2016 Eighth Circuit US Court of Appeals Case Law
Opinions 501 - 1000 of 1241
Date: July 19, 2016
Docket Numbers: 14-2842, 15-1314
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen and national of Mexico, seeks review of DHS's orders reinstating a removal order and denying petitioner's motion to reopen the reinstatement order. The court found that substantial evidence supports…
Date: July 19, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1854
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 and state law, alleging that Officer Buchanan violated his rights under the Fourth Amendment by entering his home unlawfully and by using excessive force against him during an…
Date: July 19, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-2459, 15-2575
Justia Opinion Summary: Capson filed suit against MMIC seeking a declaration that MMIC was the primary professional liability insurer for Karl J. Hasik, M.D., and that Capson was the excess insurer. MMIC counterclaimed and filed a third-party…
Date: July 19, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3345
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was found guilty of possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon and then appealed the denial of his motion to suppress evidence seized from his vehicle. The court concluded that the search was a…
Date: July 19, 2016
Docket Number: 15-6024
Justia Opinion Summary: Civic Partners appealed the bankruptcy court's order dismissing its chapter 11 bankruptcy case. Northwest Bank holds a mortgage against the Promenade and an assignment of rents to secure a promissory note executed by…
Date: July 19, 2016
Docket Number: 15-6031
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtor appealed the bankruptcy court's order denying her request to discharge her student loan for undue hardship pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 523(a)(8). The BAP concluded that, under the totality of the circumstances, the…
Date: July 19, 2016
Docket Number: 16-8009
Justia Opinion Summary: A class of plaintiffs filed suit against the Rams in the Twenty-Second Circuit Court in the city of St. Louis, alleging state-law violations that arose out of the Rams' relocation of their professional football team to…
Date: July 18, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1732
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against the jail nurse, jail administrator, and the City, after he was arrested during an altercation with his nephew and had sustained an injury to his hand. The court concluded…
Date: July 18, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2687
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed her sentence and conviction for multiple offenses related to immigration fraud and government-benefits fraud. The court concluded that, assuming Kungys v. United States applies to criminal prosecutions…
Date: July 18, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2829
Justia Opinion Summary: After plaintiff suffered a serious knee injury while deployed by the Army in Iraq combat, he underwent surgery and the VA awarded him benefits for service-connected disability. Plaintiff then applied for Social Security…
Date: July 18, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3551
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, a taxidermist, pled guilty to one count of Lacey Act Trafficking in violation of 16 U.S.C. 3372(a)(1) and 3373(d)(1)(B), and was sentenced to 27 months in prison. Defendant's conviction stemmed from his…
Date: July 18, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3566
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant plead guilty to being a felon and unlawful drug user in possession of ammunition. On appeal, defendant challenged the district court's denial of his motion to suppress the ammunition recovered from his…
Date: July 15, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-2150, 15-2151
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for four counts of sexual abuse of a minor and one count of assault to his girlfriend resulting in serious bodily injury, all occurring in Indian country. Defendant's…
Date: July 15, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2837
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm as a felon, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. On appeal, defendant…
Date: July 15, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2988
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner pled guilty to five counts of distributing pure methamphetamine and one count of conspiring to distribute 50 grams or more of pure methamphetamine within 1000 feet of a playground or school. Petitioner filed a…
Date: July 15, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3597
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed a negligence action against Nucor after sustaining injuries while working at Nucor's steel mill. The district court granted summary judgment to Nucor, finding that the third-party waiver's (TPW) language…
Date: July 14, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-1183, 15-1665, 15-1832
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against ASB, claiming wrongful interference with his rights under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), 26 U.S.C. 2601 et seq. The court concluded that the district court did not clearly err in its…
Date: July 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1254
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm (Count 1) and for being a felon in possession of ammunition (Count 2). The court concluded that the district court did not err in excluding…
Date: July 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1499
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of murdering his ex-wife and kidnapping their three children, seeks habeas relief, arguing that the state trial court violated the Constitution when it refused to strike a juror as biased. The court…
Date: July 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1534
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute more than 50 kilograms of marijuana. The district court subsequently denied defendant's motion to withdraw his guilty plea and…
Date: July 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1983
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against two public officials in their official capacities, alleging that the procedures they enforce for placing initiatives on Nebraska state and municipal ballots violate his…
Date: July 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2052
