2011 Eighth Circuit US Court of Appeals Case Law
Opinions 1 - 500 of 1301
Date: December 30, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1749
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine and sentenced to 300 months imprisonment. Defendant filed a motion in the district court for modification of his sentence under 18 U.S.C. 3582(c)(2) based…
Date: December 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3733
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff brought suit against her insurer, asserting claims of breach of contract and bad faith. After a jury awarded plaintiff the full amount of her underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage, but denied her bad faith…
Date: December 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3759
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff brought suit against her insurer, asserting claims of breach of contract and bad faith. After a jury awarded plaintiff the full amount of her underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage, but denied her bad faith…
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2588
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the district court's grant of summary judgment dismissing her 42 U.S.C. 1983 suit against the Dean of the University of Iowa's College of Law. Plaintiff alleged that the Dean discriminated against her…
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2627
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a hearing-impaired employee of the USDA, brought this action under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. 701 et seq., for workplace discrimination and retaliation. Defendant appealed an adverse bench trial…
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2975
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff brought suit against defendant, claiming workplace gender discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. 2000e, et seq., and the Arkansas Civil Rights Act of 1993, Ark. Code Ann.…
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3442
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued Body Aesthetic and three of its surgeons, claiming that they invaded her privacy and breached the fiduciary duty of confidentiality they owed to her when they gave nude photographic images of her body to a…
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1229
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued ATI alleging that it violated his rights under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), 29 U.S.C. 2601, et seq., and under the Arkansas Civil Rights Act (ACRA), Ark. Code Ann. 16-123-101 et seq. The district…
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Numbers: 11-2130, 11-2304, 11-2305, 11-2336
Justia Opinion Summary: In consolidated appeals regarding continuing school desegregation efforts in the Little Rock, Arkansas area, NLRSD and PCSSD each appealed the district court's denial of their petitions for a declaration of unitary…
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2304
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2305
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2336
Date: December 28, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2268
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation and attempted sexual exploitation of a minor, and two counts of possession and attempted possession of child pornography. Defendant appealed the district…
Date: December 27, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1732
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to knowingly and intentionally distributing five or more grams of actual methamphetamine. Defendant appealed his sentence of 135 months imprisonment. The court held that the district court did not…
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Numbers: 11-1073, 11-1074
Justia Opinion Summary: Kelly Maxwell and Natalie Smith each pled guilty to second degree murder. Each received a sentencing guideline range of 168-210 months, but Smith was credited with providing substantial assistance to the government and…
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1367
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued defendant under 42 U.S.C. 1983 for violations of her constitutional rights when defendant, a building commissioner and Auxiliary Reserve Police Officer, stopped plaintiff's vehicle, arrested her, and…
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1422
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff brought this action against his former employer alleging wage discrimination and termination on the basis of race and national origin in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. 2000e…
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1432
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. Defendant appealed from his conviction. The court held that the district court did not err in denying defendant's motion to suppress…
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1497
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, four women employed by NSP, brought this action alleging discriminatory pay practices under the Equal Pay Act (EPA), 29 U.S.C. 206 et seq., the Minnesota Human Rights Act (MHRA), Minn. Stat. 363.01 et seq.,…
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6043
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the order of the bankruptcy court determining that debt owed to it by debtor was not excepted from discharge under 11 U.S.C. 523(a)(6). The court concluded that plaintiff had presented an…
Date: December 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6062
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed the order of the bankruptcy court granting a motion for summary judgment filed by the trustee of debtor's bankruptcy estate. The trustee sought, and the bankruptcy court entered, an order determining…
Date: December 21, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2834
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of firearms while subject to a court order of protection, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(8), after he allegedly assaulted his wife. On appeal, defendant argued that…
Date: December 21, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1806
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant challenged the sentence imposed as a result of his conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm. In his second appeal, defendant challenged the district court's application of the U.S.S.G.…
Date: December 21, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1843
Date: December 21, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2060
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to one count of willfully making a telephone threat to kill, injure, and intimidate another individual and to damage and destroy a building by means of a fire or explosive. Defendant was…
Date: December 19, 2011
Docket Number: 08-1749
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, a federal prisoner awaiting execution on two death sentences, appealed the district court's denial of his petition to vacate, set aside, or correct his sentence under 28 U.S.C. 2255. The court granted…
Date: December 19, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3811
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued defendants, inter alia, after the local newspaper stopped publishing his letters criticizing the Tripp County Commission. Plaintiff alleged deprivation of his First Amendment rights, deprivation of his…
Date: December 19, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1572
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting a scheme to defraud Wal-Mart of more than $675,00 by the use of fictitious money transfers. Defendant was ordered to pay restitution to Wal-Mart, but just before her…
Date: December 19, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1724
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued Brooklyn Park Motors and several Toyota affiliates in Minnesota state court after her son was killed and her daughter seriously injured in a crash with a 1996 Toyota Camry. Plaintiff subsequently appealed…
Date: December 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3298
Justia Opinion Summary: Planned Parenthood brought suit against various state officials in Nebraska challenging new requirements to the State's informed consent procedures for abortions. At issue was the district court's denial of NuLife's…
Date: December 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3400
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of carjacking and using or carrying a firearm in relation to a crime of violence. Defendant appealed his conviction. The court held that the district court addressed the risk of prejudice by…
Date: December 16, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1353
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2005, defendant pled guilty to a federal firearm violation pursuant to a written plea agreement. In 2008, defendant was indicted on federal fraud charges, and he subsequently moved to dismiss the indictment as…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3928
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm after a handgun fell from his pants during a pat-down search following a traffic stop. Defendant appealed, arguing that the district court erred in…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3025
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arose when defendant denied plaintiff's application for Medicaid benefits on the grounds that she had transferred property in 2005-2006 valued at $340,000. The district court subsequently dismissed plaintiff's…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3818
