2011 Seventh Circuit US Court of Appeals Case Law
Opinions 1 - 500 of 1188
Date: December 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2676
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2000 the Tribe received funding under the Hazardous Fuels Reduction program, created by the Bureau of Indian Affairs to gradually reintroduce the beneficial aspects of fire into ecosystems such as densely-wooded…
Date: December 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2837
Justia Opinion Summary: Former Illinois Department of Transportation employees alleged they were wrongfully terminated because of their political beliefs and party affiliation. They were among about 190 employees laid off in 2004 as part of…
Date: December 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2948
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2003, the Trust sought group accident and life insurance policies as a benefit for its union members. Consistent with the Trust's request, the broker's RFP specifically sought a policy where the "Trust is the owner of…
Date: December 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3465
Justia Opinion Summary: A medical provider filed proofs of claim in about 3,200 bankruptcy cases, 2003-2008, listing the debtors' medical treatment information. The filings were public and available on the docket. Debtors filed class action…
Date: December 30, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1344
Justia Opinion Summary: Officers stopped to investigate a gathering in front of a house. They saw defendant flee from the scene with a handgun in his waistband. After a chase, they arrested defendant and placed him in the back of a squad car. …
Date: December 30, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1662
Justia Opinion Summary: An officer obtained a warrant to search defendant's home with a supporting affidavit, based primarily on information provided by a confidential informant, who stated that he observed defendant with a firearm in the…
Date: December 30, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1696
Justia Opinion Summary: After obtaining evidence of his involv3ment in an armed bank robbery, officers stopped and searched Martin's vehicle and discovered marijuana, cocaine, and a revolver. Martin was arrested and transported to the sheriff's…
Date: December 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3967
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, an immigrant, cleaned houses. She formed a cleaning service in 1992. Defendant would deposit customers' checks in the business checking account, keep some money as a fee, and withdraw the remaining amount to…
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2046
Justia Opinion Summary: The former mayor and the head of the engineering department were convicted of conspiring to embezzle and embezzling government funds, based on use of government funds and government employees to renovate the mayor's…
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2055
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with intent to distribute, 21 U.S.C. 841 and 846, and 18 U.S.C. 2, and of conspiracy to import a controlled substance, 21 U.S.C. 952, 960, and 963,…
Date: December 27, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1219
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant and coconspirators stole clientele books from department stores and used personal information, including credit card numbers, to order merchandise, which was intercepted and sold or returned. She pleaded guilty…
Date: December 27, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3633
Justia Opinion Summary: Under the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act of 1980, all "trades or businesses" under "common control" are treated as a single employer for purposes of determining withdrawal liability. 29 U.S.C. 1301(b)(1).…
Date: December 27, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1382
Justia Opinion Summary: In a national emergency, the Department of Defense can augment its own capabilities with aircraft drawn from the "Civil Reserve Air Fleet," composed of aircraft owned by commercial carriers but committed voluntarily for…
Date: December 27, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2374
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1995, defendant signed a 10-year lease with plaintiff's predecessor and occupied about 20% of the building. In 1999, defendant's corporate parent decided to consolidate operations and needed up to an additional 60,000…
Date: December 27, 2011
Docket Number: 11-3030
Justia Opinion Summary: Class actions charged defendant, a credit-reporting agency, with violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. 1681, by selling consumer credit information to advertisers. The actions were consolidated and settled…
Date: December 23, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3932
Justia Opinion Summary: The Mexican nationals in consolidated cases re-entered the U.S. without authorization, having been removed following conviction of crimes. Charged with being in the U.S. after having been deported (8 U.S.C. 1326(a)),…
Date: December 23, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2999
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant and 16 others, was charged with crimes arising out of a conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana across several states. A jury found him guilty of 16 out of 19 charged counts. The Seventh Circuit…
Date: December 23, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2290
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 08-3084
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 09-1165
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2002 the city amended its ordinance to allow police to impound vehicles and impose a $500 fine on persons driving without a valid license or proof of insurance. The ordinance generated protests that it applied more…
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3096
Justia Opinion Summary: Parents disagreed with the school system's assessment of appropriate services for their four-year-old, who had suffered traumatic brain injuries. The Indiana Board of Special Education Appeals affirmed on most points,…
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2085
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff had filed a state suit against the corporation, which owned and operated a shopping center, alleging that he was entitled to a percentage of profits under a written agreement. After the bankruptcy petition, a…
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2104
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2008 the city levied fines against plaintiff, arising from a parcel of real estate that he no longer owned. When he did not pay those fines, the city retained defendant to collect. The district court dismissed his…
Date: December 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1184
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was sole owner of a corporation that was a contractor for several Illinois governmental entities. After an audit disclosed irregularities and falsified documents, defendant pled guilty to two counts of mail…
Date: December 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3476
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, a native of Mexico, became a lawful permanent resident of the U.S. in 1978. In 1996, he filed an Application for Naturalization, disclosing that he had been arrested for a marijuana crime in the 1980s, and for…
Date: December 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3557
Date: December 21, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1117
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was managing member of a partnership that built a warehouse and began receiving rent. In 2000, plaintiff acquired a 10% interest in the business that garnered about 45% of its net cash flow. A year later,…
Date: December 21, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1170
Justia Opinion Summary: On June 17, 2006, wife applied for a $500,000 life insurance policy. She paid $100 and signed a conditional receipt agreement for immediate coverage, subject to conditions that "on the Effective Date the Proposed…
Date: December 21, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2343
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant is a captive insurer owned by plaintiff plans across the nation. In 2003 healthcare providers filed class action suits in Florida against all of those plans. Twelve plans, which had errors-and-omissions…
Date: December 20, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3271
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued individual defendants and a bank alleging violations of Wisconsin Statute section 134.01, which prohibits conspiracies to willfully or maliciously injure the reputation, trade, business or profession of…
Date: December 19, 2011
Docket Number: 09-2308
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1995 a jury convicted petitioner of cocaine trafficking and tax-fraud. Direct appeals were unsuccessful. He later discovered that a member of the jury had called in sick one day in the middle of deliberations. The…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2172
Justia Opinion Summary: A tax employee of defendant, terminated after reporting an alleged tax fraud scheme to the company and federal enforcement agencies, filed suit asserting claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2363
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff injured his back while working for defendant. Following worker's compensation leave, he returned to work as a long-haul driver and worked without incident for two years. With the birth of his child, he asked to…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2793