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against a bus driver and the Metropolitan Council after the bus driver kicked plaintiff off the bus for failing to pay the bus fare, allowed passengers to exit the bus and…
Date: July 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2058
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an African American man, filed suit against his employer, John Deere, alleging race discrimination and harassment in employment in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. 2000e et…
Date: July 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2664
Justia Opinion Summary: Timothy Parks died from asphyxiation after the Gravely Promaster 152Z riding mower he was operating on his property fell off the edge of an embankment and rolled over on top of him. Plaintiff, Timothy's wife, filed suit…
Date: July 13, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2677
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his convictions and his sentence for receipt of child pornography and possession of child pornography. The court concluded that the district court did not abuse its discretion when it denied…
Date: July 13, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3115
Justia Opinion Summary: Blake filed suit against CarVal and Lux, alleging tortious interference with Blake's contract to lease a barge and crane to a third party. The district court dismissed the complaint as time-barred. To determine the…
Date: July 13, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3147
Justia Opinion Summary: Compart, a producer of breeding swine, filed a negligence suit against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), 28 U.S.C. 2671 et seq. Compart intended to export over three hundred pigs to China but…
Date: July 13, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3348
Justia Opinion Summary: Relator filed a qui tam action alleging that Bi-State and Eager Road made false claims to receive federal public-transit funds through the Department of Transportation and the Federal Transit Administration. The district…
Date: July 13, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3788
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury. On appeal, defendant challenged the district court's imposition of two conditions of…
Date: July 12, 2016
Docket Numbers: 14-3828, 15-1648, 15-1651
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants Kenneth Ray Borders, Jon Dirk Dickerson, and Kyle Wayne Dickerson appealed their convictions for crimes involving stolen goods and vehicles. The convictions stemmed from defendants' participation in a…
Date: July 12, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1487
Justia Opinion Summary: After plaintiff was terminated from UPS, he filed suit alleging race discrimination. The district court granted summary judgment to UPS. The court affirmed, concluding that the totality of the evidence in this case does…
Date: July 12, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2184
Justia Opinion Summary: Others First filed suit against the BBB, alleging tort claims for injurious falsehood based on alleged falsehoods contained in a news release, and for interference with business expectancy. The district court granted…
Date: July 11, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3422
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1996, Dale Helmig was convicted of first-degree murder of his mother. In 2011, the Missouri Court of Appeals vacated his conviction and gave the State 180 days to retry him. The State declined to retry Helmig. Helmig…
Date: July 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1671
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant plead guilty to possessing pseudoephedrine with intent to manufacture methamphetamine and then appealed his 108 month sentence, arguing that the district court abused its discretion in reducing his sentence to…
Date: July 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2143
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed her sentence after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter and assault with a dangerous weapon. The court concluded that the district court did not abuse its discretion in departing upward under USSG…
Date: July 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2206
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court concluded that the officers had reasonable suspicion to detain defendant because he was sleeping in an unmarked van filled with…
Date: July 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2562
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit against Midwest, alleging that an insurance agent carelessly and negligently failed to designate plaintiffs as owners of the insurance policy at issue. The district court concluded that the…
Date: July 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2739
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant conditionally plead guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm by a person convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence in violation of 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(9). On appeal, defendant challenged the…
Date: July 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2984
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Midland under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), 15 U.S.C. 1692e, alleging that Midland violated the FDCPA by filing a proof of claim on a time-barred debt. The district court…
Date: July 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3248
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence of 120 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm. The court joined its sister circuits and…
Date: July 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1374
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for several drug-trafficking and firearm-related charges. The court concluded that the application and affidavit used to secure the wiretap satisfied the necessity…
Date: July 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2409
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, a former police officer, appealed his conviction for willfully depriving Orville Hill of his Fourth Amendment right to be free from the use of unreasonable force by a law enforcement officer. The court…
Date: July 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2466
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Nigeria, seeks review of the BIA's denial of her motion to reopen her removal proceedings to apply for asylum. Petitioner filed a motion to reopen her removal proceedings to seek…
Date: July 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2900