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs brought a class action suit against a variety of defendants, alleging that each improperly obtained personal driver information from the Missouri Department of Revenue (DOR) in violation of the Driver's…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1052
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1344
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiring to distribute 500 grams of methamphetamine and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence. The court held that the district court did not err…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1404
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to production of child pornography and the district court imposed a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years in prison. Defendant appealed his sentence. The court held that the district court did not…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1488
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of wire fraud offenses and sentenced to 27 months' imprisonment followed by a three-year term of supervised release. After defendant's second guilty plea to violating the terms of his supervised…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1553
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, on behalf of himself and others similarly situated, sued defendant, alleging claims under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), 15 U.S.C. 1692g, where defendant conceded that plaintiff did not owe a…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1816
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs brought suit against defendants for breach of duty, improper taking in violation of international law, conversion, conspiracy to commit a tort, aiding and abetting an improper taking and fraudulent scheme, and…
Date: December 15, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6058
Justia Opinion Summary: John R. Stoebner was the trustee for the jointly administered chapter 7 bankruptcy estates of debtors. Stoebner filed a verified motion for authorization to use cash collateral and TLP objected to the motion. The…
Date: December 14, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6055
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor appealed from the ruling of the bankruptcy court denying his discharge pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 727(a)(4). The court agreed with the bankruptcy court that even if discovery of debtor's property interests resulted in…
Date: December 13, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3444
Justia Opinion Summary: This was an appeal of two consolidated suits brought under Indiana's and Missouri's trade secret statutes, involving information about the repair and overhaul of helicopter engines published by Rolls-Royce. The court…
Date: December 13, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3472
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, as trustee for a creditors' trust, held a $56 million stipulated judgment against Paul Yarrick, a former officer of Interstate Bakeries. Interstate emerged from a voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy…
Date: December 13, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1049
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted in Arkansas state court of two counts of capital murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for killing his estranged wife and their unborn child. The court…
Date: December 13, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1747
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiring to manufacture 100 or more marijuana plants, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, and being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm. Defendant…
Date: December 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1843
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of crimes related to his involvement in a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme and was sentenced to 50 years imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release. Defendant appealed, challenging his…
Date: December 9, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-3769, 11-1019
Justia Opinion Summary: German Robles-Garcia and Jose Rodriquez-Ramos were tried jointly by a jury. Robles was convicted of conspiracy to distribute less than 50 grams of methamphetamine mixture, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine actual, and…
Date: December 9, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1381
Justia Opinion Summary: A police sergeant arrested plaintiff without a warrant for running a contest which allegedly violated Minnesota gambling laws. The sergeant later obtained a search warrant and seized several items from the house where…
Date: December 9, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2118
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of being a prohibited person in possession of firearms and ammunition. On appeal, defendant challenged the district court's evidentiary rulings, her conviction, and her sentence. The court held…
Date: December 8, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1977
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of one count of conspiracy to make a false statement under 18 U.S.C. 371 and one count of making a false statement in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001, in connection with the disappearance and death of…
Date: December 8, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3465
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted in Missouri state court and sentenced to life in prison for the first degree murder of his grandfather, armed criminal action, and second-degree arson. Defendant appealed the district court's…
Date: December 8, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3713
Justia Opinion Summary: The Weitz Company sued MacKenzie House and MH Metropolitan for breach of construction contract. Arrowhead and Concorde were third-party defendants. MH Metropolitan counterclaimed for breach of the same contract, seeking…
Date: December 8, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2379
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, an alien, pled guilty to knowingly and unlawfully reentering the United States after being deported. The district court enhanced defendant's sentence under U.S.S.G. 2L1.2(b)(1)(E) because the court determined…
Date: December 8, 2011
Docket Numbers: 11-6045, 11-6046, 11-6047, 11-6048, 11-6049, 11-6050, 11-6051
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, in these related appeals, was the Trustee in the Chapter 7 bankruptcy cases of LGI Energy Solutions, Inc. and LGI Data Solutions Company, LLC, which were in the business of providing utility-management and…
Date: December 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3182
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of kidnapping in the first degree, attempted murder, and willful injury in violation of Iowa law. Defendant appealed the denial of his habeas corpus petition. The court held that even assuming…
Date: December 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3262
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of three counts relating to possession and manufacture of methamphetamine and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Defendant appealed the district court's denial of his motions…
Date: December 6, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2098
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed from the district court's imposition of a 135-month sentence on two counts of possession of child pornography. The court held that defendant waived his double jeopardy claim when he pled guilty to both…
Date: December 5, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2769
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. The court held that the district court did not…
Date: December 5, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1077
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank bribery, making false statements to a financial institution, and wire fraud and was sentenced to 78 months' imprisonment. Defendant appealed from his…
Date: December 5, 2011
Docket Number: 11-2415
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1) and conceded the firearm was subject to forfeiture under 18 U.S.C. 924(d). On appeal, defendant argued that the…
Date: December 2, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-2465, 10-2712
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging, inter alia, that his approximately 14-year detention in administrative segregation (Ad. Seg.) violated his procedural due-process rights under the Fourteenth…
Date: December 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3365
Justia Opinion Summary: Under a written plea agreement containing an appeal waiver, defendant pleaded guilty to commercial sex trafficking of children. Defendant appealed and the government moved to dismiss his appeal based on the terms of the…
Date: December 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3526
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was found guilty of three counts of mailing threatening communications, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 876(c), and one count of interstate communication of a threat, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 875(c). Defendant was…
Date: December 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3656