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a Ukrainian citizen who entered the U.S. without inspection sought withholding of removal under the Convention Against Torture. The Immigration Judge stated that she was continuing the case for four months,…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3460
Justia Opinion Summary: Medicare Part A reimburses hospitals according to a Prospective Payment System (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d), which uses a predetermined formula to calculate reimbursement for each patient discharge without regard to the actual…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3849
Justia Opinion Summary: For 20 years, GEMS has been taking groups of African American high school students on tours of historically black universities. In 2008, the organization reserved 41 rooms at hotel in Baton Rouge. A day or two later, the…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1401
Justia Opinion Summary: The appellate court reversed plaintiff's murder conviction. He filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983, accusing officers of violating his rights by influencing a witness to identify him as the killer. The Seventh Circuit…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2146
Justia Opinion Summary: The law firm successfully represented plaintiff in a Title VII retaliation suit against her employer. The jury awarded $65,000 in damage. The attorneys then sought attorneys' fees of 131,665.88. The district court…
Date: December 14, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3924
Justia Opinion Summary: Convicted of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, and distribution of five grams or more of methamphetamine, defendant was sentenced to 292 months imprisonment for each count, set to run…
Date: December 14, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1221
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff claimed that she regularly arrived at her employer's factory 15 to 45 minutes before the start of her 5:00 a.m. shift and spent about 5 minutes unlocking doors, turning on lights, turning on the compressor,…
Date: December 14, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2336
Justia Opinion Summary: A pretrial detainee in a maximum security area expressed concern for his safety and was moved to an area for detainees charged with possessing weapons in jail. He later reported that detainees were bringing weapons into…
Date: December 13, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2926
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an Arab Muslim, served as an associate professor at a state from 2001 to 2006. His performance record was consistently sub-par, and he frequently sparred with policy decisions made by his supervisor. Informed…
Date: December 13, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2248
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant operated what appeared to be convenience stores, but in fact were fronts that rang up phony sales for food-stamp recipients to exchange their benefits for discounted amounts of cash. When federal investigators…
Date: December 12, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2346
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a 61-year-old Tunisian-Canadian dual citizen, met his wife, a U.S. citizen, in Canada and they married in 1977. They have two children. He became a lawful permanent resident of the U.S. in 1984. In 1988, he…
Date: December 12, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2623
Justia Opinion Summary: In anticipation of 2010 elections, the group challenged Wisconsin's "total of $10,000 in any calendar year" limit on individual contributions to state and local candidates, political parties, and political committees.…
Date: December 8, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3871
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs are producers of coal bed methane gas; defendant is large coal-mining company. Gas extraction firms need access to coal from which to extract gas and coal companies need to have gas removed from their mines…
Date: December 8, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1973
Date: December 7, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2088
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a driver, fell off a truck when he hit his head on low overhead pipes while attempting to unload chemicals at a facility owed by defendant. No employee of defendant instructed him or assisted. The court…
Date: December 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3010
Justia Opinion Summary: During closing arguments in his trial on charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm, 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1) and 924(e)(1), defendant's lawyer told the jury that "trials are about the truth." In rebuttal, the…
Date: December 6, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1100
Justia Opinion Summary: Unable to maintain a satisfactory academic record in a state dental school, plaintiff was dismissed. He unsuccessfully petitioned school committees and administrators to overturn the decision, then filed a complaint…
Date: December 6, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1424
Justia Opinion Summary: A provision of the Truth-in-Lending Act, 15 U.S.C. 1601, requires that consumers receive clear and conspicuous notice of the right to rescind within three days. Regulation Z requires that the consumer be given two copies…
Date: December 5, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3973
Justia Opinion Summary: The petitioners in consolidated cases have been in the U.S. for many years without permission, and each would like to adjust his status to that of lawful permanent resident through relatives who are…
Date: December 5, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2172
Justia Opinion Summary: When the debtor voluntarily declared bankruptcy under Chapter 7 its petition was signed only by its president, not a lawyer. The next day the company filed an amended petition signed by a lawyer. Before the filing, the…
Date: December 2, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1804
Justia Opinion Summary: An inmate began suffering from pain in his groin after an injury in 2004. Staff at the prison health unit recognized that his pain was caused by an inguinal hernia but gave him only mild pain medication. The inmate…
Date: December 2, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2856
Date: December 1, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2724
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff entered into a lease with the housing authority in 2007 as "Resident" and named her two sons as "Household Members." The lease provided that certain criminal activities could lead to immediate eviction.…
Date: November 30, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1921
Justia Opinion Summary: The McCaskill–Bond Amendment to the Federal Aviation Act, 49 U.S.C. 42112, provides that "combination of multiple air carriers into a single air carrier" requires the combined business to merge seniority lists of…
Date: November 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2418
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, an "infomercialist," violated a court-approved settlement with the FTC by misrepresenting the content of his book, The Weight Loss Cure They Don't Want You to Know About. The district court held him in…
Date: November 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2680
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff resigned from her probationary employment with the department of corrections after she was charged, by the state's attorney, with failure to cooperate in an investigation. She had been a witness in a criminal…
Date: November 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2760
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2005, petitioner, then a teenager, left Honduras and entered the U.S. illegally. When he was caught and DHS began removal proceedings, he filed an application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under…
Date: November 28, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2432
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2006 petitioner was sentenced as a career offender for conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine. His appeals were unsuccessful; the Supreme Court denied certiorari. Defendant was engaged in litigation with the state,…
Date: November 28, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1338
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2001 defendant was sentenced to 137 months' imprisonment, fined $1,250, and placed on supervised release for 3 years for conspiracy to possess crack cocaine with the intent to distribute. Conditions of release…
Date: November 23, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3432
Justia Opinion Summary: Illinois law permits purchasers of tickets to sporting contests, concerts, and similar events to resell tickets via auction sites on the Internet. Chicago, which imposes an amusement tax on the original ticket price,…
Date: November 23, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3506
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury awarded compensatory and punitive damages under 42 U.S.C. 1983 and 20 U.S.C. 1681 for failure by defendant,a middle school principal, to prevent sexual abuse of several female students by their band teacher. The…
Date: November 23, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1266