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, convicted of murdering her three-year-old daughter, filed suit against current and former members of the Parole Board, alleging that the inclusion of photographs of her murdered daughter in her file deprived…
Date: July 7, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1857
Justia Opinion Summary: Attorney James Robinson, Attorney Elbert Walton, and Critique Services, LLC appealed the district court's affirmance of the bankruptcy court's judgment on debtor's motion to disgorge attorney's fees. The court concluded…
Date: July 7, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2299
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner was convicted of aiding and abetting first-degree felony murder and sentenced to life in prison. Petitioner challenged the district court's denial of his petition for habeas relief, claiming that the state…
Date: July 7, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2617
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, on behalf of D.S., a minor student with intellectual disabilities, filed suit against the school district and others, in state court, seeking damages for premises liability and negligent supervision because…
Date: July 7, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3031
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to illegal entry after removal and was sentenced to 84 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. The court concluded that the district court’s explanation of defendant's…
Date: July 7, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3043
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm and being a felon in possession of firearms. On appeal, defendant challenged his sentence of 84 months in prison. The court concluded…
Date: July 6, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1479
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his 279-month sentence after pleading guilty to bank robbery, brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a bank robbery, and being a felon in possession. The court concluded that the district court…
Date: July 6, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-1890, 15-1891
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants Jack and Peter DeCoster pled guilty, as "responsible corporate officers" of Quality Egg, LLC, to misdemeanor violations of 21 U.S.C. 331(a) for introducing eggs that had been adulterated with salmonella…
Date: July 6, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2294
Justia Opinion Summary: After Ozark was sold to Mobilex, Mobilex filed suit against defendant to enforce the non-compete and confidentiality agreements defendants had signed with Ozark. The district court granted summary judgment to defendants…
Date: July 6, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3172
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for impersonating a foreign diplomatic officer and being a felon in possession of a firearm. In this case, defendant held himself out to be a diplomat of the "Conch Republic." The court…
Date: July 5, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1601
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was arrested following a reverse-sting operation conducted by the ATF. On appeal, defendant challenged his conviction for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and for possession of a firearm…
Date: July 5, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1676
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of possession of a firearm as a previously convicted felon and sentenced to 96 months in prison on remand. The court concluded that the district court was permitted to consider any relevant…
Date: July 5, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1711
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, a class of former employees of Continental, filed suit against Celadon, alleging that Celadon violated the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, 29 U.S.C. 2102. The district court…
Date: July 5, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2097
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to distribution of cocaine base near a playground and was sentenced to 307 months in prison. Subsequently, in 2008, the district court retroactively applied two amendments to the Guidelines,…
Date: July 5, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2353
Justia Opinion Summary: After plaintiffs' 23-month-old son, Jacob, drowned in a pond after climbing out of his crib and leaving their home in the middle of the night, plaintiffs filed a products liability and negligence suit against Dorel.…
Date: July 5, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2550
Justia Opinion Summary: The Government filed suit to determine whether its 2004 tax lien on a foreclosed property had priority over several other competing interests in the property. The district court granted summary judgment for the…
Date: July 5, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3175
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to armed bank robbery while on federal supervised release from two other felony bank robbery convictions. On appeal, defendant challenged his sentence. The court concluded that the district court…
Date: July 1, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3720
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant plead guilty to four counts of production of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. On appeal, defendant challenged his 960-month sentence as substantively unreasonable. Defendant…
Date: July 1, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3890
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction of one count of assault and two counts of domestic assault by a habitual offender, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 117. The court concluded that the district court did not abuse its discretion…
Date: July 1, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1161
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant plead guilty to conspiracy to distribute more than 280 grams of crack cocaine and the district court sentenced him to 94 months in prison. The district court subsequently granted defendant's 28 U.S.C. 2255…
Date: July 1, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1342
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant plead guilty to possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. On appeal, defendant challenged the denial of his motion to reduce his sentence under 18 U.S.C. 3582(c)(2). The court concluded…
Date: July 1, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2008