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the district court's adverse grant of summary judgment on his 42 U.S.C. 1983 claim against several prison officials. Plaintiff, a pretrial detainee, was assaulted by three other inmates while he…
Date: December 2, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1362
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellee received a notice of deficiency from the IRS and she contested the assessments, asserting the time bar in 26 U.S.C. 6501(a). Claiming an interest in this issue, the government of the United States Virgin Islands…
Date: December 1, 2011
Docket Numbers: 11-2793, 11-1308
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioners, three siblings and citizens of Guatemala, petitioned for review of the BIA's dismissal of petitioners' administrative appeal on the merits based on an IJ's denial of their applications for asylum and…
Date: December 1, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1225
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant conditionally pled guilty to one count of bank robbery and was sentenced to 63 months' imprisonment. On appeal, defendant challenged the denial of his motion to suppress and contended that his sentence was…
Date: December 1, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1292
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued in state court challenging the validity of both the foreclosure of his home by Chase and the redemption of his home by a junior lienholder, National. The district court subsequently granted Chase's and…
Date: December 1, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1528
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed from the order of the district court denying his motion to plead guilty. The indictment at issue was flawed on its face where the text of the document charged possession with intent to distribute fifty…
Date: November 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3068
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff brought suit seeking declaratory judgment and asserted claims for breach of contract and bad faith when its insurers asserted that certain sublimits in plaintiff's policy capped reimbursement for damages caused…
Date: November 29, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1029
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to mail fraud and sentenced to 27 months' imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release. On appeal, defendant argued that the district court erred in denying him a two-level…
Date: November 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3256
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence on mail fraud charges under 18 U.S.C. 1341, claiming that the district court erred when applying sentencing guidelines enhancements for abuse of position of private trust, 250 or more…
Date: November 25, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6005
Justia Opinion Summary: SMF appealed from a bankruptcy court order finding that three payments totaling $54,778.46 received by SMF from IBC in the 90-day preference period preceding IBC's chapter 11 filing were preferential payments under 11…
Date: November 23, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1336
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered a conditional guilty plea to one count of possessing a stolen firearm and ammunition and one count of failing to register as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA), 18…
Date: November 22, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3169
Justia Opinion Summary: The United States appealed from an order issued by the district court sentencing defendant to 52 months imprisonment. The court held that because the district court erred as a matter of law in failing to sentence…
Date: November 21, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1647
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant brought this action against federal agents, alleging that he was unlawfully arrested for immigration violations in violation of his rights under the Fourth Amendment. At issue was whether the agents were…
Date: November 18, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6039
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants appealed from an order and judgment of the bankruptcy court granting summary judgment on plaintiff's complaint to determine dischargeability pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 523(a)(2)(B). The court held that plaintiff…
Date: November 16, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1079
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to one count of knowingly recruiting, harboring, transporting, providing, and obtaining a named female victim and others for labor and services in violation 18 U.S.C. 1590 and 1594. Defendant…
Date: November 16, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1343
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered a conditional guilty plea to production of child pornography. On appeal, defendant challenged the district court's denial of a motion to suppress evidence. The court held that, considering the nature of…
Date: November 16, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1661
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court dismissed plaintiff's complaint, concluding in relevant part that plaintiffs failed to exhaust the administrative remedies for their National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.,…
Date: November 16, 2011
Docket Numbers: 11-1760, 11-1764
Justia Opinion Summary: Two inmates petitioned for writs of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. 2241, alleging that their due process rights were violated when the Medical Center imposed discipline, including revocation of good time credits, for…
Date: November 16, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1795
Date: November 16, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6014
Justia Opinion Summary: In an action for nondischargeability, creditors appealed from the judgment of the Bankruptcy Court finding that they failed to prove that they were damaged as a result of the fraud allegedly committed by debtor. The…
Date: November 16, 2011
Docket Numbers: 11-6032, 11-6033
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants in these consolidated appeals were debtors in their respective chapter 7 cases. Creditor objected to debtors' homestead exemption claims and moved for relief from the automatic stay. Debtors then moved to…
Date: November 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2425
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arose out of a dispute between Union Pacific, the owner of mineral rights to three parcels of land, and Linn Farms, the surface rights owner to the parcels who purchased the mineral rights from the Arkansas…
Date: November 10, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-3159, 10-3691
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Steven Mueller challenged his convictions on conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and murder-for-hire. Defendant James Kornhardt challenged his convictions on conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire,…
Date: November 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2441
Justia Opinion Summary: Several Nebraska farmers filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging their due process rights were violated when Nebraska officials ordered the farmers to cease drawing water from the Niobrara Watershed without providing a…
Date: November 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3629
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to conspiracy to manufacture in excess of 50 grams of methamphetamine, as well as possession of pseudoephedrine knowing and having reasonable cause to believe it would be used to manufacture…
Date: November 4, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3483
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of offenses related to the manufacturing and possession of marijuana plants. At sentencing, the district court determined that defendant qualified for the "safety valve" under 21 U.S.C. 3553(f)…
Date: November 4, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3597
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff brought a 42 U.S.C. 1983 action against the city and the police chief (defendants) alleging that they (1) deprived him of his property, namely a handgun and its ammunition, without due process of law, in…
Date: November 4, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1610
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed a putative class action in Arkansas state court against defendants, asserting causes of action for unjust enrichment, fraud, constructive fraud, and breach of contract. After defendants removed the case…
Date: November 3, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-1929, 10-2071
Justia Opinion Summary: KAAPA managed a facility that distilled corn into ethanol. KAAPA commenced a diversity action after Affiliated denied KAAPA's claim to recover the cost of extensive repairs and business interruption losses. A jury found…
Date: November 2, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6037
Justia Opinion Summary: This was an appeal from an order of the bankruptcy court overruling debtors' objection to confirmation of their post-confirmation amended Chapter 13 plan. At issue was the extent to which debtors could modify the…
Date: October 31, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3108
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to one count of second degree murder and the district court sentenced him to 576 months' imprisonment. On appeal, defendant challenged the substantive reasonableness of his sentence. The court…
