2014 Eighth Circuit US Court of Appeals Case Law
Opinions 1 - 500 of 1252
Date: December 30, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2645
Justia Opinion Summary: From 1995-2009, Johnson worked for CRE. In the last three years, Johnson worked from home, 8 hours a day at a computer. Johnson was covered under CRE’s United disability insurance policy. In 1999, Johnson was diagnosed…
Date: December 30, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2773
Justia Opinion Summary: Howard allegedly rear-ended Gumby's vehicle, Gumby sued Howard and his employer, UPS. Contending that Gumby’s health might have contributed to the accident, UPS requested information including medical records and the…
Date: December 30, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3037
Justia Opinion Summary: Colbert alleges that in traffic court deputy Chapman beckoned him to a group of officers and loudly said, “Don’t be eyeballing my officers”; when Colbert said he was not, an officer grabbed Colbert and said “shut up”;…
Date: December 30, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3080
Justia Opinion Summary: The Arkansas DHS regulates child care facility licensing and administers the USDA Child Care Food Program. Sparkman day care facility provided disability services funded by DHS and participated in the Program through…
Date: December 30, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3481
Justia Opinion Summary: A.C. saw people outside her apartment building, including Daniels and Hudson. A.C. left. Returning, she learned that there had been an altercation. As a neighbor was explaining, Daniels and Hudson approached, angrily…
Date: December 30, 2014
Docket Number: 14-2758
Justia Opinion Summary: Lucas was arrested on suspicion that he had reentered the U.S. illegally. As part of the investigation, the arresting officer requested Lucas’s alien file (A-file) which contained a signed warrant of deportation. A…
Date: December 29, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3421
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1988, Brake began working at Hutchinson. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2000, but continued to work. Brake purchased disability insurance through Hutchinson’s plan in 1988. Hutchinson, as the plan…
Date: December 29, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3576
Justia Opinion Summary: Bailey was convicted of federal prostitution charges in 2004. Minneapolis police officers took trial exhibits to a locked police storage facility, including $2,036 in cash, a wallet, and a cell phone. Years later Bailey…
Date: December 29, 2014
Docket Number: 14-3801
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2011, Thomas pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute cocaine base (crack cocaine). The district court determined that he was a career offender, resulting in an advisory guidelines range of 188-235 months in prison,…
Date: December 24, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3368
Justia Opinion Summary: Desloge has a population of 5,054; 97.4% are white. The Ku Klux Klan regularly distributes leaflets on streets and sidewalks, wearing robes and hoods. Imperial Wizard Ancona contacted city officials about plans to…
Date: December 24, 2014
Docket Number: 14-6008
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtors and Starion entered into loan transactions. The promissory notes and mortgages provided that the Debtors were liable for Starion’s attorney fees and costs of collections. The Debtors also executed personal…
Date: December 23, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3245
Justia Opinion Summary: DeCoteau was convicted of gross sexual imposition in 1996. His 2012 habeas petition had six claims. The district court dismissed, finding four claims time-barred, one procedurally barred, and the other without merit, but…
Date: December 23, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3385
Justia Opinion Summary: Minneapolis imposes an annual vacant building registration fee on owners of vacant buildings “to recover all costs incurred by the city for monitoring and regulating vacant buildings, including nuisance abatement,…
Date: December 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3134
Justia Opinion Summary: Iowa officers saw men getting into a parked vehicle. Its license plate was not properly lit. They initiated a traffic stop. In the vehicle were the driver, Marshall; the front seat passenger, Battle; and a back right…
Date: December 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3159
Justia Opinion Summary: EEOC sued CRST in its own name, under Title VII, 42 U.S.C. 2000e, alleging that CRST subjected Starke and 270 similarly situated female employees to a hostile work environment, in its Driver Training Program. For two…
Date: December 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3357
Justia Opinion Summary: Todd, born in 1963, was a high school graduate, and worked primarily as a laborer, often for temporary services. Todd’s last employment before seeking disability benefits ended in April 2007 because the temporary job was…
Date: December 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3378
Justia Opinion Summary: After Hopkins was arrested for driving while impaired for the third time in 10 years, officers impounded her vehicle under Minnesota Statute 169A.631(e)(1), She received a notice of seizure and intent to forfeit her…
Date: December 22, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1139
Justia Opinion Summary: Yellow Horse was convicted of conspiracy to distribute less than 50 kilograms of marijuana, 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(D), and 846. At sentencing, the district court determined Yellow Horse could have reasonably…
Date: December 22, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1281
Justia Opinion Summary: Riding home from a bar, Partlow talked about suicide. When they reached his apartment, Partlow jumped out of the running car, ran into his apartment, and locked the door. His aunt (Lisa) called 911. Officer Mann arrived…
Date: December 19, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-3026, 13-2334
Justia Opinion Summary: The Mortgage Electronic Registration System (MERS) is a national electronic registry that does not originate, assign, or service mortgages, but charges a fee when members record or transfer a mortgage on the registry.…
Date: December 19, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3732
Justia Opinion Summary: Paulino suffered a spinal-cord injury in a work-related accident that left him permanently paraplegic. Employer's workers’ compensation insurer was Chartis. After medical treatment and intensive rehabilitation, Paulino…
Date: December 19, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1336
Justia Opinion Summary: Booker led Minneapolis police on a high-speed chase after an attempted traffic stop. When the car stopped, police found a loaded handgun under the brake pedal. Booker had been driving; the car’s owner, Mack, was in the…
Date: December 19, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1642
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2006, the Secretary of the Interior approved amendments to Title 8 of the Omaha Tribal Code, which modified the tribe's Beverage Control Ordinance and allowed the tribal government to impose a 10 percent sales tax on…
Date: December 18, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3153
Justia Opinion Summary: Ibson and her family were insured by UHS through a policy available to her to as a member of her law firm. Due to an error, UHS began informing Ibson’s medical providers that Ibson and her family no longer had insurance…
Date: December 18, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3544
Justia Opinion Summary: Banks noticed that computer-generated counterfeit checks were being cashed from the accounts of Kansas businesses that had reported mail theft. The scheme spread to Missouri. Norwood traveled with Eggleston, to recruit…
Date: December 18, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1029
Justia Opinion Summary: Markert, President of Pinehurst Bank, approved nominee loans to friends and family of bank customer Wintz. The loan proceeds were used to cover Wintz’s $1.9 million overdraft at the Bank. A jury convicted Markert of…
Date: December 17, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1468