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of transmitting a threat to injure through interstate communications, 18 U.S.C. 875(c), and threatening a federal employee with intent to retaliate, 18 U.S.C. 115(a)(1)(B). Defendant, a…
Date: July 1, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2333
Justia Opinion Summary: Larry and Elaine, husband and wife, filed suit in Iowa state court in 2008 against multiple parties, including defendant, whom they claimed was negligent in his pre-bankruptcy and bankruptcy-planning advice. The jury…
Date: June 30, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2482
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Anoka under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging that defendants were deliberately indifferent to his serious medical needs in violation of his substantive due process rights under the Fourteenth…
Date: June 30, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2590
Justia Opinion Summary: The United States appealed the district court's grant of defendant's motion to suppress evidence of a gun found in his pocket during a stop and frisk incident. The court concluded that the totality of the circumstances…
Date: June 29, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1390
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence of 24-months in prison following the district court's revocation of his supervised release. The court concluded that the sentence imposed by the district court was both procedurally…
Date: June 28, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2070
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit seeking interest and attorney's fees after General American notified plaintiff that the treasury warrant in the amount of his annuity transfer had never cleared. General American reversed the…
Date: June 28, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2447
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 262 months in prison because he was subject to the mandatory-minimum sentence of fifteen years imprisonment under the Armed Career…
Date: June 27, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1546
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was found guilty of several charges related to his use of counterfeit credit cards. The court concluded that, even assuming arguendo that the district court erred by permitting a special agent's testimony…
Date: June 27, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2083
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of aggravated sexual abuse for assaulting his girlfriend, as well as related charges. The court concluded that the district court did not abuse its discretion in admitting evidence, under FRE 409…
Date: June 27, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2127
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for attempted sexual exploitation of minors. The court concluded that defendant affirmatively waived his right to challenge whether the district court erred by permitting the jury to…
Date: June 27, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-2252, 15-2286
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of two counts of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), in violation of 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1) and 924(e)(1). The court agreed with the…
Date: June 27, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-2285, 15-2592
Justia Opinion Summary: The Hospital challenged the Board's decision affirming an ALJ's finding that the Hospital violated sections 8(a)(5) and (1) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), 29 U.S.C. 158(a)(5) and (1). The court agreed with…
Date: June 27, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2376
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Kenya and a member of the Kikuyu ethnic group, seeks review of the BIA's decision affirming an IJ's denial of his petition for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the…
Date: June 27, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2924
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, formerly employed at UICSM as a physician assistant, filed suit alleging violations of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), 29 U.S.C. 2601. The district court granted summary judgment to UICSM. The court noted…
Date: June 27, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3194
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was found guilty of bank robbery and sentenced to 240 months in prison. The court concluded that the district court did not err in admitting testimony that he had discarded a firearm several weeks before the…
Date: June 24, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3451
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arises out of the business relationship Joseph H. Whitney entered into with John R. Morrison. The court discussed the relationship and the various corporations in a prior opinion. See Whitney v. The Guys, Inc.,…
Date: June 24, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3722
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was found guilty of conspiracy to distribute heroin and cocaine. The court concluded that there was sufficient evidence to sustain the verdict. Because defendant redistributed drugs over a long period of time…
Date: June 24, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1280
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of her application for supplemental security income. Plaintiff based her claims of disability on depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Plaintiff alleged that these…
Date: June 24, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2032
Justia Opinion Summary: CCDC filed suit against Affinity to enforce a memorandum of understanding that was signed after a mediation. The district court concluded that no contract existed as a matter of law and granted summary judgment for…
Date: June 24, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2506
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of possession of firearms by a convicted felon and sentenced to 210 months in prison. The court concluded that the district court did not clearly err in applying a two-level sentencing enhancement…
Date: June 23, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2176
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed the district court's denial of his motion to withdraw his guilty plea after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and analogues of…
Date: June 23, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2419