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs' insurance policy indemnifies them against liability under several federal environmental protection laws or the state-law equivalents. They attempted to invoke their policy for up to $10 million in coverage…
Date: November 23, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1426
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of eight counts of filing a false income tax return (26 U.S.C. 7206(1)). The Seventh Circuit affirmed. Although the district court applied the wrong standard in determining whether defendant could…
Date: November 23, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1665
Justia Opinion Summary: The Seventh Circuit consolidated two cases involving transfer to courts in another country. One is an appeal from an order to transfer cases involving vehicular accidents allegedly caused by tires installed on vehicles…
Date: November 23, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2112
Justia Opinion Summary: Indiana University had an Instructional Television Fixed Service license, issued by the FCC, that authorized broadcast on specified frequencies. A not-for-profit ITFS licensee can lease unused frequencies to a for-profit…
Date: November 22, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2297
Justia Opinion Summary: After a four-year investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Chicago Police Department, a grand jury indicted defendant and six codefendants for organized distribution of controlled substances. Defendant…
Date: November 22, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3296
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of tax evasion, a felony (26 U.S.C. 7201), and failure to file a tax return for the 2004 tax year, a misdemeanor (26 U.S.C. 7203). The Seventh Circuit affirmed in part. Defendant waived his claim…
Date: November 22, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3878
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner sued under 42 U.S.C. 1983, claiming that Indiana prison officials violently roused him from his cell and in the process broke his arm. After a second remand, the district court resolved the factual disputes in…
Date: November 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1459
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff and her husband divorced in 2002. He was an executive of defendant, a closely held corporation, a supermarket chain. The divorce decree transferred to wife some of his stock "until such time as [he] is first…
Date: November 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-8020
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court certified a class in a suit under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (as amended by the Junk Fax Prevention Act of 2005), 47 U.S.C. 227. The Seventh Circuit vacated and remanded for the court…
Date: November 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1300
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff was banned from the senior center because she repeatedly violated the code of conduct by yelling, making threats, and making frivolous complaints to police. She sued the city under 42 U.S.C. 1983 claiming…
Date: November 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3523
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff provided day care in his home. When a sick child collapsed, he performed CPR and called 911. Police arrested plaintiff for aggravated battery and falsely told him that a doctor had stated that the baby's…
Date: November 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3873
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was the pharmacy director of a medical center and had influence over decisions concerning which drugs to stock. Levato was the local business manager of a pharmaceutical company. Levato agreed to pay defendant…
Date: November 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1194
Justia Opinion Summary: After falling from a three-foot-high mini-scaffold and injuring his hand and knee, plaintiff brought a product liability action against the manufacturer of the scaffold. The district court granted defendant's motion to…
Date: November 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3934
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47 U.S.C. 227, seeking to enjoin defendant from sending unsolicited text messages to cellphone users and damages. He estimated that more than 1,000 people had…
Date: November 18, 2011
Docket Number: 11-8017
Justia Opinion Summary: The Illinois Attorney General filed suit against eight manufacturers of LCD panels for violations of the Illinois Antitrust Act, claiming that the defendants unlawfully inflated prices on LCD products sold to the state,…
Date: November 17, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1271
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff's suit against the municipality and officials alleged that his water was shut off without due process and that he was singled out as a "class of one" for irrational or political reasons in violation of the…
Date: November 17, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2438
Justia Opinion Summary: Workers filed numerous class actions alleging that the company improperly classified them as independent contractors rather than employees. The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) consolidated more than 70…
Date: November 16, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1651
Justia Opinion Summary: Husband and wife operated a mortgage fraud scheme that bought residential properties and sold those properties to nominee buyers at inflated prices. They provided lenders with false information about buyers' finances,…
Date: November 16, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2100
Date: November 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3945
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of aggravated driving while license revoked, 625 ILCS 5/6-303(a), (d-3) (2008), a Class 4 felony carrying a mandatory minimum sentence of 180 days' imprisonment. He was taken into custody on…
Date: November 10, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1869
Justia Opinion Summary: In pleading guilty to four felony charges, defendant admitted that he had forcibly detained a 17-year-old boy, threatening to kill him if he resisted or tried to escape, and raped him. Charges that defendant had raped a…
Date: November 10, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2259
Justia Opinion Summary: Convicted of producing sexually explicit photographs of his minor daughters which later crossed international boundaries, (18 U.S.C. 2251(a)), defendant was sentenced to a prison term of 38 years. The Seventh Circuit…
Date: November 10, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2705
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a financial advisor, sued her employer for allegedly discriminating based on her gender and retaliating against her because of her complaints of gender discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil…
Date: November 10, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3748
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a correctional officer, is a veteran of the Persian Gulf War, and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder for years. After an argument with his wife, plaintiff left his home and drove around the area,…
Date: November 10, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1785
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court dismissed a claim of breach of fiduciary duty, filed by owners of common stock in a closed-end investment fund, under the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act of 1998, which prohibits securities…
Date: November 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3330
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a law firm marketing director, took leave under the Family Medical Leave Act just before the birth of her child and continuing after the birth. While she was on leave, her supervisors informed her that her…
Date: November 9, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1622
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen of Morocco, entered the U.S. as a visitor in 1998, married a citizen. and adjusted his status to that of a lawful permanent resident on a conditional basis. When he filed an I-751 petition to remove…
Date: November 9, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2452
Date: November 8, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3430
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed a charge with the EEOC accusing her employer, the Department of the Navy, of discriminating on account of race, sex, national origin, age, and disability. The EEOC found the charge unsupported. In the…
Date: November 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3155
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, convicted of two murders and of the rape and aggravated kidnapping of another individual, unsuccessfully seeking post-conviction relief in state courts. The district court denied a petition for a writ of…
Date: November 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3340
Justia Opinion Summary: Mother applied for supplemental security income on her daughter's behalf shortly before daughter's s eighteenth birthday, claiming that daughter was disabled by a combination of mental impairments (including bipolar…
Date: November 7, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1642
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner entered the U.S. from Mexico illegally and married another undocumented alien. Their three children are U.S. citizens. Removal proceedings began after he was convicted for DUI at least four times, for driving…
