated when the university stripped him of his emeritus status without adequate process. Following a sexual…
Date: December 4, 2023
Docket Number: 22-2129
Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a man named James Wilder II who was convicted for possession of a firearm as a felon and attempted witness tampering. While on patrol, Officer Meric Whipple observed Wilder walking beside the road with…
Date: December 4, 2023
Docket Number: 23-3238
Justia Opinion Summary: In the case before the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, Jennings Maynard, a coal miner with severe respiratory issues, filed a claim for benefits under the Black Lung Benefits Act. After his death…
Date: December 4, 2023
Docket Number: 23-3317
Date: December 4, 2023
Docket Number: 23-3341
Justia Opinion Summary: In this case heard by the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, the plaintiff, Marlean Ames, alleged that the Ohio Department of Youth Services discriminated against her on the basis of sexual orientation…
Date: November 30, 2023
Docket Number: 21-4235
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a final rule governing the Title X program, which makes grants to assist in the establishment and operation of family planning projects. The Rule…
Date: November 30, 2023
Docket Number: 22-2131
Justia Opinion Summary: The Township solicited bids for the demolition of former hospital buildings. ICC, a Detroit-based minority-owned company, submitted the lowest bid. AAI, a white-owned business submitted the second-lowest bid, with a…
Date: November 29, 2023
Docket Number: 23-3375
Justia Opinion Summary: Ohio revoked the operating license for Ricci's company, Palms, which operated a substance abuse treatment center. The Department of Justice (DOJ) seized $600,000 from Palms for alleged fraud. Pender was attempting to…
Date: November 28, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5516
Justia Opinion Summary: Zheng and Wu owned and operated the Tokyo Dragon restaurant, where they employed noncitizens who were working in the U.S. illegally. In 2017, Homeland Security received a tip from a nurse who suspected that they were…
Date: November 28, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5845
Justia Opinion Summary: In five 2008 transactions, Goodwin distributed a total of 71.9 grams of crack cocaine to a confidential informant. He pleaded guilty to a conspiracy to distribute at least 50 grams of crack cocaine, 21 U.S.C. 846.…
Date: November 27, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3765
Justia Opinion Summary: Hardwick alleged that his bloodstream contains trace quantities of five chemicals (PFAS)—which are part of a family of thousands of chemicals used in medical devices, automotive interiors, waterproof clothing, food…
Date: November 22, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1383
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2011, the automaker FCA transferred the work that plaintiffs (engineers) had previously performed at FCA’s company headquarters to a new location. The plaintiffs filed a grievance with their union, UAW, in 2016. UAW…
Date: November 22, 2023
Docket Number: 23-1212
Justia Opinion Summary: Brown created a driver’s license with his photo and someone else’s identity and made credit cards using that identity, pulling account numbers from the dark web. Brown used those fraudulent documents to purchase 25…
Date: November 21, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3935
Date: November 20, 2023
Docket Number: 23-1138
Justia Opinion Summary: The IRS may penalize taxpayers who fail to report a “listed transaction” that the agency determines is similar to one already identified as a tax-avoidance scheme, 26 U.S.C. 6707A(a), (c)(2). IRS Notice 2007-83 listed…
Date: November 20, 2023
Docket Number: 23-3178
Justia Opinion Summary: Ohio requires that political parties elect a central committee composed of various party members throughout the state. Ohio Rev. Code 3517.01 and establishes rules for the gender composition and the term length of the…
Date: November 17, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5902
Justia Opinion Summary: During a traffic stop, Tellez agreed to a car search. After the search, the officer asked, “Do you have your wallet?” Tellez handed it over. Inside, the officer discovered three Visa gift cards, each with numbers…
Date: November 16, 2023
Docket Number: 22-109
Justia Opinion Summary: A putative class sued Ford over an alleged design defect in their F-150 pickup trucks, model years 2013-2018, involving brake master cylinders manufactured by Hitachi, citing two alternative theories of how the failure…
Date: November 15, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5125
Justia Opinion Summary: S.C., a high school freshman, was unwillingly video-recorded engaging in non-consensual sexual activity with a male student on school property. The video was shared online and other students began to harass S.C. …
Date: November 9, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1431
Justia Opinion Summary: Reynolds was convicted of selling a fentanyl-heroin mixture that killed two young men, 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1). Investigators connected Reynolds to these fatal drugs in part through cellphone records, including records…
Date: November 9, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-1717, 22-1698