Date: October 31, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3470
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs brought this action against several defendants alleging violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), 28 U.S.C. 1961 et seq., and raising several state law causes of action. The…
Date: October 28, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1885
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography. At issue on appeal was whether defendant was in custody when he confessed to law enforcement. The court held that, having considered the totality of the…
Date: October 28, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2307
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Mexico, petitioned for review of a decision of the BIA that dismissed his appeal, finding that evidence of his alienage was admissible and that removal was proper despite the hardship…
Date: October 28, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1756
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed from the district court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence seized during the traffic stop that led to his arrest and conviction. The court held that the trooper's prolonged stop of defendant…
Date: October 26, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1613
Date: October 25, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-3354, 10-3355, 10-3356, 10-3357, 10-3358, 10-3359, 10-3360, 10-3362, 10-3363
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, citizens of New York, sued pharmaceutical companies (defendants) in New York state court claiming that defendants' hormone replacement therapy drugs caused plaintiffs to develop breast cancer. At issue was…
Date: October 21, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1605
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of mailing a threatening communication and the district court sentenced him as a career offender under U.S.S.G. 4B1.1 on the basis that mailing a threatening communication was a crime of violence.…
Date: October 20, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2601
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff brought this action to enjoin the enforcement of the Nebraska Funeral Picketing Law (NFPL), arguing that it violated her First Amendment right to free speech. Plaintiff appealed a district court order denying…
Date: October 20, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6007
Justia Opinion Summary: Trustee appealed a summary judgment order from the bankruptcy court in favor of Judgment Holders. The court held that the bankruptcy court correctly concluded the subject liens were not avoidable under 11 U.S.C. 547. The…
Date: October 19, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3335
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to distributing and conspiring to distribute Benzylpiperazine (BZP) in violation of federal law. Defendant objected to the district court's conclusion that BZP was sufficiently equivalent to…
Date: October 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3757
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to illegal reentry into the United States subsequent to removal and at sentencing, defendant moved for a downward variance to compensate for an allegedly unwarranted sentencing disparity…
Date: October 17, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3178
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an Arkansas inmate, brought a 42 U.S.C. 1983 action against several defendants, including the jail administrator of Ouachita County Detention Center. After granting summary judgment to all defendants except…
Date: October 17, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3212
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants, the Libertarian party and three candidates, challenged the constitutionality of North Dakota Century Code 16.1-11-36, contending that the statute as applied to them violated the First and Fourteenth Amendment…
Date: October 14, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2393
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff brought a claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. 12101-12213, alleging that his employer engaged in prohibited discrimination by rescinding his offer of promotion on the basis of his…
Date: October 14, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2630
Justia Opinion Summary: Midwest sued the Department, seeking a declaration that South Dakota had a taxation scheme that violated a provision of the federal Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act (4-R Act), 49 U.S.C. 11501(b)(4). The…
Date: October 14, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2839
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted by a jury of first-degree murder, first-degree assault, and two counts of armed criminal action. In his petition for habeas corpus, defendant alleged that the prosecution exercised peremptory…
Date: October 13, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2479
Justia Opinion Summary: The SEC commenced this civil enforcement action against appellant, a registered investment adviser (Jamerica), and a private investment (Brawta)(collectively, defendants), alleging that their fraudulent…
Date: October 13, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3031
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen of Laos and a lawful permanent resident of the United States, petitioned for review of the BIA's decision affirming the IJ's removal order. The court held that because the Attorney General and the…
Date: October 13, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3124
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen of Mexico, filed a timely petition for judicial review following removal, asserting that his 2002 burglary conviction was not an aggravated felony that authorized expedited removal. The court held…
Date: October 12, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6018
Justia Opinion Summary: The Chapter 7 Trustee appealed from the Bankruptcy Court's judgment in favor of debtor's parents on a fraudulent transfer action, holding that debtor could not fraudulently transfer property that would have been exempt.…
Date: October 11, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1008
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered a conditional guilty plea to possession of a stolen firearm after the district court denied a motion to suppress evidence. Defendant subsequently appealed the denial of the motion to suppress the…
Date: October 11, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6025
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtors appealed the bankruptcy court's entry of summary judgment in favor of defendant in debtors' adversary action seeking, inter alia, to avoid defendant's mortgage lien on debtors' residence. The court held that…
Date: October 11, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6038
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtors, owners and operators of a farm and ranch, appealed from the judgment of the bankruptcy court denying their discharge pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 727(a)(5). The court held that the bankruptcy court did not clearly err…
Date: October 7, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-1573, 10-2899
Justia Opinion Summary: Several Arkansas prisoners on death row challenged the state's Method of Execution Act under 42 U.S.C. 1983, arguing that it violated the ex post facto clause and their due process right to access the courts. The court…
Date: October 7, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-2813, 10-2973
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant was terminated for cause from his employment with Northwest Airlines shortly after he was arrested for possession of marijuana. At the same time, appellant had pending with Northwest a request for disability…
Date: October 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2850
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant appealed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Sun Life in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. 1001 et seq., benefits case. At issue was whether Sun Life was…
Date: October 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2889
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant filed suit against four Minneapolis police officers and the City of Minneapolis pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1983, claiming that the officers used excessive, unreasonable force against her, in violation of the Fourth…
Date: October 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3140
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen of the Philippines, petitioned for review of the BIA's conclusion that petitioner's motion to reopen had not been timely filed and no exceptional circumstances warranted exercise of its…
Date: October 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2971
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against St. Louis police officers for violating his Fourth Amendment rights by unlawfully entering his home, using excessive force, and unlawfully arresting him, and for violating Missouri common law…
Date: October 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3654
Date: October 6, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1772
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff brought a class action against the Bank, alleging that the Bank breached its contract by charging interest in excess of the rate specified in the promissory note. The court affirmed the district court's grant…