Date: November 4, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3317
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant left his seriously dysfunctional home at age 14 and began living with an adult who sold him to older men for sex. They were joined by two young girls. The four engaged in group sex. Defendant was convicted of…
Date: November 3, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3863
Justia Opinion Summary: Suspecting that defendant was operating a cocaine-trafficking ring, officers conducted a traffic stop and found $3,800, but no drugs. An officer declined defendant's offer of a bribe and reported it to his supervisor,…
Date: November 3, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1064
Justia Opinion Summary: Purchasers sued the manufacturer, claiming that their motorhome had numerous defects and that defendant misrepresented the size of its engine. The district court entered summary judgment in favor of defendant. The…
Date: November 1, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1409
Justia Opinion Summary: Decedent was arrested for contempt of court and was treated for alcohol withdrawal before being jailed. After he was jailed, his repeated requests for medication were denied. He was assigned high risk status and…
Date: November 1, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1599
Justia Opinion Summary: The company, an egg producer, was charged in class action suits with conspiring to fix the price of eggs, in violation of section 1 of the Sherman Act. and requested that its liability insurers defend. The company argued…
Date: November 1, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1799
Date: November 1, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1846
Justia Opinion Summary: Following multiple surgeries for back injuries and multiple, unsuccessful, claims for disability benefits, the applicant asserted, in a 2008 hearing, that she had been disabled since 2004 and was still disabled but had…
Date: October 31, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3948
Justia Opinion Summary: Claimant owned a hotel adjoining the CDC landfill. CDC hired debtor to build a system for dealing with gases generated in the landfill. In 1999, debtor was forced into bankruptcy. The landfill's gas control system…
Date: October 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1354
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native of Guatemala and a lawful permanent resident in the U.S. since 1980, faced removal as a result of a 1989 Illinois conviction for sexual abuse of a minor. He initially argued that he was not subject…
Date: October 25, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1261
Justia Opinion Summary: Convicted of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine, 21 U.S.C. 846 and of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, 18 U.S.C. 924(c), defendants were…
Date: October 25, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1489
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a supplier of outdoor power equipment, gave defendant, a disttributer of such equipment, as well as of irrigation equipment, a distributor agreement with a multi-state territory. After about four years,…
Date: October 25, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1953
Justia Opinion Summary: A sergeant, passed over for promotion to lieutenant, filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983, claiming that he was passed over because he is a Republican and did not contribute to the then-sheriff's campaign fund. The district…
Date: October 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2661
Justia Opinion Summary: During a radio call-in show, plaintiff, a deputy sheriff, called in response to critical comments regarding defendant's (county sheriff) involvement with an African-American community organization dedicated to reducing…
Date: October 21, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2120
Justia Opinion Summary: The parties, involved in patent infringement cases, agreed to a settlement that required dismissal of their lawsuits and included an arbitration provision and request that a bank subordinate its interests in defendant's…
Date: October 20, 2011
Docket Number: 09-2645
Justia Opinion Summary: After receiving a call from the owner, stating that a robbery suspect was in the store, a police officer fatally shot a man as he exited a convenience store. The decedent disregarded the officer's repeated commands to…
Date: October 20, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3561
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff's decedent was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend as she left her church. The shooter committed suicide; he was on parole for an earlier homicide and had a history of harassing and assaulting decedent in…
Date: October 18, 2011
Docket Number: 09-2042
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff was terminated as a probationary police officer. A supervisor stated that plaintiff violated departmental rules by revealing confidential information to another recruit during a training exercise, repeatedly…
Date: October 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2117
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff had previously worked for the employer before being hired as a full-time employee in 2005. When budget cuts necessitated layoffs, plaintiff thought his job was secure until he requested leave for surgery and…
Date: October 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2212
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2004 plaintiff began working with a new supervisor,who removed many of plaintiff's job duties because he thought plaintiff, age 57, was too old. Plaintiff complained to the vice president of the company and the Equal…
Date: October 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3441
Justia Opinion Summary: In May 2010 defendant entered a plea of guilty to possession with intent to distribute five grams or more of crack cocaine (21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B)) and two counts of distribution of heroin and crack (21 U.S.C.…
Date: October 17, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3267
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff claims that fiber identified on the nutrition label (required by 21 U.S.C. 343(q)(1))of "chewy bars" made and sold by defendants is inferior to unprocessed fiber and can be harmful. The district judge held that…
Date: October 17, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3544
Justia Opinion Summary: Airlines, users of airports owned by the City of Chicago, have use agreements that make they city responsible for runway clearing. The airlines pay a per-landing fee, based on the city's actual expenses. In 1999 and 2000…
Date: October 11, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2967
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant's website displayed "exhibition" pornography, such as exhibition of children's genitals, but no images of sexual contact. Some users advertised or distributed child pornography to other users. When agents…
Date: October 11, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3497
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an inmate, worked as a library clerk. Defendant, the director of education, ordered plaintiff fired on the ground that, on the job, he had highlighted copies of opinions for personal use and had stolen an…
Date: October 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1188
Justia Opinion Summary: The same day that debtor discharged his debts in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, his mother, died, leaving debtor and his brother equal shares in an estate. Debtor signed a disclaimer of his interest, but never told the trustee…
Date: October 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1214
Justia Opinion Summary: Seven months after the bank recruited plaintiff to serve as a vice presidents, it fired her. She had no performance issues, no attendance problems, and no complaints against her. She had dinner with a member of the board…
Date: October 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2382
Justia Opinion Summary: When police arrested defendant on an assault charge, they found crack cocaine secreted in his pants leg. The district court denied a motion to suppress and, after accepting a conditional guilty plea, imposed the…
Date: October 4, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3335
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, members of a religious organization, demonstrated around the stadium at which the 2006 "Gay Games" were held, but were prohibited from demonstrating and preaching on the sidewalk. They stopped demonstrating…
Date: October 3, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3117
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty, in 1997, to multiple counts of fraud, money laundering, and perjury and was sentenced to 78 months' imprisonment, five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $1,587,321.50 in restitution…
Date: October 3, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3975
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff complained that defendant told credit agencies that she was behind in payments on a loan in violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. 1681s–2(a). The district court dismissed the federal claim on…
Date: October 3, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2070