Justia Opinion Summary: Townsend worked as an Arkansas pharmaceutical sales representative for Bayer, selling Mirena, a contraceptive device. Townsend visited physicians, including Dr. Shrum. Townsend learned Shrum was importing from Canada a…
Date: December 17, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3460
Justia Opinion Summary: While an inmate in Federal Correctional Institution - Forrest City, Spencer was assigned a cell for a medical assessment. Correctional Officer t Sheldon entered the cell to assist staff with checking Spencer's…
Date: December 17, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1530
Justia Opinion Summary: Garcia and six co-defendants were charged with conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture containing methamphetamine, 21 U.S.C. 841(a), 846. Garcia pled guilty without a plea agreement. The district court…
Date: December 16, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1367
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2011, Schriener obtained a residential mortgage from Quicken Loans that was secured by a deed of trust. Quicken Loans acquired the deed of trust that the parties used from Wolters Kluwer Financial Services, Inc. for a…
Date: December 16, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3416
Justia Opinion Summary: Reeves, an inmate housed in the isolation unit at Ouachita River Unit in Malvern, provided information to correctional officers about a prison nurse who was bringing contraband into the facility. While Lieutenant King…
Date: December 16, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1249
Justia Opinion Summary: A grand jury indicted Kelley on two counts of arson. Before trial, Kelley moved to have his court appointed attorney replaced. The magistrate judge denied Kelley’s motion. On the morning Kelley’s trial was to begin,…
Date: December 15, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3794
Justia Opinion Summary: Sellner pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, 21 U.S.C. 846. Judgment was entered on March 8, 2013. Her attorney did not file notice of appeal. In July 2013,…
Date: December 15, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1408
Justia Opinion Summary: Bonnie, a Trinity Health employee, enrolled her family in a Blue Cross group health plan. Trinity served as plan administrator. Bonnie took FMLA leave and then short-term disability leave, which expired June 8, 2011.…
Date: December 10, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1337
Justia Opinion Summary: Four boys, ages 10 to 12, visited and occasionally stayed at Stong’s apartment. Officers executed a search warrant, seized computers and a camera memory card from Stong’s living room, and found pornographic images and…
Date: December 9, 2014
Docket Numbers: 14-3739, 14-3743
Justia Opinion Summary: Goodwin, scheduled to be executed on December 10, 2014 based on his conviction for first-degree murder, sought a certificate of appealability with respect to his Eighth Amendment claim of intellectual disability or, in…
Date: December 8, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3497
Justia Opinion Summary: Williams was an Alexander police officer under chief Walters. There was animosity between them, stemming from Williams’s support of the mayor. Walters stated that he had Williams “in his cross hairs” and relieved Walters…
Date: December 5, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3407
Justia Opinion Summary: Musolf was a J.C. Penney loss prevention specialist. Store manager Child had concerns Musolf did not display respect for her team. Child conducted sessions with Musolf to improve teamwork. In 2010, Musolf alleged sexual…
Date: December 5, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3787
Justia Opinion Summary: Rodriguez is a citizen of Mexico. He obtained an Iowa identification card using the name Ramon Rodriguez (the name of his brother, also a Mexican citizen) and presented: a Missouri identification card, a social security…
Date: December 4, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3237
Justia Opinion Summary: Sanders assisted another inmate by writing a letter to officials outside the Arkansas Department of Correction, asserting that Officer Page accepted a pair of ostrich-skin shoes made by the inmate. Sanders claimed that…
Date: December 4, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3406
Justia Opinion Summary: An Iowa jury convicted Paulson of sexually abusing his five-year-old daughter, M. Paulson’s defense argued that there was no direct, credible evidence. A clinical psychologist testified that the method of questioning M.…
Date: December 4, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1048
Justia Opinion Summary: Johnson pleaded guilty to possession and attempted possession of child pornography, 18 U.S.C. 2252A(a)(5)(B) and (b)(2) and was sentenced to 97 months’ imprisonment followed by 15 years of supervised release. The court…
Date: December 4, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1164
Justia Opinion Summary: McIvor claims that she used TransUnion's online system to dispute a $242 debt alleged against her by Credit Control. She reported, "Creditor agreed to remove this account from my file. This account is settled."…
Date: December 4, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1252
Justia Opinion Summary: Brown pled guilty to distributing about six grams of crack cocaine, 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(C). The district court calculated a guideline range of 151 to 188 months based on Brown's offense level of 29 and…
Date: December 4, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1401
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2006, Noel accepted a new position at SBC that involved frequent travel, which aggravated his diabetes. Two years later, Noel was hospitalized after collapsing at an airport, and the next year, SBC gave him a…
Date: December 4, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1675
Justia Opinion Summary: Officers interviewed Mohr about his contact with a minor. Based on his statements and other evidence, Mohr was indicted for sexual exploitation of a child, 18 U.S.C. 2251(a), 2260A, and attempt to entice a minor to…
Date: December 4, 2014
Docket Number: 14-2007
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2011 a series of suspicious fires in Babbitt, Minnesota and the Superior National Forest were started with complex combustible flares or with simple pocket lighters. An investigation eventually identified Scharber,…
Date: December 2, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3663
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Pliva, manufacturer of the prescription medication metoclopramide, alleging that the medication caused her to develop tardive dyskinesia. On appeal, plaintiff appealed the district court's…
Date: December 2, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3729
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), 29 U.S.C. 621 et seq., and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq., against his employer after he retired.…
Date: December 2, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1357
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. Defendant objected to the inclusion of five convictions from municipal court in his presentencing report on the basis…
Date: December 1, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3299
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging that his probation officer violated his First Amendment rights by requiring him to satisfy the terms of a court probation order directing him to complete a privately…
Date: December 1, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1540
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to mail fraud and defendant appealed the district court's restitution order. Defendant had defrauded his employer of hundreds of thousands of dollars and the company terminated his employment,…
Date: November 28, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3605
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a custodian for the school district, filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 and state law against the district after plaintiff's wife spoke at a public school board meeting. Plaintiff's wife was speaking as a member…
Date: November 28, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1503
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of his application for social security disability insurance (SSDI). Plaintiff alleged that the ALJ erred by failing to order an intelligence quotient (IQ) test, evaluating plaintiff's…