Date: October 5, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1117
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was found guilty of two federal offenses: one count of aiding and abetting a violation of the so-called Medicare anti-kickback statute, in violation of 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7b(b)(2) and 18 U.S.C. 2, and one count of…
Date: October 5, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-2133, 10-2162
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of aiding and abetting and the falsification of a document. See No. 10-117 issued this date in defendant's criminal prosecution. With defendant's direct appeal pending, the government learned that…
Date: October 5, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2259
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen of Nigeria, petitioned for review of the BIA's decision affirming the IJ's denial of asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture. The court held that substantial…
Date: October 5, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3197
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a member of the Westboro Baptist Church (WBC), believed that God was punishing America for tolerating homosexuality and the WBC expressed its views by protesting at funerals, including those of American…
Date: October 5, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3710
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base. At sentencing, the district court applied a three-level enhancement under U.S.S.G. 3B1.1(b) after finding…
Date: October 5, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6040
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor appealed the bankruptcy court's order converting its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case to one under Chapter 7. The court affirmed the order of the bankruptcy court and held that an abuse of process was an appropriate…
Date: October 4, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6008
Justia Opinion Summary: Reshetar Systems, Inc. appealed a judgment of the bankruptcy court determining that the debt owed to Reshetar by debtor was not excepted from discharge. The court held that the debt was not excepted from discharge as the…
Date: October 3, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3846
Justia Opinion Summary: After the district court found that defendant had violated three conditions of his probation, it was revoked. Defendant subsequently appealed the district court's statutory maximum of 60 months in prison. The court held…
Date: September 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2787
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs commenced a diversity action against defendant, asserting claims for breach of the insurance contract and for vexatious refusal to pay. Applying Missouri law, the district court granted defendant summary…
Date: September 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3229
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to one count of producing child pornography in violation of 18 U.S.C. 2251(a) and sentenced to 360 months imprisonment, the statutory maximum sentence. At issue was whether the district court…
Date: September 22, 2011
Docket Numbers: 09-3831, 09-3834, 10-1332
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, six current and former African-American employees, brought suit against Nucor alleging racial discrimination in violation of 42 U.S.C. 1981 and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C.…
Date: September 22, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3834
Date: September 22, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1332
Date: September 22, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2998
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to conspiring to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing methamphetamine and to possession with intent to distribute five grams or more of pure methamphetamine. On appeal,…
Date: September 22, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1873
Date: September 20, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3570
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued defendant, asserting racial discrimination and retaliation in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. 2000e to 2000e-17, and the Arkansas Civil Rights Act, Ark. Code Ann.…
Date: September 20, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1151
Date: September 16, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-2487, 10-3580
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, manager of a kosher meatpacking company, was convicted of 86 counts of bank, wire, and mail fraud; making false statements to a bank; money laundering; and violations of an order of the Secretary of…
Date: September 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3579
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered a conditional guilty plea to failing to register as a sex offender as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA), 18 U.S.C. 2250(a), and was sentenced to 15 months'…
Date: September 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3813
Justia Opinion Summary: The Chapter 7 trustee appealed from the decision of the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (BAP) reversing the bankruptcy court's judgment that the proceeds of personal property sold with a homestead were not proceeds of the…
Date: September 16, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6006
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor appealed from the bankruptcy court's grant of summary judgment to creditor, holding a debt in the amount of $400,000, nondischargeable pursuant to section 523(a)(2)(A) of Title 11 of the United States Code…
Date: September 15, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1065
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine and was sentenced to 132 months in prison. One year later, the court granted the Government's Rule 35(b) motion to reduce the…
Date: September 14, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1324
Date: September 14, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-1324, 10-1626
Justia Opinion Summary: Polysilicon producer MEMC entered in exclusive sales representation agreements with Semi-Materials. Under these agreements, Semi-Materials was to serve as the sales representative for MEMC in China and Korea.…
Date: September 14, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2545
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff purchased a security alarm for her home from HSM Electronic Protection Services, Inc. (HSM), which was later purchased by Stanley Convergent Security Solutions (Stanley). Plaintiff sued Stanley, claiming that…
Date: September 14, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3411
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arose out of a dispute between plaintiff and her ex-husband over the education and custody of their three minor children. Plaintiff sued City Defendants, alleging that they unlawfully impeded her access to the…
Date: September 13, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3127
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants appealed the district court's adverse grant of summary judgment in favor of appellee on their claim for breach of a 1988 contract between the parties. The district court held that the 1988 contract had been…
Date: September 13, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3434
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered a conditional guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of a substance or mixture containing methamphetamine and 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. On appeal, defendant challenged the…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 07-2357
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was sentenced to 360 months imprisonment and he appealed, asserting a Speedy Trial Act (Act), 18 U.S.C. 3161, violation and other trial and sentencing errors. The court affirmed and the Supreme Court…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1340
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs sued Countrywide Home Loans, Inc. under the Missouri Second Mortgage Loan Act (MSMLA), Mo. Rev. State. 408.231-.241, alleging, for a putative class, that Countrywide charged them unauthorized interest and fees…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1931
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiring to distribute 50 grams or more of cocaine base. At issue was defendant's subsequent motion for post-conviction relief under 28 U.S.C. 2255 for ineffective assistance of trial…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-2187, 10-2189
Justia Opinion Summary: Two administrative hearing panels (Panels) concluded that the school district failed to provide plaintiffs' twin sons with a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in 2005, pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-2857, 10-2858
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants, Brian Keith Ellefson and Mark Edward Ellefsen, were convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States by obstructing the IRS in the assessment and collection of federal taxes. Brian was also convicted of…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3331
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of filing a false joint income tax return with his wife for calendar year 2007 and sentenced to twenty-four months in prison. On appeal, defendant argued that there was insufficient evidence of…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3426