Justia Opinion Summary: Davis and Allen pleaded guilty to using a facility of interstate commerce (their cellphones) in a murder-for-hire scheme, 18 U.S.C. 1958(a). The Sixth Circuit affirmed, rejecting an argument that the government could…
Date: November 9, 2023
Docket Number: 23-1162
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2020, Bennett, a nursing student completing a clinical rotation at Hurley, requested that her service dog, Pistol, be permitted to accompany her. Pistol recognizes the symptoms Bennett exhibits just before a panic…
Date: November 8, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1591
Justia Opinion Summary: In April 2015, federal agent Quinn shot and killed Kellom while trying to arrest him. Kellom’s estate sued Quinn under the Federal Tort Claims Act with a “Bivens” excessive-force claim. The government replaced Quinn as…
Date: November 6, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1986
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1970, Michigan voters approved Proposal C, amending Article VIII, section 2 of Michigan’s constitution: “No public monies or property shall be appropriated or paid or any public credit utilized, by the legislature or…
Date: November 6, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5837
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2017, officers discovered Rogers sitting in a motel room with methamphetamine. Rogers was taken into custody but released. Rogers was indicted in February 2018 for trafficking in two grams or more of methamphetamine.…
Date: November 3, 2023
Docket Number: 17-5065
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1993, Fields, having spent the day drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana, fought with Burton, who lived in a duplex owned by Horton. That night, Burton was locked outside. Fields appeared, with a knife, and broke a…
Date: October 31, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3709
Justia Opinion Summary: Adams, born in 1960, smoked about a pack a day starting at age 18 and worked in coal mines at times between 1979-1995, mostly underground using a “cutting machine” in the “dustiest” areas. Adams struggled to breathe…
Date: October 31, 2023
Docket Number: 23-5257
Justia Opinion Summary: While Johnson, CEO of VisuWell, had dinner at a Franklin, Tennessee hotel, 40-50 teenagers taking prom pictures created a disturbance. Johnson asked the chaperone to settle them down. One teenager, wearing a red prom…
Date: October 30, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3099
Date: October 30, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5121
Justia Opinion Summary: Jones was convicted of robbery in Indiana, Kentucky, and federal courts. Jones’s Kentucky plea deal agreed to a commencement date for Jones’s accrual of time-served credits, not when officers actually took Jones into…
Date: October 26, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1507
Justia Opinion Summary: James picked up Herald and Hickerson in a silver car. Driving around, the men got high and plotted to rob the Contreras home. At a gas station, Hickerson picked up black ski masks. Herald went home. Hours later, two…
Date: October 26, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1840
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2019, Flint, Michigan officers recovered ammunition and three firearms from Jamison’s suspected residence. Jamison was charged as a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1). The government…
Date: October 26, 2023
Docket Number: 22-2058
Justia Opinion Summary: After being stopped for a broken headlight, Akima was arrested for operating a vehicle while intoxicated based on his performance on a three-part field sobriety exam and a preliminary breathalyzer test. Arresting Officer…
Date: October 26, 2023
Docket Number: 23-5133
Justia Opinion Summary: During his booking at Kenton County Detention Center, Grote could not complete paperwork while standing nor be photographed due to his agitated state. By the time he was examined by LPN Brand, Grote was constantly…
Date: October 25, 2023
Docket Number: 23-5064
Justia Opinion Summary: Taylor pleaded guilty to conspiring to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute five or more kilograms of cocaine and 400 or more grams of fentanyl, 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1), 846; and possession with intent to…
Date: October 23, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3603
Justia Opinion Summary: Castro-White died from a drug overdose. Detective Sivert noticed that Castro-White’s phone had many missed calls from Karaplis, who implicated others but lied to Sivert by denying any involvement. Later, after admitting…
Date: October 23, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5328
Justia Opinion Summary: Zakhari, in a program to become a cardiothoracic surgeon, engaged in online sexually explicit conversations with a profile (boredcrbgirl) created by a detective, claiming to be a 15-year-old girl. He received an image of…
Date: October 17, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3587
Justia Opinion Summary: Roberts was convicted for federal crimes relating to the death of Caldwell, who was in a child-custody dispute with his ex-wife (Roberts’ girlfriend). Roberts tried to kill, or at least seriously harm, Caldwell by luring…
Date: October 13, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1961
Justia Opinion Summary: Terry pleaded guilty to four counts of distributing a mixture containing fentanyl, 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(C), and was sentenced to 57 months of imprisonment, at the high end of his U.S.S.G. range. He challenged the…