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1992 two companies began a joint venture to develop peptide compounds. The agreement provides that inventions created by joint efforts are jointly owned, but inventions attributable to a single party are owned by that…
Date: September 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2234
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff owns 2,485 acres containing Indiana's only antebellum plantation and 2,000 acres of "classified forest," with endangered species habitats. A utility company has a lease for storing and extracting oil and…
Date: September 28, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1193
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, citizens of Illinois, brought a class action on behalf of licensed drivers in several states against West Publishing, asserting claims under the Driver’' Privacy Protection Act, 18 U.S.C. 2722. They contend…
Date: September 27, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1185
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2000, plaintiff sold 6600 acres of farmland for $16.35 million to an environmental organization, which wanted to restore it as an ecologically functional floodplain for the Illinois River. Plaintiff expressly…
Date: September 26, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1100
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2000 husband and wife, citizens of Lithuania, entered the U.S. with illegally-obtained visas. They have two children born in Lithuania and a third born in the U.S. When the visa fraud was discovered, they cooperated…
Date: September 26, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3002
Justia Opinion Summary: Convicted of distributing crack cocaine, Count 1 involving distribution of five or more grams, and Count 2 encompassing distribution of 50 or more grams, defendant faced a statutory minimum sentence of 10 years'…
Date: September 26, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3245
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered a plea of guilty to two counts of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, without a plea agreement. A probation officer recommended 262 to 327 months' imprisonment based on the Guidelines,…
Date: September 26, 2011
Docket Number: 11-8018
Justia Opinion Summary: The class action alleges that the company committed fraud by charging for uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage that is worthless in light of policy restrictions. The district court remanded to state court based on…
Date: September 23, 2011
Docket Number: 09-2805
Justia Opinion Summary: Officers went to plaintiff's home to question her sons about a burglary. A confrontation ensued and escalated. One of the officers Tasered plaintiff three times, and the officers arrested her for obstruction and…
Date: September 23, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1572
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner entered a plea of guilty to possession of firearm by a felon (18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1) and waived his right to contest any aspect of his conviction or sentence unless the sentence exceeded either the…
Date: September 23, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1712
Justia Opinion Summary: Most of the world's reserves of potash, a mineral used primarily in fertilizer, are in Canada, Russia, and Belarus. Defendants are producers with mines in those countries. Plaintiffs are direct and indirect potash…
Date: September 23, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3044
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit, pro se, under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging arrest without probably cause and assault. The judge allowed him to proceed in forma pauperis. After plaintiff delayed in responding to a draft pretrial order,…
Date: September 22, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2379
Date: September 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1418
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff was fired from his position as senior vice president and claimed that it was based on his actions in opposing actions by a mid-level supervisor that he claimed amounted to sexual and racial discrimination. The…
Date: September 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3241
Justia Opinion Summary: After a pyramid scheme that he had maintained for nearly a decade came to light, defendant pleaded guilty to one count of fraud, 18 U.S.C. 1341. The district court sentenced him well above the applicable guidelines range…
Date: September 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3254
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an attorney, was fired from his job as an associate and filed suit, asserting defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. After the suit was dismissed and while a state appeal was pending, he…
Date: September 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3416
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant did not inform the government when his mother died, but, for 12 years cashed checks for benefits she had earned under the Civil Service Retirement System, netting $158,000. He pleaded guilty to mail fraud. His…
Date: September 20, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1696
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of one count of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder and sentenced to 90 years in prison, unsuccessfully sought relief in Illinois state courts then filed a federal habeas corpus…
Date: September 20, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3177
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a freight railroad, owned a spur line connecting to a plastics plant, the only shipper located on the spur. Defendant, another railroad, bought the lines, including the spur. The sales contract allowed…
Date: September 20, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3898
Justia Opinion Summary: After being diagnosed with fibromyalgia, chronic pain, anxiety, and depression, plaintiff was awarded long-term disability benefits under an employee benefit plan issued and administered by defendant. Benefits were…
Date: September 20, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1524
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner brought a "Bivens" action, claiming that prison officials provided him with limited, deficient access to the law library for four months while he was confined in a special unit. He claims that the prison…
Date: September 19, 2011
Docket Number: 09-1487
Justia Opinion Summary: The owner of an outdoor amphitheater in a rural area claimed that the sheriff forced him to hire off-duty deputies as a private security force for events and threatened to close the road leading to his property if he did…
Date: September 19, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3272
Justia Opinion Summary: In a loan-and-supply contract, plaintiff agreed to provide defendant with a $150,000 loan that would be gradually forgiven over five years as defendant purchased specified quantities of motor-oil products from plaintiff.…
Date: September 19, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2428
Justia Opinion Summary: A 1993 Ford Explorer, struck by another car near the left rear wheel, rolled over. Plaintiffs, driver and passenger, were injured. At the close of discovery in their case against the manufacturer, plaintiffs had not…
Date: September 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1681
Justia Opinion Summary: The inmate asked for a vegan diet, telling the chaplain that he adheres to the Moorish Science Temple. The chaplain rejected the request, observing that the tenets of Moorish Science require a non-pork diet, which can…
Date: September 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2564
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant flew a propeller plane loaded with more than 150 pounds of marijuana from California to Wisconsin; was caught; pled guilty to violating 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1); and was sentenced to 65 months' imprisonment, 3…
Date: September 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3381
Justia Opinion Summary: A part-time school custodian, suffering mental disability, applied for full-time positions and was rejected. His performance had been evaluated as unsatisfactory. He filed a charge with the EEOC. A few months later the…
Date: September 15, 2011
Docket Number: 09-4112
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, publisher of a newsletter about the Wisconsin state prison system, filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 after prison officials concluded that the March 2007 edition posed an unacceptable risk to inmate…
Date: September 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1521
Justia Opinion Summary: Before his death, the orthodontist designated his sons as beneficiaries of a pension plan he had established for his business. Because the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, 29 U.S.C. 1001. The Plan moved for…
Date: September 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2254
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of possessing crack cocaine with intent to distribute, 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1). The Seventh Circuit affirmed. The district court properly refused to dismiss evidence related to drugs found in…
Date: September 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2260
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, employed by the Department of Homeland Security, filed a six-count employment discrimination suit in 2007. After the district court granted a motion to dismiss two counts, DHS failed to answer the complaint,…