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, parents of deaf and hearing impaired children, brought suit against defendants, claiming that the closure of the South Dakota School for the Deaf and the discontinuation of its programs at the school's campus…
Date: September 9, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3712
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the dismissal of her action against a former employer alleging race, sex, and age discrimination and retaliation in violation of Title VII. The district court concluded that plaintiff had not filed a…
Date: September 8, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3104
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of ten counts of submitting false claims against the United States and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States with respect to claims. Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence.…
Date: September 7, 2011
Docket Number: 09-1025
Justia Opinion Summary: In this appeal concerning the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), 28 U.S.C. 1346(b)(1), 2674, the court determined whether a purported personal representative could invoke the adjudicatory capacity, that is, the…
Date: September 7, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3099
Justia Opinion Summary: This case stemmed from an Excess Disability Income Reinsurance Agreement (Treaty). At issue was whether a reinsurance agreement between plaintiff and defendant contained a follow-the-settlements provision. The court held…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2568
Justia Opinion Summary: This case involved a fallout of a $3.65 billion Ponzi scheme perpetrated by Minnesota businessman Thomas J. Petters. Appellants, investment funds (collectively, Ritchie), incurred substantial losses as a result of…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3310
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants, current and former shuttle bus drivers at the Minneapolis-St.Paul International Airport, brought suit against appellees in Minnesota state court alleging misclassifications of its drivers as franchisees…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3332
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued her employer under the Minnesota Human Rights Act (MHRA), Minn. Stat. 363A.01-43, and the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), 29 U.S.C. 2601-54, and asserted other state common law claims including breach of…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3792
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced under the Armed Career Criminals Act (ACCA), 18 U.S.C. 924(e)(1). At issue was whether defendant's two prior Missouri convictions,…
Date: September 6, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6020
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor appealed from the Order of the Bankruptcy Court appointing a trustee in its involuntary Chapter 11 case. The court held that since the record supported a finding of cause under 11 U.S.C. 1104(a)(1), and that the…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-2290, 09-2493
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff and his wife (the Kaplans) filed suit against Mayo Clinic Rochester, Inc., other Mayo entities (collectively, Mayo), and Mayo doctors David Nagorney and Lawrence Burgart, making a number of claims arising out…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3231
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Numbers: 09-3231, 09-3233, 09-3262
Justia Opinion Summary: Planned Parenthood brought this equitable action against the Governor and Attorney General of South Dakota in their official capacities, seeking to enjoin enforcement of revisions enacted in 2005 to the South Dakota law…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3362
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3800
Justia Opinion Summary: Synoran and e-Pin (appellants) appealed from the district court's confirmation of an arbitration award in favor of Wells Fargo, which had prevailed on its claims for breach of contract and for misappropriation of trade…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3969
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiring to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, four counts of distribution of less than five hundred grams of cocaine, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and four…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3802
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Guatemala, petitioned for review of a decision of the BIA dismissing his appeal from an IJ's order removing him from the United States. Petitioner asserted that the evidence of his…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3840
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of receipt and distribution of child pornography and sentenced to 60 months imprisonment followed by 5 years of supervised release. On appeal, defendant claimed that the district court erred in…
Date: September 2, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1236
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to a single count of knowingly and willfully threatening to take the life of the President of the United States. Defendant appealed, arguing that there was not a sufficient basis for his guilty…
Date: September 1, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2747
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of second degree murder for the stabbing of a fourteen-year-old and assault with a dangerous weapon for the stabbing of a seventeen-year old in Indian country. On appeal, defendant argued that the…
Date: August 31, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1968
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant sued his former employer, alleging that it wrongfully terminated his employment by violating Missouri's public policy exception to the state's at-will employment doctrine. Appellant alleged that the employer…
Date: August 31, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2308
Justia Opinion Summary: After defendant was convicted of two counts of involuntary manslaughter, defendant filed a motion to vacate, set aside, or correct his sentence pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 2255. The court held that defendant was not deprived…
Date: August 31, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2474
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted for the theft or embezzlement of funds from his employee's IRA accounts in violation of 18 U.S.C. 664. On appeal, defendant argued that his conviction should be reversed because, at trial, the…
Date: August 31, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2958
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioners, natives and citizens of India, petitioned for review of an order of the BIA affirming the IJ's denial of their motions to reopen and rescind their in absentia orders of deportation to India. Petitioners…
Date: August 31, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3488
Justia Opinion Summary: This case stemmed from a dispute regarding the conversion of a railroad line on plaintiffs' property to a public trail, pursuant to the National Trail System Act of 1968, 16 U.S.C. 1241 et seq. Plaintiffs, on behalf of…
Date: August 31, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3745
Justia Opinion Summary: A grand jury indicted defendant, an African-American, for conspiracy to distribute 50 or more grams of cocaine base, which then carried a 10-year mandatory minimum. The grand jury also indicted defendant's former…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1065
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of wire fraud, money laundering, and failure to file tax returns. The district court sentenced him to 90 months imprisonment and ordered over eight million dollars in restitution. Defendant…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1496
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of knowingly receiving child pornography and knowingly possessing child pornography. On appeal, defendant asserted that there was insufficient evidence to support his receipt conviction or, in the…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2494
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered a conditional plea of guilty to possession of child pornography, reserving the right to appeal the district court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence gathered during a warrant search of his…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2757
Justia Opinion Summary: The owners of Landmark Towers appealed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Green Tree Servicing, LLC (Green Tree), permitting Green Tree to vacate office space it subleased from the owners' tenant…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2758
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of bank robbery and appealed his conviction, arguing that he was entitled to a new trial because the district court abused its discretion when it denied his repeated pretrial requests for new…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2777
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful possession of a firearm as a previously convicted felon and was sentenced to 105 months imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. Defendant appealed the…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2805
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a jailer in Miller County, filed a civil rights action against Miller County, its sheriff, three of its county commissioners, and several other defendants to recover for her serious injuries which were caused…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2977