Date: October 12, 2023
Docket Number: 21-6250
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2016, Schumaker pleaded guilty as a felon in possession of a firearm. Schumaker had 14 prior convictions for Tennessee aggravated burglary, involving separate structures, occurring on 13 different dates. In 2017, the…
Date: October 11, 2023
Docket Number: 23-3275
Date: October 11, 2023
Docket Number: 23-5193
Justia Opinion Summary: Officers Simpson and Patrick drove to Perez’s house to execute seven felony arrest warrants. Simpson approached Perez behind the house. After a brief exchange, Perez bolted. Perez wove her way through the…
Date: October 10, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3686
Justia Opinion Summary: Alyssa was visiting her friend when Lundy, intoxicated forced his way into the house. A neighbor called 911 after hearing “a woman crying” and someone “being thrown around.” Lundy left before officers arrived. The women…
Date: October 6, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1780
Justia Opinion Summary: Michigan’s Uniform Unclaimed Property Act (UUPA) allows the state to take custody—not ownership—of unclaimed property “in trust for the benefit of the rightful owner” After publishing required notices, the state sells…
Date: October 5, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5028
Justia Opinion Summary: Since 1979, Tennessee has made it a crime for anyone other than election officials to distribute the state’s official form for applying to vote absentee. During much of this time, Tennessee kept close guard of this form…
Date: October 3, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1590
Justia Opinion Summary: Built in 1924, the Edenville Dam near Midland, Michigan, has earthen embankments spanning the Tittabawassee and Tobacco Rivers, forming a 2,600-acre reservoir. In 1998, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)…
Date: September 29, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5915
Justia Opinion Summary: Carafem provides abortion care, birth control, and STD testing in several states. One clinic was in a medical office building in a Nashville suburb. Carafem filed suit under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act,…
Date: September 28, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-3216, 22-3217
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2018, the Plaintiffs each purchased real estate in Cleveland, planning to rehabilitate and redevelop the properties. Before those purchases, Cleveland declared the buildings on the properties public nuisances,…
Date: September 28, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5981
Justia Opinion Summary: Pest-control company Terminix faced a “super termite” crisis from 2018-2019 that predominately affected homeowners in Alabama. The Fund alleged that Terminix’s parent company, ServiceMaster and its executives…
Date: September 28, 2023
Docket Number: 22-6105
Justia Opinion Summary: While L.C. was incarcerated at Federal Medical Center, Lexington, she was repeatedly sexually assaulted by Bureau of Prisons (BOP) employee, Lee. L.C. alleges that the BOP knew or should have known of Lee’s assaults on…
Date: September 25, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3240
Justia Opinion Summary: Bauer worked as a physician for over 50 years, most recently in pain management at ANA. Bauer’s practice, which included regular prescribing controlled substances, became the subject of a DEA investigation. Bauer was…
Date: September 21, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-5361, 21-5723
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1999, Latham, McLean, and Vernooy formed Bliss to sell children’s clothing under the name “bella bliss.” In 2003, Shannon left Bliss and started Latham to sell her own children’s clothing under the name “little…
Date: September 14, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3573
Justia Opinion Summary: During the COVID-19 pandemic, Twitter broadened its definition of censorable, harmful information to include “content that goes directly against guidance from authoritative sources of global and local public health…
Date: September 13, 2023
Docket Number: 21-5989
Date: September 12, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1947
Justia Opinion Summary: Septic systems comprise a septic tank that isolates and contains the sewage; the remaining wastewater flows through a drain field, where microorganisms treat it. Customers have two options for private septic…
Date: September 11, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1997
Justia Opinion Summary: Waters was born with homocystinuria and diagnosed with that condition at the age of six. Homocystinuria is a genetic attribute that causes metabolic issues that prevent Waters’s liver from metabolizing methionine, an…
Date: September 11, 2023
Docket Number: 22-2139
Date: September 11, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-3844, 22-3750, 22-3751, 22-3753, 22-3841, 22-3843
Justia Opinion Summary: In the multidistrict National Prescription Opiate Litigation, municipalities from across the nation, Indian Tribes, and other entities allege that opioid manufacturers, distributors, pharmacies, and retailers acted in…
Date: September 11, 2023
Docket Numbers: 23-1060, 22-2139