Date: November 26, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1421
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed the district court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence after pleading guilty to possession of pseudoephedrine knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that it would be used to manufacture…
Date: November 26, 2014
Docket Number: 14-6016
Justia Opinion Summary: GE Capital appealed the bankruptcy court's denial of its motion for allowance of an administrative expense claim for unpaid lease obligations against debtor. The court concluded that the written record supports GE…
Date: November 25, 2014
Docket Numbers: 12-2986, 12-3010
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants Adejumo, Okeayainneh, and Adeniran were convicted of various charges related to their involvement in a scheme using stolen identity information to create counterfeit identifications for use in committing bank…
Date: November 25, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1183
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. The court concluded that the district court did not err in applying a two-level enhancement for possession of a firearm…
Date: November 24, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3640
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner entered an Alford plea to two counts of drug conspiracy and possession. On appeal, petitioner challenged the district court's denial of his 28 U.S.C. 2255 petition on the grounds of ineffective assistance of…
Date: November 24, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1088
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, the trustee of Cody Laganiere's estate, filed suit against ADC and others under 42 U.S.C. 1983 after Cody was found dead in his cell from a methadone overdose. Plaintiff alleged that defendants deliberately…
Date: November 24, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1546
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm as a felon. The court concluded that the district court did not err in calculating defendant's advisory sentencing guidelines range where…
Date: November 24, 2014
Docket Number: 14-6027
Justia Opinion Summary: When debtor filed for bankruptcy, he was living in rental property owned by creditors. Creditors violated an automatic stay and evicted debtor. On appeal, creditors challenged the bankruptcy court's finding that they had…
Date: November 20, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1215
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed the district court's above-Guidelines sentence after he admitted to violating his supervised release. The court rejected defendant's contention that the district court should have followed Federal Rule…
Date: November 20, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1504
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to child pornography and was sentenced as a repeat offender to a mandatory minimum of fifteen years imprisonment. The court rejected defendant's challenge to the district court's denial of his…
Date: November 20, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1527
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants pled guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States by submitting false applications for loan-deficiency payments and were ordered to pay restitution. The United States then filed suit against defendants…
Date: November 19, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1073
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to illegally possessing a firearm. The district court sentenced defendant to 180 months in prison, the mandatory minimum under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA),…
Date: November 19, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1260
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of her application for supplemental security income (SSI) where she alleged that she was disabled due to back pain, scoliosis, and other conditions. The court concluded that the Commissioner…
Date: November 18, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3070
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, three ex-fire chiefs, appealed the adverse grant of summary judgment on their procedural due process claims challenging their terminations. The court concluded that plaintiffs, at-will employees pursuant to…
Date: November 18, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3772
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a Caucasian male, filed suit after being terminated from the AHTD, alleging race and gender discrimination and violations of various statutory and constitutional rights. Because plaintiff has not provided…
Date: November 18, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1711
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to possessing with intent to distribute at least five grams of methamphetamine and possessing a firearm in furtherance of this drug trafficking crime. The court…
Date: November 17, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-3738, 13-3798, 14-1031
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants, three federal inmates, pled guilty to assaulting "persons assisting federal officers" under 18 U.S.C. 111 after they assaulted two state correctional officers at the county jail, a facility which has a…
Date: November 17, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1165
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to failing to register as a sex offender under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA), 18 U.S.C. 2250(a)(2)(B), and appealed the denial of his motion to dismiss the indictment.…
Date: November 17, 2014
Docket Numbers: 14-1192, 14-1194
Justia Opinion Summary: After Hot Stuff recalled mislabeled sandwiches containing MSG, Hot Stuff sought indemnification from HCC for losses sustained due to the recall. HCC denied coverage on the ground that the claim did not involve an…
Date: November 17, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1486
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Mexico, sought review of the BIA's dismissal of his appeal from an IJ's order of removal. Petitioner was charged with speeding and driving without a valid drivers license in violation…
Date: November 14, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1752
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant conditionally plead guilty and subsequently appealed the denial of a motion to suppress a firearm found in the pouch of a vehicle where defendant was a passenger. The police were responding to a reported…
Date: November 12, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1355
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for bank robbery, arguing that the district court committed constitutional error by allowing the jury to view a replay of video exhibits outside the presence of defendant and without…
Date: November 6, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3050
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of her application for disability insurance benefits, asserting that she had difficulty breathing and painful joints. The court concluded that the ALJ did not err in giving greater weight to…
Date: November 6, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1146
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against his former employer, Stratasys, alleging violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), 29 U.S.C. 207(a). Section 207(a) requires certain employees be paid overtime wages for working more…
Date: November 4, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1203
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of her application for social security disability insurance benefits, alleging total disability due to, among other things, depression, anxiety, joint deterioration, and swelling in her…
Date: November 3, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1395
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of his applications for Social Security disability insurance benefits and supplemental security income. The court concluded that the ALJ's determination is supported by substantial evidence…
Date: October 30, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3094
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against defendants four years after a jury acquitted him of murder, alleging that defendants conspired to frame him for the crime. In this case, Arkansas provides a three year statute of limitations…