Date: September 14, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3929
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, imprisoned in Wisconsin for a term of 60 years following a 1994 conviction for sexual assault and attempted homicide, sought a writ of habeas corpus (28 U.S.C. 2254). The district court dismissed. The…
Date: September 13, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3883
Justia Opinion Summary: A successful Ford dealership in Iowa offered to assist struggling Middleton, Wisconsin dealership. The parties agreed that Iowa's general manager would provide management services to Middleton with compensation to begin…
Date: September 13, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3891
Date: September 12, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3280
Justia Opinion Summary: When he arrived at the prison, plaintiff told the prison clinical director that he had rheumatoid arthritis and asked for Enbrel, a medication successful in controlling the condition before his incarceration. Because…
Date: September 12, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1091
Justia Opinion Summary: After pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a felon, 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1), defendant was sentenced at the top of his Guidelines range to 33 months' imprisonment. The Seventh Circuit dismissed an appeal for lack of…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1430
Justia Opinion Summary: Half-brothers, caught in sting operation, were convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine, and attempting to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, 21 U.S.C.…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2922
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs alleged that the school district practice of holding high school graduation ceremonies and related events at a Christian church rented for the occasion violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3214
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff began working as a correctional officer for DOC in 2006, assigned to duty that required walking. In 2007, she was reassigned to a control room and no longer required to walk. In 2007, plaintiff received a…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3682
Justia Opinion Summary: Between 2003 and 2006, more than 2,000 fell victim to defendants' internet fraud scheme that involved individuals outside the U.S., often based in Romania posing as sellers of goods on eBay and other internet auction…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3802
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner proceeded in forma pauperis in the district court, but the court discovered that $1,501 had been deposited in his prison account during the previous six months. When petitioner sought leave to appeal of denial…
Date: September 7, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3209
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, convicted of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine, was sentenced to life imprisonment. The Seventh Circuit affirmed. The district court properly admitted…
Date: September 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1081
Justia Opinion Summary: After intercepting a shipment of marijuana from Mexico, federal agents executed a controlled delivery. Because the address on the shipment did not exist and they could not locate the addressee, the agents contacted the…
Date: September 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1613
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute more than 400 grams of substances containing a detectable amount of fentanyl and more than a kilogram of substances containing a detectable amount of heroin. Fentanyl is…
Date: September 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2180
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff was operating a video camera in public park, perhaps because of the presence of a former domestic partner. An angry crowd accused him of videotaping their children in a public park and called police, who…
Date: September 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3751
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner fled Colombia after the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia pursued him relentlessly, subjecting him to multiple hijackings at gunpoint, directing death threats at him and his family, and burning his…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 09-2823
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was arrested in a park while on his was to meet a person he believed to be a 15-year-old girl with whom he had been chatting online. He called his family and asked that they hide electronic equipment in his…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 09-4081
Justia Opinion Summary: The defined-contribution pension plan allows participants to choose among 32 options, including 24 mutual funds that are open to the public. These funds are no-load vehicles that do not charge a fee to buy or sell…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 09-4111
Justia Opinion Summary: The company terminated plaintiff's employment in 2008 because he failed to meet his sales quota. A suit for unpaid wages under Wisconsin's wage-claim statute, alternatively seeking recovery under equitable contract…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1532
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant participated in a number of drug transactions involving the sale of a total of 74.2 grams of crack cocaine and was convicted of conspiracy to distribute more than 50 grams of cocaine base, distribution of more…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2058
Justia Opinion Summary: During an undercover FBI investigation of corruption in the Harvey Police Department, defendant, an officer, was discovered engaging in a drug deal. He was charged with attempting knowingly or intentionally to possess,…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2069
Justia Opinion Summary: The Tribe operates a Wisconsin casino and financed investment in a Natchez, Mississippi riverboat casino by issuing bonds backed by casino revenue. The bank, as trustee, alleged that the Tribe had breached a bond…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2160
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, a participant in a major mortgage fraud scheme, pled guilty to committing wire fraud as part of that scam and was sentenced to 37 months in prison and ordered to pay $1,792,000 in restitution. His role was to…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2753
Justia Opinion Summary: Husband, a resident of Sweden, sought return of his child, under the Child Abduction Remedies Act, 42 U.S.C. 11601., which implements the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. Wife had…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3670
Justia Opinion Summary: An Indiana inmate, alleging mistreatement during a shakedown, was denied permission to proceed in forma pauperis because his three previous suits had been dismissed (28 U.S.C. 1915(g)). The Seventh Circuit reversed…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1335
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2004 HD contracted with plaintiff, to develop an inventory classification system, called a taxonomy,for HD’s database. Plaintiff would own the intellectual-property rights and would license HD to use it at no-cost as…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1900
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2007 employee retired when the steel plant, at which he had worked for 42 years, shut down. Under a plan negotiated by the union, his pension payment, without any offset, was $688.13 a month. Employee was told that…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1978
Justia Opinion Summary: When an employee left the company in 1997, took a $47,850 lump sum distribution of his pension. He later believed that the payment should have included the present value of future cost of living adjustments that would…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1982
Justia Opinion Summary: Returning to work after 12 weeks of FMLA leave (29 U.S.C. 2615) to receive treatment for gastroesophageal reflux, employee was assigned to a different position. He received the same pay and benefits, but considered the…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2284
Justia Opinion Summary: In attempting to enroll his infant daughter, a covered employee failed to complete parts of the form indicating whether the child resided with employee, was dependent upon employee for more than 50 percent support and…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2284
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2780
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor, a limited liability company, was formed by five members, who made up a Board of Managers. Forte had a 12% interest. After his requests to inspect of business records were denied, Forte sued Lynch, the member with…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2899
Justia Opinion Summary: Citizens of Jordan received visitor visas and came to the U.S. in the 1990s. The family stayed beyond the expiration of the visas because a child born in the U.S. had health problems. Wife was told that, because of…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3538
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, a non-profit company that blocks unwanted bulk e-mail, maintains a list of internet protocol addresses of spam distributors, which internet service providers use to block e-mails originating from those…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3916