Justia Opinion Summary: Fillmore County Park in Genoa Charter Township, Michigan, includes a 15-station “Leopold the Lion Reading Trail” with large signs, telling the story. On a wooded 40-acre property a few miles away, Catholic Healthcare…
Date: September 7, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1950
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1999, the plaintiffs sought to develop condominiums but needed rezoning approval from the Charter Township of Clinton. After a protracted dispute, the plaintiffs sued the Township in Michigan state court. That court…
Date: September 6, 2023
Docket Numbers: 21-1339, 21-1248, 21-1288
Justia Opinion Summary: Freed fell behind approximately $1,100 on his property taxes. Thomas, Gratiot County’s treasurer, foreclosed on Freed’s property and sold it at a public auction for $42,000. The County retained the entire proceeds.…
Date: September 1, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3807
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2012, Lin arrived from China and applied for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture. Lin testified that Lin’s girlfriend became pregnant in 2001. When Lin refused to share…
Date: September 1, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-5593, 22-5800
Justia Opinion Summary: Based on a tip from foreign law enforcement, Kentucky Detective Gatson and federal agents went to Lewis’s home. Lewis invited them inside and signed a form, consenting to “a complete search of the premises, property or…
Date: September 1, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5808
Justia Opinion Summary: Legacy, a small family-owned business, provides nonemergency ambulance services in several Ohio counties that border Kentucky. After receiving many inquiries from Kentucky hospitals and nursing homes, Legacy sought to…
Date: August 31, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1262
Justia Opinion Summary: Three individuals filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging that Wayne County has a policy or practice of seizing vehicles and their contents without probable cause, simply because of the vehicle’s location in an area…
Date: August 31, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5600
Justia Opinion Summary: During a routine traffic stop of Moore and Saunders, the Ohio State Highway Patrol seized four vacuum-sealed packages, containing 431 grams of heroin. The couriers stated they had planned to deliver their load to Minter…
Date: August 30, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5751
Justia Opinion Summary: A 911 call, reported that “the people that live behind me” were “yelling and what sounds like him hitting something.” Officers Curtis and Gray responded to the address, wearing activated body cameras. Not seeing or…
Date: August 29, 2023
Docket Numbers: 20-6245, 20-6426, 20-6427, 20-6428
Justia Opinion Summary: From 2009-2015, Hofstetter managed pain clinics in Florida and Tennessee. Hofstetter also co-owned and managed an additional clinic in Tennessee. Clemons, Newman, and Womack were employed as nurse practitioners at these…
Date: August 29, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-1281, 12-1280
Justia Opinion Summary: Jones, who was on supervised release, was arrested after he fired shots outside his house and fled inside. He pled guilty to possessing a stolen firearm. The district court imposed the agreed-upon 10-year sentence,…
Date: August 28, 2023
Docket Number: 21-4106
Justia Opinion Summary: Velasquez was convicted of conspiracy to use interstate commerce to commit murder-for-hire, 18 U.S.C. 1958(a), and conspiracy to distribute cocaine, 21 U.S.C. 841. The district court increased Velasquez’s offense level…
Date: August 25, 2023
Docket Number: 20-3863
Justia Opinion Summary: Hill and Combs kidnapped 12-year-old Fife, beat Fife, raped him in multiple ways, strangled him, bit his genitals, sodomized him, and burned him. Fife’s father found him in a field. Fife died days later. Several…
Date: August 25, 2023
Docket Number: 21-1824
Justia Opinion Summary: Thomas-Mathews pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(C), and to two counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, 18 U.S.C.…
Date: August 25, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5903
Justia Opinion Summary: McElhaney’s daughter, L.M., played high school softball. The school's “Parent–player Information” sheet stated: “Playing time is a non-negotiable for coaches to talk directly with parents about.” L.M.’s playing time…
Date: August 23, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-1552, 22-1506
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2019-2020, Cedrid, Smith, and Hoskins defrauded 20 different banks and their customers by purchasing identification information that hackers stole from financial institutions, then accessing the victim’s bank online. …
Date: August 23, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3772
Justia Opinion Summary: Allstates, a full-service industrial general contractor, employs people throughout the country, subject to the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act. Allstates must comply with Occupational Safety and Health…
Date: August 22, 2023
Docket Number: 21-5857
Justia Opinion Summary: Over 20 years ago, taxpayers sued Kentucky and Sunrise, a religiously affiliated organization, for alleged violations of the Establishment Clause by paying for religious services that Sunrise allegedly imposed on…
Date: August 21, 2023
Docket Number: 21-1503