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff and her husband filed a negligence action seeking damages related to plaintiff's injuries, which were caused by falling plastic bins that struck her on the head in defendant's store. Plaintiff subsequently…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3019
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of one count of distribution of child pornography and sentenced to fifteen years imprisonment. Defendant challenged his sentence, arguing that his Minnesota conviction for criminal sexual conduct…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3134
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellee applied for supplemental security income under Title XVI of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. 1382. The Commissioner of the Social Security Administration subsequently appealed the district court's decision,…
Date: August 30, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1201
Justia Opinion Summary: This case concerned the bankruptcy estate of Qualia Clinical Service, Inc. The estate's Chapter 7 Trustee sought to avoid as a preferential transfer a security interest recorded by one of Qualia's creditors shortly…
Date: August 29, 2011
Docket Number: 09-1574
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2004, defendant was convicted of federal crack-cocaine distribution offenses and the court affirmed the conviction, along with the district court's decision not to suppress the evidence found in defendant's car, but…
Date: August 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1092
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellee sued the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration (SSA), seeking review of the SSA's denial of benefits to her daughter. At issue was whether a child conceived through artificial insemination more than…
Date: August 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1375
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. On appeal, defendant challenged the district court's limitation of his "new" evidence to a…
Date: August 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1997
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was indicted for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, conspiring to conduct a financial transaction involving illegal proceeds, and six counts of money laundering. After two mistrials, a…
Date: August 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2241
Justia Opinion Summary: The Minch Family sued the Estate of the Norbys in diversity, seeking injunctive relief and damages for flooding of the Minch Family's property, allegedly caused by a field dike built on the Norbys' land. At issue was…
Date: August 29, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3845
Justia Opinion Summary: This case stemmed from defendant's convictions related to his harassment, terrorizing, and retaliation against a range of people in the criminal justice system. After defendant's conviction in state court, defendant…
Date: August 29, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6012
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor appealed from the bankruptcy court's order confirming his modified Chapter 13 plan over his objection. At issue was whether the bankruptcy court could confirm the debtor's plan which provided for the avoidance of…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2751
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an inmate in the South Dakota State Penitentiary (SDSP), alleged that, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1983, defendants violated the First Amendment when defendants received notice that a magazine plaintiff had ordered…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2844
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of first-degree sexual abuse and second-degree sexual assault of J.W., his wife's minor granddaughter. At issue was the federal district court's grant of defendant's petition for a writ of habeas…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2928
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant appealed the district court's orders granting summary judgment in favor of the City of Lake Lotawana, and its mayor, and the subsequent dismissal of her wrongful termination and retaliation claims. On appeal,…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3237
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant appealed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of his former employer in a wrongful-termination suit brought pursuant to the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3307
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the district court's grant of summary judgment to defendant on his claim of malicious prosecution under Arkansas law. The district court held that plaintiff failed to present evidence sufficient to…
Date: August 25, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3540
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of one count of arson for setting fire to his home on the Rosebud Indian Reservation. Defendant appealed the restitution order contending that the district court erred in awarding restitution to…
Date: August 23, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2967
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to one count of attempted enticement of a minor and was sentenced to 121 months imprisonment. On appeal, defendant argued that the district court committed several procedural errors and imposed…
Date: August 19, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-3458, 10-3459
Justia Opinion Summary: The FTC sued Lundbeck, Inc., alleging that its acquisition of the drug NeoProfen violated the Federal Trade Commission Act, 15 U.S.C. 41 et seq., the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C. 1-7, the Clayton Act, 15 U.S.C. 12-27, the…
Date: August 19, 2011
Docket Number: 11-6013
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant appealed the bankruptcy court's approval of a multi-million dollar, global settlement in one of the largest Ponzi scheme bankruptcies in American history. The settlement had been substantially consummated and…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Numbers: 09-3441, 10-3384
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and attempt to posses with intent to distribute cocaine, and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Defendant appealed both his convictions and his sentence. The…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-1933, 10-2065
Justia Opinion Summary: Liberty Mutual sued Pella in the district court for declaratory judgment where the suit was sought to determine the scope of Liberty Mutual's obligation, under general commercial liability (GCL) policies issued to Pella,…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2065
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2032
Justia Opinion Summary: The Educational Credit Management Corporation (ECMC) appealed from the judgment of the bankruptcy court, later affirmed by the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (BAP), which discharged the student loan debt of debtor under the…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2415
Justia Opinion Summary: Five hunters commenced this purported class action against A.L.S. Enterprises, and three of its licensees (collectively, defendants), who sell odor absorbing clothing under various brand names in retail stores and mail…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2820
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered a conditional plea of guilty to one count of failing to register as a sex offender and was sentenced to 36 months imprisonment and 10 years supervised release. Defendant appealed the district court's…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3225
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued his former music teacher, the Logan-Rogersville R-VII School District, and the school principal, asserting nine different claims stemming from the teacher's alleged sexual abuse of plaintiff. At issue was…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3263
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to illegal reentry into the United States after deportation and the district court applied a twelve-level specific offense characteristic to defendant's advisory sentencing guideline range…
Date: August 18, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3466
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff sued Judge Larry Williams for wrongful termination, in violation of plaintiff's rights under the First Amendment and the Family Medical leave Act (FMLA), 29 U.S.C. 2601, et seq. Plaintiff appealed the district…
Date: August 17, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-2281, 10-2409
Justia Opinion Summary: FICO brought suit against three credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and Trans Union, as well as against VantageScore, the credit bureaus' joint venture. The suit alleged antitrust, trademark infringement,…
Date: August 17, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2409
Date: August 17, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2754
Justia Opinion Summary: LCI Equipments, Inc. (LLC) was a Texas corporation that imported and sold the tractor that killed Rudy Slater in a roll-over accident. Wanda Slater, an Arkansas resident and Rudy's wife, commenced a wrongful death action…
Date: August 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1822