Date: October 29, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1015
Justia Opinion Summary: The government appealed the district court's grant of defendants' motions to suppress evidence seized during a search of a vehicle. The court concluded that the government did not waive its Arkansas Code Section…
Date: October 28, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2452
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for numerous federal offenses stemming from his involvement in controlled buys of various controlled substances. The court rejected defendant's claim that the district court…
Date: October 27, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2171
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of El Salvador, sought review of the BIA's decision concluding that petitioner was ineligible for cancellation of removal because he had been convicted of a crime involving moral…
Date: October 27, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-6034, 13-6035
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor appealed the bankruptcy court's ruling denying her request for discharge of her student loan obligations to ECMC based on undue hardship pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 523(a)(8). The bankruptcy appellate panel concluded…
Date: October 23, 2014
Docket Number: 14-6018
Justia Opinion Summary: Jandrain, et al. appealed the bankruptcy court's determination that certain funds were property of the bankruptcy estate, awarding the trustee certain fees and expenses, and surcharging those fees and expenses against…
Date: October 22, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-3512, 13-3513
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit against Heinkel and Pepperl in Iowa state court, seeking damages based on a products-liability theory. On appeal, Heinkel and Pepperl challenged the district court's grant of plaintiffs' motion to…
Date: October 22, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1453
Justia Opinion Summary: Steve Conway appealed the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel's (BAP) dismissal of his appeal from an adverse ruling of the bankruptcy court. The court concluded that Conway, who has not claimed to be a licensed attorney, cannot…
Date: October 21, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1182
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction after pleading guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a mixture containing methamphetamine and use of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime. Defendant contended…
Date: October 21, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2663
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit against defendants alleging that defendants breached a contract for legal services, seeking compensatory and punitive damages. The district court granted defendants' motion to transfer the legal…
Date: October 21, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3039
Justia Opinion Summary: Noel Bisges represented debtor in her Chapter 7 bankruptcy case. United States Trustee Nancy Gargula moved to reopen the case after it was closed because she learned that debtor possibly failed to disclose in her…
Date: October 21, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1037
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arose after the City of Redfield and Quam entered into a construction contract and issues arose regarding the subsurface ground conditions. On appeal, Quam challenged the district court's order denying its…
Date: October 21, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1460
Justia Opinion Summary: After defendant's fourth period of supervises release was revoked, he appealed the sentence imposed by the district court arguing that the district court erred by sentencing him on conduct not included in the written…
Date: October 21, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1505
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for receipt of visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. The court concluded that the evidence was sufficient to support defendant's conviction;…
Date: October 20, 2014
Docket Number: 12-3896
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, convicted of unlawful possession of a firearm as a previously convicted felon, appealed the district court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence seized during the search of his residence and the…
Date: October 17, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3774
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of his application for supplemental security income where the ALJ found that plaintiff was not disabled because he could perform jobs a vocational expert (VE) identified in response to a…
Date: October 17, 2014
Docket Numbers: 14-6013, 14-6024
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtors filed a pro se Chapter 13 bankruptcy in order to stop a pending foreclosure of their residential unit. On appeal, debtors challenged the bankruptcy court's order denying their motion for violation of an automatic…
Date: October 14, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3733
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native of Hong Kong, petitioned for review of the BIA's affirmance of the IJ's denial of withholding of removal. Petitioner claimed that she suffered past persecution based on her membership in a particular…
Date: October 14, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1173
Date: October 10, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3110
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants appealed the Commissioner's determination that the USDA's Conservation Program (CRP) payments that appellants received were taxable as income from self-employment. The court entered judgment in favor of…
Date: October 10, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3655
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and to launder money. On appeal, defendant challenged the district court's denial of his evidentiary hearing, claiming that the government improperly refused…
Date: October 10, 2014
Docket Number: 14-2263
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a Minnesota inmate, sought leave to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP) in a suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983. The district court denied IFP status and dismissed the complaint because plaintiff had three strikes within…
Date: October 7, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1742
Justia Opinion Summary: Hudson filed suit seeking a declaratory judgment that the Hired and Non-Owned Auto Liability endorsement to an insurance policy's Commercial General Liability Coverage Form provides no coverage to any defendant in the…
Date: October 7, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2546
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Associated Underwriters after she was terminated, alleging claims under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), 29 U.S.C. 621 et seq., and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA),…
Date: October 7, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2782
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Reliance and the Plan, under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. 1001 et seq., claiming that Reliance abused its discretion in denying long-term disability…
Date: October 7, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3326
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against BNSF, alleging that BNSF violated the anti-retaliation mandate in the Federal Rail Safety Act (FRSA), 49 U.S.C. 20109(a), when BNSF terminated him. The district court granted summary judgment…
Date: October 6, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2032
Justia Opinion Summary: Stonebridge appealed the district court's judgment in favor of Trip Mate, holding that Stonebridge breached an implied amendment to the parties' Managing General Agent Agreement that was incorporated into the Termination…
Date: October 3, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3443
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against XTO, an oil and natural gas producer, for damages caused by vibrations from drilling operations. The jury returned a verdict for plaintiff and XTO moved for a new trial. The district court…