Justia Opinion Summary: Pembrook, Johnson, and two others robbed two stores at gunpoint. Each was convicted of Hobbs Act robbery and conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, 18 U.S.C. 1951(a), possession of a firearm by a felon, 922(g), and two…
Date: August 21, 2023
Docket Number: 21-4229
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2006, Soto’s wife reported the death of their two-year-old son. Soto admitted that the child’s death was his fault but described it as an accident: he said he had been driving an ATV around his property and had run…
Date: August 21, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1654
Justia Opinion Summary: Doe, a University of Michigan student, was accused of sexual assault in 2018. Before the University’s investigation had concluded, he sued. alleging that the University’s disciplinary procedures for cases involving…
Date: August 21, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5181
Justia Opinion Summary: While facing charges for conspiracy to engage in human trafficking, 18 U.S.C. 1594(c), Pennington improperly communicated with witnesses in the case and was charged with witness tampering, 18 U.S.C. 1512(b)(1). The…
Date: August 18, 2023
Docket Numbers: 21-4013, 21-3979
Justia Opinion Summary: Johnson was the councilman in Cleveland’s Buckeye-Shaker neighborhood for 41 years. Jamison was his executive assistant. For years, Johnson used his position to fraudulently claim federal reimbursements for payments he…
Date: August 18, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3585
Date: August 18, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3760
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1999, Kolov sought asylum and related protections. Kolov was removed to Bulgaria in 2012. In 2014, Kolov reentered the U.S. His prior removal order was reinstated. In an interview, Kolov indicated that he was a…
Date: August 18, 2023
Docket Number: 22-6023
Justia Opinion Summary: Jarrett produces Tezos tokens cryptocurrency by “staking.” Jarrett claims staking uses existing Tezos tokens and computing power to produce new tokens, so he owes tax on the tokens only when he sells or transfers them…
Date: August 17, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1203
Justia Opinion Summary: LG Chem manufactured the LG HG2 18650 lithium-ion batteries that exploded in Sullivan’s pocket and caused him severe second- and third-degree burns. Sullivan obtained the batteries from a vape store in Michigan to use…
Date: August 17, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-5492, 22-5493, 22-5494, 22-5495, 22-5499, 22-5513
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2016, Salansky, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s Fire Management Officer, discovered a slow-moving fire covering less than an acre. Due to the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, most of the Park’s staff were…
Date: August 16, 2023
Docket Numbers: 21-1779, 21-1768
Justia Opinion Summary: Motorcycle gang members Nicholson and Sorrell were charged with conspiracy and aiding and abetting assault under the Violent Crimes in Aid of Racketeering (VICAR) statute. The district court instructed the jury that…
Date: August 16, 2023
Docket Number: 21-3404
Justia Opinion Summary: Based on a 1983 murder, a three-judge panel convicted Von Clark Davis of aggravated murder and sentenced him to death. On direct appeal, Davis’s sentence was vacated, but on remand, the same three-judge panel again…
Date: August 16, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1937
Justia Opinion Summary: While serving a short sentence for domestic violence, Johnson caused a disturbance in a jail’s intake area. Officers were taking Johnson to his cell when he disobeyed orders to slow down. Another officer, Deputy…
Date: August 16, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-5734, 22-5735, 22-5736, 22-5737, 22-5738
Justia Opinion Summary: On January 18, 2019, then-16-year-old Sandmann and his classmates, attending the March for Life, had an interaction with a Native American man, Phillips, by the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. The boys were wearing…
Date: August 15, 2023
Docket Number: 21-3948
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1994, Keith and his uncle were charged with cocaine trafficking based on information provided by Chatman, a confidential informant. Weeks later, someone shot six of Chatman’s relatives, killing three of them. A…
Date: August 15, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1969
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1997-2009, Chappelle managed Terra and withheld federal income, Social Security, and Medicare taxes (trust fund taxes) from Terra’s employees’ wages, 26 U.S.C. 3102, 3402, 7501, but failed to remit them to the IRS in…
Date: August 15, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5232
Date: August 14, 2023
Docket Number: 21-6028
Justia Opinion Summary: Churches, private religious schools, affiliated pastors, and the parents of students (on behalf of themselves and their minor children) sued Kentucky Governor Beshear in his individual capacity for alleged violations of…
Date: August 14, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3552
Justia Opinion Summary: Jaffal was convicted of two counts of possessing controlled substances with the intent to distribute the drugs, 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1). Count 1 involved 35.69 grams of a mixture containing heroin and carfentanil that was…
Date: August 11, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1436
