United States v. Umana, No. 10-6 (4th Cir. 2014)
Annotate this CaseDefendant appealed his conviction and death sentence stemming from his murder of two brothers. The court concluded that venue for the 18 U.S.C. 924(c) counts was appropriate in the Western District of North Carolina; the court rejected defendant's contention that his convictions on Counts 22 and 24 for murder in aid of racketeering punished conduct that "is a quintessential, noneconomic, local activity that lies beyond Congress's authority to regulate under the Commerce Clause;" defendant's convictions on Counts 22 and 25 do not exceed the government's Commerce Clause authority; the district court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to excuse two jurors; and the court rejected defendant's numerous remaining challenges. After careful consideration of each of defendant's arguments, as well as the record in this case, the court concluded that defendant had a fair trial and that the death penalty was justified by the jury's factual findings and by law and was not imposed under the improper influence of passion, prejudice, or any other arbitrary factor. Accordingly, the court affirmed the conviction and sentence.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on August 12, 2014.
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