Date: October 3, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1150
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 7 and the bankruptcy court refused to apply collateral estoppel to a state judgment, finding all the debt dischargeable. The district court reversed, finding all the debt…
Date: October 2, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1816
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1989, Wheatley plaintiffs filed suit against the District alleging on-going violations of the Voting Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. 1971 et seq., and the Fourteenth Amendment. In 1990, the district court confirmed a settlement…
Date: October 2, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2900
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for charges related to his activity in the mortgage lending and related businesses. The court concluded that the district court did not abuse its wide discretion in refusing to sever his…
Date: September 30, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2592
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a pathologist, filed suit against Avera, alleging that Avera violated federal and state laws for terminating a Services Agreement. Plaintiff filed suit under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42…
Date: September 24, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3694
Date: September 15, 2014
Docket Number: 14-6007
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the bankruptcy court's orders granting a motion to dismiss and denying his motion for retroactive approval to prosecute a derivative action complaint. The panel concluded that, based upon the record…
Date: September 15, 2014
Docket Number: 14-6023
Justia Opinion Summary: The trustee appealed from the bankruptcy court's order overruling the trustee's objection to debtor's claimed exemption in the portion of his state income tax refund which came from the Minnesota Education Credit as…
Date: September 10, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1261
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for failing to register as a sex offender under 18 U.S.C. 2250(a). In 2006, Congress enacted the Sex Offender Registration Notification Act (SORNA), 42 U.S.C. 16901-16991. In 2007, the…
Date: September 10, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-1894, 13-1935, 13-1941, 13-1967, 13-1969, 13-1971
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants Henley, Smith, Elkins, Fry, Robinson, and Peteet pled guilty to racketeering conspiracy and various counts of violent crime in aid of racketeering in connection with their involvement in a motorcycle gang.…
Date: September 10, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2593
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 two years and four months after his claims related to a traffic stop arose. The court affirmed the district court's dismissal of the action as time barred under Iowa's two-year…
Date: September 10, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2924
Justia Opinion Summary: Taxpayers petitioned the Tax Court, challenging the Commission's notices of deficiency regarding their farmhouse. The Tax Court denied the petition, disallowing $42,694 in claimed deductions because taxpayers failed to…
Date: September 10, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2985
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed the revocation of his supervised release and resulting 60-month commitment to the BOP. The court affirmed, concluding that the sentence was not substantively unreasonable considering the reasons given…
Date: September 9, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-2379, 13-2835
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against JLLA for, inter alia, failure to pay him a commission on a deal that closed shortly after his departure. The district court sua sponte granted summary judgment for plaintiff and held that…
Date: September 9, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2381
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant plead guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of children and appealed the denial of his motion to suppress evidence seized under a search warrant from his room at the YMCA camp. The court agreed with the…
Date: September 9, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3302
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession and appealed his sentence. The district court concluded that defendant's prior criminal history, including a conviction for a 1992 Kansas burglary, qualified him as…
Date: September 8, 2014
Docket Numbers: 12-3239, 12-3352
Justia Opinion Summary: The Bank filed suit against the Hanna Parties for breach of contract after the Hanna Parties failed to pay the balance due on a loan when it matured. The Hanna Parties counterclaimed, alleging fraud, breach of fiduciary…
Date: September 8, 2014
Docket Number: 12-3357
Justia Opinion Summary: The court reversed the district court's dismissal of plaintiff's claim for relief under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C. 2000bb-1(a) to (c), and vacated the dismissal of plaintiffs' remaining…
Date: September 8, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1862
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of charges related to the unauthorized interception of cable service and illegal currency structuring for which he is serving 70 months imprisonment, argued that his Sixth Amendment right to counsel…
Date: September 5, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1118
Justia Opinion Summary: Annex, Stuart Lind, and Tom Janas filed suit challenging HHS' contraceptive mandate under the Religioous Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C. 2000bb-1(a). Lind, a controlling shareholder of Annex, opposed insurance…
Date: September 5, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2919
Justia Opinion Summary: G&K filed suit against Bill's for breach of contract and sought liquidated damages. Bill's counterclaimed, asserting common-law clams and a violation of the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, Ark. Code 4-88-113. A…
Date: September 5, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2942
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging that law enforcement officers used excessive force when they shot and killed her brother (Mahir S. Al-Hakim). The district court granted summary judgment to the City,…
Date: September 2, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1189
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered a conditional guilty plea to a charge of failing to register and update his sex offender registration, and subsequently appealed the denial of his motion to dismiss the indictment. Defendant argued that…
Date: September 2, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1229
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants, two Minnesota-based, grassroots advocacy organizations and their leaders, filed suit claiming that a provision of the Minnesota Fair Campaign Practices Act (FCPA), Minn. Stat. 211B.01 et seq., inhibits…
Date: September 2, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2619
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of his application for Social Security disability and supplemental security income benefits. The court concluded that the ALJ's failure to explicitly refer to SSR 96-9p was an arguable…
Date: September 2, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-2679, 13-2949
Justia Opinion Summary: Thomas Hipp was driving a semi-tractor and trailer on a two-lane road when the trailer collided with a vehicle driven by Amy Soczynski. Amy died as a result of the collision and this appeal concerns the subsequent…
Date: September 2, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3085
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute marijuana and appealed the denial of his motion to suppress evidence. The court held that, assuming that the agents' warrantless entry into defendant's home was not…
Date: August 29, 2014
Docket Numbers: 12-3754, 13-1109
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants Bennett, Jennifer, and Clayton were found guilty of several counts stemming from two fraudulent schemes. Bennett and Clayton appealed their convictions and sentences, and Jennifer appealed her convictions.…
Date: August 29, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1026