Justia Opinion Summary: Wilkes pleaded guilty as a felon in possession of a firearm, 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1), 921(a), 924(a). His prior convictions included four Michigan convictions for the delivery/manufacture of cocaine from 1995, 2006, and…
Date: August 10, 2023
Docket Number: 21-1544
Justia Opinion Summary: International sought permission to erect two two-sided billboards in the City of Troy. These billboards were to be 14 by 48 feet in area and 70 feet in height when mounted; they did not conform to height, size, and…
Date: August 10, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3285
Justia Opinion Summary: Burroughs went to the Niles Municipal Court to pay a traffic fine. The electronic docketing system alerted court officials that there was an active warrant for Burroughs’s arrest, relating to a recent domestic violence…
Date: August 10, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5462
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2011, Whitson participated in two Hobbs Act robberies. Both had victims who were threatened and physically injured; one was shot. Whitson was convicted of eight crimes at trial and sentenced to 1,252 months of…
Date: August 10, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5567
Justia Opinion Summary: Campbell approached construction workers, performing road repairs, and asked who had voted for Trump in the recent presidential election. Following their responses, Campbell brandished a firearm and stated that he “had a…
Date: August 8, 2023
Docket Number: 21-2845
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2012, Kares was convicted of raping a 16-year-old girl. The judge found five “Offense Variables” that increased Kares’ sentencing range. While Kares’ case was on appeal, the U.S. Supreme Court held (Alleyne) that the…
Date: August 8, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5730
Justia Opinion Summary: Following news coverage of a unionization effort at one of its stores in Memphis, Starbucks fired seven people who worked there. The Union filed an action with the National Labor Relations Board under section 8 of the…
Date: August 7, 2023
Docket Number: 22-6015
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant One operated as a money broker for drug organizations that wanted to move money from the U.S. to Mexico. DEA agents infiltrated the operation. An undercover “coordinating agent” received from Defendant One a…
Date: August 4, 2023
Docket Number: 21-1042
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2015, McBride was charged with first-degree murder, assault with intent to commit murder, carrying a concealed weapon, and carrying a firearm during the commission of a felony. After two trials, a jury convicted…
Date: August 3, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1236
Justia Opinion Summary: Liggins was charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute heroin, 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1),846, and aiding and abetting the possession with intent to distribute heroin, sections 841 and 2. At…
Date: August 1, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3167
Justia Opinion Summary: United provided Patterson's medical insurance under a plan subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. 1101. Patterson received a summary plan description, an ERISA-mandated synopsis of…
Date: July 31, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1909
Justia Opinion Summary: Smith was stopped in a car that contained about 103 grams of crystal methamphetamine. Smith was charged with possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and conspiracy to distribute and…
Date: July 31, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3312
Justia Opinion Summary: From 2014-2018, the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate instructed most Americans to purchase health insurance, 26 U.S.C. 5000A(a) Juntoff opted not to buy the minimum health insurance and failed to make his Shared…
Date: July 31, 2023
Docket Number: 23-5609
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court preliminarily enjoined Kentucky’s ban on sex-transition care for minors. The court later stayed its injunction in light of a recent Sixth Circuit decision in which the court balanced the likelihood of…
Date: July 28, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1973
Justia Opinion Summary: Michigan State Police (MSP) detectives, assigned to investigate the 2011 Bates killing, learned that on the night of her murder, Bates was in her home with Jones and both of their boyfriends. Reed, Jones’s boyfriend, was…
Date: July 28, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3799
Justia Opinion Summary: Around noon, officers responded to nine gunshots in a Cleveland neighborhood and located nine shell casings. A witness stated, and video surveillance confirmed, that he saw Wilson shooting out of a Ford truck as he…
Date: July 27, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5351
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1965, the predecessors of the Louisville and Jefferson County Metropolitan Government established the Riverport Authority, which constructed and owns a 300-acre Ohio River port facility. In 2009, the Authority leased…
Date: July 27, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5853
Justia Opinion Summary: La Bamba Licensing operates Mexican restaurants in the Midwest under the name “La Bamba.” In 1998, La Bamba registered “LA BAMBA” as a trademark for restaurant services and for various food items. Nearly two decades…