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to a term of imprisonment not to exceed 50 years. At issue was whether defendant's petition for writ of habeas corpus was time-barred. The court affirmed the…
Date: August 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2854
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed this diversity action to foreclose a contractor's lien and an architect's and engineer's lien against Phoenix Land & Acquisition, LLC (Phoenix Land) and Phoenix Health, LLC (Phoenix Health), as owners of…
Date: August 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3012
Justia Opinion Summary: The United States brought this civil action under 26 U.S.C. 7408 to enjoin defendant from promoting several fraudulent tax schemes. After a court trial, the district court permanently enjoined defendant from promoting…
Date: August 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3067
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs sued Chambers Bank of North Arkansas for fraudulent concealment, claiming that the Bank failed to disclose to plaintiffs certain information regarding a real estate development. At issue was whether the…
Date: August 16, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3815
Justia Opinion Summary: The City of Indianola (City) adopted a land-use ordinance requiring the enclosure of "figure eight cars," among other racing vehicles, when two or more such cars were present. Iowa Assurance Corporation and its…
Date: August 16, 2011
Docket Number: 11-1169
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and was sentenced to 48 months' imprisonment followed by three years' supervised release. At issue was whether the district court erred…
Date: August 15, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-3491, 10-2376
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Venezuela, petitioned for review of a BIA decision affirming an IJ's denial of her applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and deferral of removal under the Convention Against…
Date: August 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2710
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute in excess of 1,000 kilograms of marijuana and two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Defendant claimed that the district court committed…
Date: August 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3004
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of bank robbery and was sentenced to 168 months imprisonment. Defendant raised several issues on appeal. The court held that the deputy's questioning of defendant was consensual and therefore, did…
Date: August 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3116
Justia Opinion Summary: The Andersons appealed the grant of summary judgment by the district court in favor of Hess Corporation (Hess), the successor in interest to and lessee of mineral rights on the Andersons' land. The Andersons contended…
Date: August 15, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3644
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of aiding and abetting a bank robbery and sentenced to 220 months imprisonment. Defendant appealed, arguing that there was insufficient evidence to support his conviction, that the district court…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1236
Justia Opinion Summary: The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (Band) sued the the Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Revenue (Commissioner) to prevent taxation of the out-of-state pension income of Band members. The state…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2069
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of first degree murder and first degree rape, and sentenced to death. At issue was whether defendant was entitled to habeas corpus relief because the trial court's response to a jury question…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-2117, 10-2123
Justia Opinion Summary: The trustee of Cheryl Reagan's bankruptcy estate, and Latta Bachelor, the personal representative of Ronald Reagan's probate estate, appealed from an order of the district court affirming the judgment of the bankrutpcy…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2761
Justia Opinion Summary: Auto Owners Insurance Company (Auto Owners) appealed an order granting summary judgment in favor of appellee and awarding her $124,500, the face value of the insurance policy sold to her by Auto Owners. Because Schubert…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-2801, 10-2978
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arose when Leiferman Enterprises LLC (Leiferman) unilaterally suspended negotiations with the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 82 (Union) regarding the renewal of the two…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2974
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against, inter alia, U.S. Bank, N.A. (U.S. Bank) seeking to invalidate the foreclosure and sale of his home. Plaintiff alleged that the mortgage that the lender relied upon in foreclosing on his home…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3015
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), 28 U.S.C. 2671 et seq., asserting four state law claims of action when she received an undelivered letter that she had written to her son, a solider serving…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3145
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of interfering with interstate commerce by robbing an armored car and using, carrying, brandishing, and discharging a firearm during and in relation to that robbery. Defendant appealed his…
Date: August 12, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3671
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm after police found semiautomatic weapons in his home while executing a search warrant and defendant was sentenced to 37 months imprisonment and two years…
Date: August 11, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3063
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to armed bank robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence and was sentenced to 272 months imprisonment. Defendant appealed his sentence, arguing that the district court erred in…
Date: August 11, 2011
Docket Number: 09-3577
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants sued appellee under 49 U.S.C. 14103(a) for the reimbursement of fees associated with the loading and unloading of its trucks at appellee's facilities. Appellants subsequently appealed the district court's…
Date: August 11, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2484
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered into an Employment Agreement with his employer before the employer entered into a merger. After defendant was terminated by his employer and post-merger disputes arose as to the amounts his employer…
Date: August 11, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2906
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant filed suit against her former employer, alleging that it wrongfully denied (or delayed) her promotion and subsequently, wrongfully terminated her. Appellant challenged four of the district court's interlocutory…
Date: August 11, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3074
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioners filed a joint petition for review of an order of the Surface Transportation Board (Board), which found, among other things, that a railroad company's practice of charging petitioners interest on certain…
Date: August 11, 2011
Docket Number: 10-3230
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to the charge of conspiracy to launder money but later moved to withdraw her plea, arguing that no factual basis supported her guilty plea. The district court denied her motion to withdraw and…
Date: August 11, 2011
Docket Numbers: 10-3369, 10-3269
Justia Opinion Summary: This case concerned a loosely knit, non-hierarchical collection of persons who engaged in a series of transactions involving distribution-quantities of methamphetamine in and around Bismarck, North Dakota, from late 2008…
Date: August 10, 2011
Docket Number: 10-1867
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff was convicted of second-degree burglary in a Missouri state court and sentenced to fifteen years in prison. The trial court also sentenced plaintiff as a chronic nonviolent offender with a serious drug…
Date: August 10, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2321
Justia Opinion Summary: 3M Company sued Inspired Technologies, Inc. (ITI) for allegedly unfair and false advertising, in violation of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. 1051, et seq., and the Minnesota Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act (MDPTA),…
Date: August 10, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2354
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, native and citizen of Mexico, petitioned for review of the BIA's upholding of the denial of his application for deferral or removal under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). Petitioner contended that the…
Date: August 10, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2625
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of one count of sexual exploitation or attempted sexual exploitation of a minor to produce child pornography and one count of possession or attempted possession of child pornography. At issue was…
Date: August 10, 2011
Docket Number: 10-2699
Justia Opinion Summary: The Minnesota Law Enforcement Association (MLEA) appealed the district court's grant of summary judgment to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), concluding as a matter of law that the MLEA's retirement…