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Malone and others after he was injured by a pipe saddle. The jury returned a verdict for Malone and plaintiff appealed, raising numerous issues on appeal. The court concluded that the…
Date: August 29, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1654
Justia Opinion Summary: Relator filed a qui tam action against Planned Parenthood, alleging that it violated the False Claims Act (FCA), 31 U.S.C. 3729-3733, and the Iowa False Claims Act (IFCA), Iowa Code Ann. 685.1-.7, by submitting false or…
Date: August 28, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1161
Justia Opinion Summary: SHF acquired the vestiges of Sholom Rubashkin's bankrupt Agriprocessors, now rebranded Agri Star. Debtor, Nevel, is owned by Rubashkin's brother. At issue on appeal was whether SHF has any rights to a well located on…
Date: August 28, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-1269, 13-2597
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Burma, petitioned for review of the BIA's denial of her motion to remand and her later motion to reopen her application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the…
Date: August 28, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2156
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Sammy Hagar after he published an autobiography in which he alleged that plaintiff had extorted him by claiming she was pregnant with his child. The district court granted summary judgment…
Date: August 28, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2447
Justia Opinion Summary: This case involved a scenario in which a creditor holds a third mortgage that is secured only by the debtor's principal residence, but the value of the creditor's interest in the home is zero, because the value of the…
Date: August 28, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2854
Justia Opinion Summary: U.S. Bank appealed the district court's denial of its motion to intervene in a suit between a homeowner and her insurer, State Farm. The court concluded that the district court reasonably determined that the bank was too…
Date: August 28, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3185
Justia Opinion Summary: Two trustees of the Fund filed suit under section 301 of the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA), 29 U.S.C. 185(a), and section 515 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. 1145, to collect…
Date: August 27, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2388
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit against OEF and Hugo under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. 2000e-1 et seq., and Nebraska law, alleging sexual harassment and retaliation. Plaintiffs Davis and Duncan also sued…
Date: August 27, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3215
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed her sentence after being convicted of drug conspiracy and possession charges. The district court found defendant ineligible for safety valve relief under 18 U.S.C. 3553(f) because she had been…
Date: August 27, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3476
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed her conviction for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute at least one kilogram of heroin. The court concluded that there was sufficient evidence to convict defendant; the…
Date: August 27, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3650
Justia Opinion Summary: Reggie A. Mathews, a third party, sought a hearing to determine his interest in $412,900.00 seized from the trunk of a car he was driving. On appeal, Mathews challenged the district court's dismissal of his petition for…
Date: August 27, 2014
Docket Number: 14-1129
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for conspiracy to distribute cocaine base. The court concluded that the evidence was sufficient to convict defendant of the conspiracy. The court also concluded that the district court…
Date: August 26, 2014
Docket Number: 12-3465
Justia Opinion Summary: Movant, convicted of conspiring to distribute ecstacy, moved to vacate his 240-month sentence based on, inter alia, the ineffective assistance of appellate counsel. Movant argued that he is entitled to 28 U.S.C. 2255…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 12-1058
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 12-3753
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, current or former "gang-time" employees at Tyson, filed a class action suit against Tyson for not paying wages due under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA), 29 U.S.C. 201 et seq., and the Iowa Wage…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1739
Justia Opinion Summary: The government filed an interlocutory appeal from the district court's order, arguing that 21 U.S.C. 848 requires a full sentencing rehearing - that is, that the statute requires the new jury to decide whether defendant…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1934
Justia Opinion Summary: The Red River Freethinkers filed suit challenging a Ten Commandments monument in Fargo, North Dakota. On remand, the district court granted summary judgment to the City and Freethinkers appealed. The court concluded that…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2036
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit against Tyson for not paying wages due under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA), 29 U.S.C. 201 et seq., and under Iowa law. The jury returned a verdict for Tyson and plaintiffs appealed.…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2084
Justia Opinion Summary: Key Medical filed suit alleging that the Agency exceeded its statutory authority when implementing a competitive-bidding system for Medicare's pricing of medical equipment and supplies. Key Medical acknowledges that the…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2467
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen of Mexico, petitioned for review of the BIA's finding that petitioner did not qualify for cancellation of removal. Petitioner argued that the BIA committed an error of law when it "failed to follow…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2668
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for two counts of theft of government money, one count of Social Security disability fraud, one count of passing a false financial instrument with intent to defraud, and one…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3055
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit on behalf of themselves and a class, alleging a miscalculation of their Medicare Part B premium calculations. Plaintiffs conceded that they failed to exhaust administrative remedies. Because this…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3128
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against defendant, an employee of the Center, in state court for battery and under 42 U.S.C. 1983 for deprivation of her substantive due process right to bodily integrity. Plaintiff also filed suit…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3401
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner appealed the denial of his petition for habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. 2254. The court found that the Minnesota state courts' adjudication of petitioner's ineffective assistance claim was not contrary to…
Date: August 25, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3720
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against a former police officer in his individual capacity, alleging that the officer used excessive force in tasing and shooting her father. The district court denied summary…
Date: August 22, 2014
Docket Number: 12-2888
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of three counts of capital murder and sentenced to death, was denied habeas relief under 28 U.S.C. 2254 but granted a certificate of appealability (COA) on the issue of ineffective assistance of…
Date: August 22, 2014
Docket Numbers: 12-3958, 12-4045
Justia Opinion Summary: This case stemmed from litigation involving long grain rice producers' allegations that Bayer contaminated the United States rice supply. After plaintiffs settled, the district court awarded common benefit fees from a…
Date: August 22, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-1023, 13-1069