Date: July 26, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1681
Justia Opinion Summary: Beauchamp had cerebral palsy. Her mother found Beauchamp unresponsive and called 911. Minutes later, four “First Responders” arrived and attempted CPR and ventilation. After about 30 minutes, they discontinued those…
Date: July 24, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1055
Justia Opinion Summary: D.B. left a Detroit and believed he was being followed by a silver sedan. At 1:41:01 a.m., a traffic camera captured D.B. driving through an intersection, followed by the silver sedan less than a minute later. Minutes…
Date: July 20, 2023
Docket Number: 22-6133
Justia Opinion Summary: Bazemore, a Papa John’s delivery driver, sued under the Fair Labor Standards Act, alleging that the company had under-reimbursed his vehicle expenses. Papa John’s moved to compel arbitration, attaching a declaration from…
Date: July 20, 2023
Docket Number: 23-1107
Date: July 18, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1330
Date: July 17, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1485
Justia Opinion Summary: Coopwood has bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. She was institutionalized several times from 2010-2017. On August 13, 2017, Coopwood (six months pregnant) stopped taking her antipsychotic medications because of concerns…
Date: July 17, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3736
Justia Opinion Summary: Columbus-based financial advisors developed a financial product seemingly unique to the annuities market: the Transitions Beneficiary Income Rider, which would guarantee that, following a life insurance policyholder’s…
Date: July 14, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3852
Justia Opinion Summary: Miller, who describes himself as “an active wine consumer,” asserts that he wants to order wine from out-of-state retailers and would like to be able to buy wine in other states and transport that wine back into Ohio for…
Date: July 13, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1200
Justia Opinion Summary: Michigan State University's “COVID directives,” included a requirement that all employees receive a vaccine by August 31, 2021, even those who worked remotely. The policy included religious and medical exemptions.…
Date: July 12, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5624
Justia Opinion Summary: Kentucky State Police learned that a woman (Miller) had stolen a truck. State Trooper Couch located and stopped the truck, approached, and told Miller to exit the vehicle. According to Couch, Miller responded, “I’m not…
Date: July 11, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5442
Justia Opinion Summary: You, a U.S. citizen of Chinese origin, worked as a chemist, testing the chemical coatings used in Coca-Cola’s beverage cans. You was one of only a few Coca-Cola employees with access to secret BPA-free formulas. You…
Date: July 10, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-3682, 22-3881
Justia Opinion Summary: Stewart obtained his private pilot airman’s certificate in 1978. In 2013, he flew at altitudes and in weather conditions for which he was not authorized. The FAA notified Stewart that it planned to suspend his airman’s…
Date: July 8, 2023
Docket Number: 23-5600
Justia Opinion Summary: Tennessee enacted the Prohibition on Medical Procedures Performed on Minors Related to Sexual Identity, citing concerns that gender dysphoria treatments “can lead to the minor becoming irreversibly sterile, having…
Date: July 5, 2023
Docket Number: 21-6076
Justia Opinion Summary: Officers discovered Brewer’s naked body tied to his bed frame; he had been shot twice. The case went cold for several years before an inmate told officers that Miller and Hall and two women had set up a threesome with…
Date: June 30, 2023
Docket Numbers: 21-6161, 22-5030
Justia Opinion Summary: Tennessee law enforcement was alerted to a drug distribution operation and executed a search warrant that resulted in the seizure of over 200 grams of pure meth. Agents executed additional warrants and intercepted phone…
Date: June 29, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3904
Justia Opinion Summary: Ohlinger, booked into the jail (SEORJ) as a pretrial detainee for burglary, reported a history of bipolar disorder and depression and that she used intravenous heroin daily. She indicated no history of seizures and…
Date: June 28, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1487
Justia Opinion Summary: Spectrum contracts with Michigan to house children who are ordered to be detained in facilities “similar to a prison setting.” The children are completely restricted in their movements. The state requires Spectrum to…
Date: June 28, 2023
Docket Number: 22-3836
Justia Opinion Summary: Bryant, who is African American and has dyslexia, was employed at the Cleveland VA hospital as a sterile processing technician. Bryant alleged disability discrimination under the Rehabilitation Act; retaliation for…
Date: June 28, 2023
Docket Numbers: 22-6043, 22-6044
Justia Opinion Summary: Petlechkov was convicted of 20 counts of mail fraud. 18 U.S.C. 1341. The Sixth Circuit vacated 17 counts, affirmed three, and remanded in 2019. The district court resentenced Petlechkov to 37 months’ imprisonment and two…
Date: June 27, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5587