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against her employer, DSU, alleging a claim under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. 794. The district court granted DSU's motion fro summary judgment, concluding that plaintiff…
Date: June 21, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1697
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his 75-month sentence after being convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm. After reviewing the record, the court could not tell whether the district court relied on the residual clause or…
Date: June 21, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2392
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff requested payment for the one year remaining on his employment contract, but the FDIC advised that the payment was a prohibited “golden parachute,” under 12 U.S.C. 1828(k) and 12 C.F.R. 359.1, which the bank…
Date: June 20, 2016
Docket Numbers: 14-3698, 15-2448
Justia Opinion Summary: AMSE appealed the Commission's final order denying AMSE's application for a limited volume exemption from registration as a national securities exchange under section 5 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, 15 U.S.C.…
Date: June 20, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2046
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit alleging that officers used excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment when attempting to arrest plaintiff for an alleged parole violation. The jury ultimately returned a verdict in favor…
Date: June 20, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2123
Justia Opinion Summary: The Authority is in development of a diversion project on the Red River with the Corps. In this appeal, the Authority alleged that the district court made numerous errors in granting a preliminary injunction to JPA,…
Date: June 20, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2448
Date: June 20, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2581
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner seeks authorization to file a second or successive motion under 28 U.S.C. 2255(h) pursuant to Johnson v. United States. Petitioner challenges a sentence that was imposed in 2008 after the district court…
Date: June 20, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2667
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff served on the Missouri grand jury that considered whether probable cause existed to indict Darren Wilson, the Ferguson, Missouri, police officer who shot and killed Michael Brown in August 2014. Plaintiff filed…
Date: June 20, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2930
Justia Opinion Summary: Laquince Hogan, convicted of drug-related offenses, appealed the denial of his petition for habeas relief under 28 U.S.C. 2254, asserting claims of ineffective assistance of counsel. The court concluded that there was no…
Date: June 17, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2548
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against various municipalities and their employees under the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act (DPPA), 18 U.S.C. 2721-25, after municipal and state personnel had accessed plaintiff’s personal…
Date: June 17, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2576
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant conditionally plead guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and then appealed the denial of his motion to suppress. Defendant alleged that police officers violated his Fourth Amendment rights by…
Date: June 17, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2825
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner and her minor sons, natives and citizens of Guatemala, seek review of the denial of their application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). In this…
Date: June 17, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3001
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff appealed the denial of his application for disability insurance benefits, alleging disability beginning in November 2011 due to severe hearing loss, diabetes, diabetic neuropathy, chronic obstructive pulmonary…
Date: June 17, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3732
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and was sentenced to 97 months in prison. Defendant's conviction stemmed from his involvement in a scheme to defraud his employer by means of false invoices from…
Date: June 16, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2287
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to distributing heroin within 1,000 feet of an elementary school after a prior felony drug conviction. On appeal, defendant challenged the denial of a sentence reduction under 18 U.S.C. 3582(c)(2).…
Date: June 15, 2016
Docket Numbers: 14-2156, 14-2251
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit against the state claiming, inter alia, that the prohibitions in the Minnesota Next Generation Energy Act, Minn. Stat. 216H.03, subd. 3(2) and (3), violate the Commerce Clause. The statute is…
Date: June 15, 2016
Docket Number: 14-2969
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence and conviction for possession of child pornography. The court affirmed the district court's decision to admit evidence of defendant's prior acts of sexual abuse where the evidence that…
Date: June 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3309
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for possessing an unregistered firearm and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court concluded that the government presented sufficient evidence to permit the jury…
Date: June 13, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3358
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a civilly-committed individual, filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against defendants, alleging a violation of his constitutional right to adequate nutrition. The district court denied defendants qualified…
Date: June 13, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3876
Justia Opinion Summary: Jesse Ventura filed suit against Chris Kyle under Minnesota law for defamation, misappropriation, and unjust enrichment. Kyle was a sniper for a United States Navy SEAL team, and, before his death, he authored the book…
Date: June 13, 2016
Docket Number: 15-6030
Justia Opinion Summary: Claimants appealed from the bankruptcy court's orders where the bankruptcy court found the division in contempt and imposed sanctions against the division for willful violation of the discharge injunction in attempting…
Date: June 10, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1878