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants Campbell and Bailey appealed their sentences after pleading guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute anabolic steroids and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Defendants claimed that the…
Date: August 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2115
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), petitioned for review of the BIA's order of removal. An IJ found petitioner's application frivolous and denied all forms of relief. The BIA affirmed. The…
Date: August 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2290
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of El Salvador, petitioned for review of the BIA's denial of his application for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). The court concluded…
Date: August 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2345
Justia Opinion Summary: This case stemmed from litigation involving long grain rice producers' allegations that Bayer contaminated the United States rice supply. Plaintiff class representatives filed suit for unjust enrichment and quantum…
Date: August 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2675
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for conspiracy to possess cocaine with intent to distribute. The court concluded that the admission of a witness's identifications during the police interview and at trial did not…
Date: August 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3179
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to illegal reentry by a previously removed alien. The court concluded that the district court did not err in applying a 16-level enhancement under U.S.S.G.…
Date: August 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3190
Justia Opinion Summary: Viaero sought to construct a telecommunications tower in the City. After the City Council voted to deny Viaero's application for a permit to build the tower, Viaero filed suit for violation of the Telecommunications Act…
Date: August 22, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3325
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to possession of child pornography. The court concluded that the district court did not err in imposing a 20-year sentence that runs consecutive to his state…
Date: August 21, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2653
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against law enforcement as well as the City of Barling, alleging violations of his rights under the First and Fourth Amendments. Plaintiff subsequently accepted defendants' offer…
Date: August 21, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2709
Justia Opinion Summary: The official liquidator of Palm Beach Funds filed suit against U.S. Bank for aiding and abetting a breach of fiduciary duty, willful and wanton negligence, and gross negligence. The claims arose from the Palm Beach…
Date: August 21, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3251
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed the district court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence of a firearm found on his person at the time of arrest after defendant pled guilty to being a felon in possession. Defendant, a convicted…
Date: August 20, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2179
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit asserting various state and federal claims against, inter alia, arresting officers, the City, his public defender, his probation officer, and two county sheriffs for delaying plaintiff's release. On…
Date: August 20, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2686
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor appealed the the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel's (BAP) decision affirming a decision of the bankruptcy court approving a settlement between the Chapter 7 trustee and the City of Maplewood, and denying debtor's motion…
Date: August 20, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3000
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a juvenile sexually assaulted by another juvenile, filed suit against several public employees, alleging that they were aware of a threat by the assailant but failed to take steps to prevent the abuse by…
Date: August 19, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2405
Justia Opinion Summary: The Union appealed from the district court's order vacating an arbitration award. PSC argued that the plain language of the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and the Standards of Conduct mandate that an employee…
Date: August 15, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1936
Justia Opinion Summary: Arkansas imposed more stringent limits on the dissolved minerals EDCC could discharge into two unnamed tributaries (UTA and UTB), and granted EDCC three years to comply. EDCC then initiated a Third Party Rulemaking to…
Date: August 15, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-2102, 13-2103
Justia Opinion Summary: The EEOC and Adam Breaux, a terminated employee of PFI, appealed the district court's adverse grant of summary judgment in favor of PFI. Breaux asserted that PFI discriminated against him based on his right shoulder…
Date: August 15, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2256
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Mexico, petitioned for review of the discretionary denial of his application for cancellation of removal under 8 U.S.C. 1229b(b). The court concluded that petitioner's argument that…
Date: August 15, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2424
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under the Minnesota Human Rights Act (MHRA), Minn. Stat. 363A et seq., alleging that the County discriminated her based on her sex and her age when they terminated her employment. Plaintiff also…
Date: August 15, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2618
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Prairie Ethanol on his claim of disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. 12201 et seq. Assuming,…
Date: August 15, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2646
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against defendant, individually and in his official capacity as a circuit judge, alleging violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq., the Rehabilitation Act, 29…
Date: August 15, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2713
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, convicted of a firearms and a possession charge, appealed the district court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence obtained during a traffic stop of his vehicle and the evidence obtained during a search…
Date: August 14, 2014
Docket Number: 12-3530
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against the two officers who stripped searched him, alleging that the officers violated his rights under the Fourth Amendment. The court affirmed the district court's grant of…
Date: August 14, 2014
Docket Number: 12-3623
Justia Opinion Summary: Sentis filed suit against Shell, alleging contract and fraud claims, and violations of Missouri franchise laws as well as the Petroleum Marketing Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. 2801 et seq. The court agreed with the district…
Date: August 14, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-1145, 13-1493
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, a police officer, was found guilty of willfully depriving another person of the right to be free from the use of unreasonable force and knowingly falsifying a police report with the intent to obstruct justice.…
Date: August 14, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2680
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against a law enforcement officer for violating her Fourth Amendments rights and for battery and false imprisonment under Minnesota law. The district court denied defendant's…
Date: August 14, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3275
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after being convicted of two counts of bank robbery. The district court sentenced defendant to life imprisonment because he previously had been convicted of two serious violent felonies.…
Date: August 13, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2184
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arose when an investment advisor committed fraud by opening a doing-business-as ("d/b/a") bank account using the name of his employer when he did not have the employer's authority to do so. The employer's…