Justia Opinion Summary: A longtime employee of the Illinois Secretary of State's office, the only African-American on a crew of 27 maintenance workers, was fired after incidents concerning his knowledge of private use of state property and an…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1205
Justia Opinion Summary: Because defendant, stopped for speeding, behaved oddly, the officer had a canine perform a free-air search. The dog alerted and defendant consented to a search of the car. During a pat-down, defendant tried to pull away,…
Date: September 1, 2011
Docket Number: 09-2476
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, the master-mind of a mortgage fraud scheme, was convicted of wire fraud. She claimed that the 1,229-day delay between the date on which the last of her codefendants was arraigned and the start of her trial…
Date: September 1, 2011
Docket Number: 09-2988
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2000 the conservancy purchased property, but allowed the farmer to remain as a tenant through 2003. The farmer/seller was required to perform removal of specified substances and warranted that there were no…
Date: September 1, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1411
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner entered the U.S. in 1993 as a minor and became involved with a gang. In 2000, he was serving an Illinois sentence for robbery and aggravated battery. He was removed to Mexico in 2001 and was prohibited from…
Date: September 1, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2311
Justia Opinion Summary: A newborn suffered severe brain damage because doctors failed to promptly diagnose and treat an infection contracted at his 2003 birth. He was born prematurely and certain tests, normally done during pregnancy, were not…
Date: September 1, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2782
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1998 defendant was one of 14 persons charged in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Chicago with conspiracy to import and distribute heroin (21 U.S.C. 963). He was indicted in his own name and under…
Date: September 1, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3103
Justia Opinion Summary: Following armed robbery of a drug stash house, one defendant conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute mixtures containing in excess of five kilograms of cocaine (21 U.S.C. 846), and knowingly possessing and…
Date: September 1, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3835
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs provide in-home care through Medicaid-waiver programs run by the Illinois Department of Human Services; some work through a Rehabilitation Program and others through a Disabilities Program. In 2003, the…
Date: August 31, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3760
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2001 plaintiff received prenatal care from a clinic that receives federal funds. Its physicians and the clinic are deemed federal employees for purposes of malpractice liability, so that the United States could be…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3673
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner left China to seek asylum in the U.S. and claims that family-planning authorities forced her to have an abortion. Her evidence included a letter from her mother, confirming her version of events and documents…
Date: August 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3395
Justia Opinion Summary: A diabetic, suffering a hypoglycemic episode while driving, veered off the road. Officers believed he was intoxicated. When he did not comply with commands to step out of his car, they physically removed him, maced him…
Date: August 26, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1364
Justia Opinion Summary: The state agency took a 15-month-old away from his home and parents and into temporary protective custody, following an accident and a hospital visit. Protective custody involved a safety plan that limited the parents'…
Date: August 26, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1555
Justia Opinion Summary: A sausage manufacturer brought claims against its former business partner, Pizza Hut, in 1993. In 2002 the manufacturer agreed to drop its last remaining claim, trade secret misappropriation, in exchange for a $15.3…
Date: August 26, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2201
Justia Opinion Summary: The company employed plaintiff as activity director in a nursing home in from August 2006 to March 2007. In January 2007, plaintiff learned she was pregnant. Her doctor placed her on bed rest for two weeks, and, later,…
Date: August 26, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2340
Justia Opinion Summary: Federal regulators limit the number of hours during which commercial truck drivers may operate their vehicles in a given day and over the course of a week, 49 C.F.R. 395.8(b) (2010). The traditional paper system for…
Date: August 26, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2755
Justia Opinion Summary: The parties agree that the company attempted to collect an overdue hospital bill in a way that violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. 1692 and that plaintiff is entitled to statutory damages of…
Date: August 26, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3042
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner entered the U.S. from Mexico as a three-year-old and grew up in Los Angeles. In 2001 he was arrested for importation and sale of a significant amount of cocaine; while on bail, he was twice arrested for…
Date: August 26, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3244
Justia Opinion Summary: South Sudan declared its independence from Sudan in July, 2011. President Obama formally recognized the new republic on the same day. One month earlier, the Seventh Circuit heard oral arguments in a case claiming that…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3884
Justia Opinion Summary: When plaintiff, a 14-year employee, was terminated from his position he negotiated a severance package based, in part, on his belief that he would be receiving a pension in a certain amount from the company's pension…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1775
Justia Opinion Summary: A prominent civil rights activist, known for protesting police practices, died in custody about 27 hours after being arrested on drug charges. She was disabled, obese, and took daily medications for ailments, including…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2960
Justia Opinion Summary: A class action suit against tobacco-related entities, first filed in 1998, alleged that for years the tobacco companies conspired to conceal the facts about the addictive and dangerous nature of cigarettes by…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3075
Justia Opinion Summary: Inmates sued (officials in the Illinois Department of Corrections for marking up the price of commissary goods beyond the statutory cap (730 ILCS 5/3-7-2a). The district court screened the complaint under 28 U.S.C.…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1584
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2148
Justia Opinion Summary: A prisoner filed a pro se lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging violations of civil rights by interfering with delivery of legal mail and failing to provide a sufficient law library. The district court denied his…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 09-4008
Justia Opinion Summary: Original defendants wanted to build a power plant in southern Illinois. In the first appeal, the Seventh Circuit concluded that defendants' Prevention of Significant Deterioration (“PSD”) permit (42 U.S.C. 7475(a)), had…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1139
Justia Opinion Summary: The inmate attended services until the prison cancelled African Hebrew Israelite services. The prison denied his grievance, blaming budget cuts. The Grievance Officer and Department Director upheld the denial on the…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1618
Justia Opinion Summary: A Polish citizen, who entered the U.S. on a visitor's visa in 1994, overstayed, and allegedly tried to bribe an immigration officer in a 1999 sting operation. Before her removal proceedings began, she married a U.S.…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1975
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff began working as a dentist at a facility for jail detainees in 1982. By 2006, Cook County had a budget shortfall of 500 million dollars. It was determined that the facility could provide sufficient care with…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2012
Justia Opinion Summary: An inmate sued, claiming that the prison medical director was deliberately indifferent to his need for eye surgery. He was diagnosed in 2001, with pterygia, a thin film covering the eye, which significantly obstructs his…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2031
Justia Opinion Summary: A gun was discovered on defendant's person after he was pulled over on suspicion of a burglary attempt and ordered out of his vehicle for a protective patdown. Defendant had prior felony convictions, and pled guilty as a…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2052
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant manufactures medical goods and has distributors all over the U.S., including plaintiffs, which had exclusive distributorship agreements. When defendant terminated the agreements, plaintiffs were forced to shut…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2114