Justia Opinion Summary: McCormick pled guilty without a plea agreement to offenses involving drugs or guns. He received a below-Guidelines sentence and did not appeal. Ten months later, he moved to vacate his sentence under 28 U.S.C. 2255,…
Date: June 26, 2023
Docket Number: 21-1694
Justia Opinion Summary: Christian Identity, a religion that is “explicitly racist,” believes that Caucasians are “God’s chosen people.” After the Michigan Department of Corrections refused to recognize Christian Identity as a religion for…
Date: June 26, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1445
Justia Opinion Summary: Officer Zolnai, responding to a call, passed a parked, running Chevy Malibu. The driver, Morgan, “appeared to be passed out.” After assisting the caller, Zolnai drove back and again noticed the seemingly passed-out…
Date: June 26, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5238
Justia Opinion Summary: Goodman dealt with Martinek of Southern Risk to obtain crop insurance and later discovered that portions of his property could not be farmed. Southern denied his claim. Goodman accused Martinek and Southern of failing to…
Date: June 23, 2023
Docket Number: 21-1781
Justia Opinion Summary: Amaya was convicted of conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce with intent to commit murder, 18 U.S.C. 1958; using a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence causing death, sections 924(c), (j); and…
Date: June 23, 2023
Docket Numbers: 21-1786, 21-1785, 21-1787, 22-1010
Justia Opinion Summary: After the 2020 presidential election, Michigan election officials canvassed the results. Michigan law allows any candidate with a “good-faith belief” that he lost the election due to “fraud or mistake” to request a…
Date: June 23, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1301
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2017, Corridore was convicted of sexually abusing his granddaughter. He was sentenced to 19 months to 15 years in prison and became subject to mandatory lifetime electronic monitoring (LEM) via a permanent ankle…
Date: June 23, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1789
Justia Opinion Summary: During World War II, the federal government played a significant role in American oil and gasoline production, often telling refineries what to produce and when to produce it. It also rationed crude oil and refining…
Date: June 22, 2023
Docket Number: 21-6208
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant murdered a rival drug dealer. When he learned that a witness might cooperate with law enforcement, Defendant murdered him too. Federal charges followed. His lawyers negotiated a plea deal under which the…
Date: June 22, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1345
Justia Opinion Summary: Sterling Hotels sued a state elevator inspector (Defendant), asserting several claims under 42 U.S.C. Section 1983. Sterling first argued that Defendant violated its right to due process when he sealed Wyndham’s…
Date: June 22, 2023
Docket Number: 22-1970
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court previously found Defendant guilty of twelve supervised-release violations and sentenced him to a below-Guidelines sentence of 48 months imprisonment. He appealed, and the Sixth Circuit vacated the…
Date: June 21, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5473
Justia Opinion Summary: Following separate jury trials, Defendants George Oscar Messer (Oscar) and his son Jake Messer (Jake) were each convicted on two counts of kidnapping in violation of 18 U.S.C. Section 1201(a)(1). They were both sentenced…
Date: June 20, 2023
Docket Number: 22-6074
Date: June 16, 2023
Docket Numbers: 20-2273, 21-1017
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant obtained a judgment against his employer after the employer made also accusations that Appellant committed embezzlement and forgery. Shortly thereafter, Appellant's employer filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, both…
Date: June 15, 2023
Docket Numbers: 21-1407, 21-2672
Justia Opinion Summary: Out-of-work residents of Michigan may claim unemployment benefits if they meet certain eligibility criteria. The State’s Unemployment Insurance Agency oversees the benefits system. In 2011, with the help of private…
Date: June 12, 2023
Docket Number: 22-5002
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant violated the conditions of release that a district court imposed after it found him not guilty of an alleged crime by reason of insanity. Placing the burden on Defendant, the court found that Williams posed “a…
Date: June 12, 2023
Docket Number: 23-5035
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, pro se federal prisoner, moves for an order authorizing the district court to consider a second or successive motion to vacate or correct his sentence under 28 U.S.C. Section 2255. He also moved for default…
Date: June 9, 2023
Docket Number: 21-5811
Justia Opinion Summary: While Smith was hiding in the woods, with an outstanding parole violation, police arrested him with a loaded gun in his possession. Smith was charged with illegally possessing a firearm and ammunition as a felon, 18…
Date: June 9, 2023
Docket Number: 22-2037
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2005, FBI wire intercepts, part of an unrelated drug investigation, indicated that Day’s life was in danger from West and his associates. After Day was killed, West was charged with conspiracy to use interstate…
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