Date: August 13, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3556
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Wyeth, alleging that she developed breast cancer after using Wyeth's's hormone therapy medication, Prempro. The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation transferred the case to the the…
Date: August 12, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2994
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court found that defendant's refusal to complete a Post-Conviction Risk Assessment (PCRA) violated a condition of his supervised release and sentenced him to seven days imprisonment with no term of…
Date: August 11, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-1592, 13-1714
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his 100-month prison sentence for drug offenses for being too long and the Government appealed defendant's sentence for being too short. At issue was the ambiguity of the career offender enhancement…
Date: August 11, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-1708, 13-1795, 13-1710, 13-1797
Justia Opinion Summary: Richard L. Brown and Susan Brown-Thill, co-trustees of the EDB Trust, signed an Arbitration Agreement for resolving a broad range of disputes. These consolidated appeals concern two awards following an initial…
Date: August 8, 2014
Docket Number: 12-2566
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of a drug offense, appealed the district court's dismissal of his motion for post-conviction relief under 28 U.S.C. 2255. Plaintiff alleged that his counsel was ineffective in failing to move to…
Date: August 8, 2014
Docket Number: 13-1391
Justia Opinion Summary: Syngenta, producer of a genetically-modified corn seed, filed suit against Bunge, an agricultural produce storage and transport company, alleging breach of an obligation under the United States Warehouse Act (USWA), 7…
Date: August 8, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2237
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty without a plea agreement to various drug and firearms offenses. The court concluded that the district court did not commit procedural error in applying a U.S.S.G.…
Date: August 8, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2262
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against prison officials after he was attacked three times by fellow inmates over the course of about a year and a half. Plaintiff claimed that the officials violated his Eighth Amendment right…
Date: August 8, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2317
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against the County and others under 42 U.S.C. 1983, after he was investigated and prosecuted for rape and murder. On appeal, plaintiff argued that the district court erred in granting defendants…
Date: August 8, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2477
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, parents of minor children who reside in the District, filed suit challenging a resolution to exempt the District from the Public School Choice Act of 2013, Ark. Code Ann. 6-18-1901 et seq. Plaintiffs alleged…
Date: August 8, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2607
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, appealed the district court's denial of his motion to vacate his sentence under 28 U.S.C. 2255(b). Petitioner alleged that his…
Date: August 8, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2830
Justia Opinion Summary: Asarco filed suit against UP alleging breach of contract and seeking contribution regarding a dispute about environmental liability for a lead refinery and smelter which polluted Omaha, Nebraska. The district court…
Date: August 8, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3217
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after being convicted of ten counts of wire fraud and one count of mail fraud for obtaining from his disabled cousin some $300,000 through a fraudulent scheme. The court concluded that the…
Date: August 8, 2014
Docket Number: 14-6012
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor, a managing member of Twister's Iron Horse Saloon, appealed the bankruptcy court's order determining that a debt arising from a civil judgment in favor of appellees for copyright infringement was excepted from…
Date: August 7, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2176
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen of Gambia, petitioned for review of the BIA's dismissal of her appeal from an IJ's order that she be removed from the United States. The court concluded that there was substantial evidence to…
Date: August 7, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2215
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of disability insurance benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. 401-434. The court agreed with the district court that the ALJ properly articulated his reasons for…
Date: August 7, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2233
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against his deceased son's employer and the insurer, MetLife, under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. 1001 et seq, after plaintiff was denied benefits of the…
Date: August 7, 2014
Docket Numbers: 13-2509, 13-2647
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an orthopedic surgeon and former consultant at Stryker, filed suit alleging that Stryker and I-Flow violated the False Claims Act (FCA), 31 U.S.C. 3729-3733, by marketing their pain pumps to encourage the…
Date: August 7, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2747
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against the City, challenging the state's vehicle forfeiture proceeding under Minnesota Stat. 169A.63, Subdiv. 8(b). After looking at the three Mathews v. Eldridge factors, the…
Date: August 7, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2753
Justia Opinion Summary: Cargotec appealed the district court's conclusion that Cargotec's contract with NMC did not contain arbitration and indemnification provisions. As a preliminary matter, the court concluded that whether the arbitration…
Date: August 6, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2642
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for conspiracy to commit bank robbery, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court concluded that the evidence…
Date: August 5, 2014
Docket Numbers: 12-3785, 12-3786
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Officers Santiago and Roth, the City, and the State, alleging constitutional violations under 42 U.S.C. 1983 and state-law violations when the officers unlawfully seized him and used…
Date: August 5, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2838
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of her applications for disability insurance benefits (DIB) and supplemental security income (SSI). Plaintiff argued that the ALJ failed to give adequate weight to her treating physician's…
Date: August 5, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3065
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, who guaranteed loans for their husbands' company, appealed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Community on their claim under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), 15 U.S.C. 1691 et…
Date: August 5, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3105
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed her sentence after pleading guilty to one count of making a false statement to the government in connection with her receipt of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits from the SSA. The court…
Date: August 5, 2014
Docket Number: 13-3771
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court concluded that defendant and his counsel were not entitled to advance notice before the district court imposed…
Date: August 4, 2014
Docket Number: 12-3703
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for possessing and distributing child pornography. The court concluded that the district court did not misapply Rule 414 in admitting into evidence defendant's prior conviction for…
Date: August 4, 2014
Docket Number: 13-2641
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for charges related to his coercion of several women to travel interstate to perform commercial sex acts for defendant's pecuniary gain. The court concluded that the…