Justia Opinion Summary: City employees accepted early retirement incentives in 2004 while their unions were still negotiating new collective bargaining agreements for 2003-2007. In 2005, after two years of negotiations, the city and unions…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2435
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of causing great bodily harm by operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of cocaine (Wis. Stat. 940.25(1)(am) exhausted state appeals and filed an unsuccessful petition for writ of…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2627
Justia Opinion Summary: As the governing body for middle and high school athletic programs, WIAA sponsors post-season tournaments. In 2005, WIAA gave a video production company exclusive rights to stream nearly all tournament events online; if…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3134
Justia Opinion Summary: After plaintiff filed suit in state court, Inc., alleging overbillings in excess of $100,000, defendant removed to federal court. The parties are of diverse citizenship. More than a year and a half after the lawsuit…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3433
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, age 60, a lawful permanent resident of the U.S. since 1999, pled guilty to aiding and abetting a conspiracy to violate 8 U.S.C. 1328, which prohibits importation of any alien for the purpose of prostitution,…
Date: August 24, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3891
Justia Opinion Summary: Asian carp have migrated up the Mississippi River and are at the brink of the man-made Chicago-Area Waterway System path to the Great Lakes. The carp are dangerous to the eco-system, people, and property. States…
Date: August 23, 2011
Docket Number: 09-2569
Justia Opinion Summary: An informant alerted law enforcement that defendant planned to rob an armored car. The FBI opened an investigation and recorded meetings at which the informant and defendant spoke about the planned robbery. On the day of…
Date: August 23, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1446
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, convicted of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine (21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B)), was sentenced to 360 months' imprisonment. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, finding the evidence sufficient to…
Date: August 23, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3623
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner entered the U.S. from Mexico in 1971, and became a lawful permanent resident in 1977. In 2003, she was indicted for mail fraud in connection with a staged accident insurance scheme; loss to the victims…
Date: August 23, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3735
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, born in Mexico, entered the U.S. without inspection in 1977. In 1982, he purported to marry an American woman while still married to his wife in Mexico. He was admitted as a lawful permanent resident in…
Date: August 23, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3743
Justia Opinion Summary: Decedent, on active duty, committed suicide in his barracks. Navy and Department of Defense personnel had been called and arrived at his residence, but did not find the gun they were told he had. They permitted decedent…
Date: August 22, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2824
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of possession of child pornography and attempting to entice a minor to engage in a sexual act (18 U.S.C. 2252(a)(4)(B) and 2422(b)). The Seventh Circuit affirmed. The trial court acted within its…
Date: August 19, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1156
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury, composed entirely of women, acquitted petitioner on state law charges of second-degree sexual assault by sexual intercourse but found him guilty of unlawful sexual contact with a 15-year-old girl. After…
Date: August 19, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2245
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, involved in cocaine distribution, provided assistance to investigators to implicate others in exchange for a favorable plea agreement. That agreement required the government to recommend a sentence about half…
Date: August 19, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2528
Justia Opinion Summary: The Union claimed that the company breached the operative collective bargaining agreement by closing a manufacturing plants, after it had secured various concessions from the Union and sought damages and specific…
Date: August 19, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2652
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2004, defendant spent approximately $38,000 on home repairs for a Chicago alderman, a crucial player in defendant's attempt to have industrial property rezoned for commercial and residential development. Defendant…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 09-1190
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2002, state and federal authorities began investigation of gang violence in Aurora, Illinois. Defendants were convicted of conspiracy under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, 18 U.S.C. 1962(d),…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 09-2863
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2002, state and federal authorities began investigation of gang violence in Aurora, Illinois, centered on the Insane Deuces, as one member had agreed to serve as a confidential informant. Defendants participated in…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2164
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit (42 U.S.C. 1983) based on three arrests: one for disorderly conduct for his attempts to dissuade a city employee from towing his car; a second, months later, for theft of lost or mislaid property…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3935
Justia Opinion Summary: Companies filed suit, alleging that an employee engaged in a collusive trading scheme in violation of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Under section 9(a) of the Act, a private plaintiff must plead that: a series of…
Date: August 17, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2744
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit seeking unpaid wages, overtime pay, and accrued vacation pay, after being terminated from her job at hotel, where she worked as a security guard and desk clerk. The district court granted defendants…
Date: August 17, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3847
Justia Opinion Summary: The company made and sold a toy that, when swallowed, made children seriously ill. The product was recalled and removed from store shelves. Plaintiffs, purchasers whose children were not harmed and who did not ask for a…
Date: August 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3696
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff suffered a heart attack when police searched her apartment and arrested her during a drug raid. She claims that police unreasonably seized her by denying a request for aspirin and refusing to call an ambulance…
Date: August 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3903
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff claims that defendants are billing aggregators engaged in "cramming" by placing unauthorized charges on telephone bills, arranged unauthorized charges on plaintiff's telephone bill, and were responsible for…
Date: August 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2379
Justia Opinion Summary: When plaintiffs left their jobs, they did not receive notices describing how to extend their health insurance coverage within the period prescribed by statute (COBRA notices). Responding to solicitation from a lawyer,…
Date: August 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3287
Justia Opinion Summary: The company decided to voluntarily terminate its qualified plan under the Employment Retirement Income Security Act, 29 U.S.C. 1001, but after going through initial statutory steps, realized that it would be too…
Date: August 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3543
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1993 defendant was convicted of growing 228 marijuana plants and was sentenced to 120 months in prison and 8 years of supervised release. In 2009, days before supervised release was to end, he was arrested while…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3601
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant sold crack to a confidential informant; the FBI captured the negotiations and transactions, which occurred in defendant's car, on audio recordings. Agents also conducted visual and video surveillance of the…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3229
Justia Opinion Summary: A developer was required to make public improvements to be turned over to the city and, in 2006, obtained bonds to ensure performance, as required by ordinance. Work began, but the subdivision failed and subcontractors…
Date: August 11, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1762
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of distributing cocaine and conspiracy to distribute cocaine (21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(A)) and being a felon in possession of a firearm (18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1)). Conspiracy to distribute…
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