Justia Opinion Summary: In this contract dispute between the parties, the district court granted summary judgment for GC Services, concluding that Addendum A unambiguously provided that the 2014 Agreement was not a “renewal” of the 2011…
Date: June 10, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2641
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to embezzlement by a bank employee and was sentenced to 21-months in prison. Although defendant offered the sort of evidence that could have persuaded the district court to vary downward from the…
Date: June 10, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2750
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed from the revocation of his supervised release following a hearing on violations of its conditions, arguing that the district court abused its discretion in relying on the results of a preliminary,…
Date: June 9, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1668
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant conditionally pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and then appealed the denial of his motion to suppress the firearm. The court concluded that the officers had reasonable suspicion to stop…
Date: June 9, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1685
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and subsequently appealed, arguing that the government violated the plea agreement. The court concluded that the language of the plea agreement permitted…
Date: June 9, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1873
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a licensed California real estate broker, filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against Nebraska officials in their official capacities, seeking, among other things, prospective relief declaring that provisions of…
Date: June 9, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2283
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an African-American man who has diabetes, filed suit against his employer, the City, alleging that it had discriminated against him based on his race and had retaliated against him for filing charges of…
Date: June 9, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2573
Justia Opinion Summary: Rahsaan Taylor seeks federal habeas relief from his state court conviction for capital felony murder, arguing ineffective assistance of counsel. Taylor alleged that counsel failed to present sufficient evidence at trial…
Date: June 8, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3554
Justia Opinion Summary: Following a jury verdict in favor of Lincoln, in this case involving a contract dispute between the parties, Firetrace appealed the denial of its motion for a new trial or remittitur under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure…
Date: June 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1284
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States, aiding and abetting copyright infringement, and aiding and abetting the trafficking of counterfeit goods. Defendant's convictions…
Date: June 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1316
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of possession of fifteen or more counterfeit and unauthorized access devices. On appeal, defendant challenged the district court's denial of his motion to suppress information discovered by law…
Date: June 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1615
Justia Opinion Summary: After Big River, a Nucor competitor, received a permit from ADEQ to construct a new steel recycling and manufacturing facility in Osceola, Arkansas, Nucor filed a citizen suit under the Clean Air Act (CAA), 42 U.S.C.…
Date: June 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1761
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his 151-month sentence for two counts of bank robbery. With no evidence presented to support the district court’s finding that defendant made a threat of death during the December 10 bank robbery, the…
Date: June 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2642
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of possessing a gun as a felon and subsequently appealed the denial of his motion to suppress evidence from his apartment. Police officers accidentally knocked open defendant's apartment door…
Date: June 7, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1373
Justia Opinion Summary: After a truck driven by a Werner employee struck a train operated by Canadian Pacific, causing a tanker car to spill the chemical it was carrying, Canadian Pacific filed suit against Werner for the clean-up costs under…
Date: June 7, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1595
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed the district court's denial of his motion to reduce his sentence under 18 U.S.C. 3582(c)(2). The court concluded that, although the district court acknowledged defendant's good conduct while in prison,…
Date: June 6, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3011
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was found guilty of violating the Hobbs Act and brandishing a weapon during a crime of violence, and was sentenced to life imprisonment. The court concluded that the district court did not clearly err by…
Date: June 6, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3104
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of second-degree drug trafficking, challenged the denial of his petition for habeas relief under 28 U.S.C. 2254. Petitioner argued that his trial counsel had been constitutionally ineffective…
Date: June 6, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1405
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed the district court's imposition of an above-Guidelines sentence and the district court's refusal to order that the federal sentence run concurrently to state sentences. The court concluded that the…
Date: June 6, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1729
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit under Sarbanes-Oxley, 18 U.S.C. 1514A(a)(1)(C), and Dodd-Frank, 15 U.S.C. 78u-6(h)(1)(A)(iii), after Oracle terminated his employment in retaliation for reporting that Oracle was falsely projecting…
Date: June 6, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1743
Justia Opinion Summary: LaOstriches, Laura Avila-Barraza, and Avila-Barraza’s three children filed claims to property the United States was seeking civil forfeiture to based on the ground that the funds were money-laundered drug trafficking…
Date: June 6, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2223
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Mexico, petitioned for review of the BIA's order of removal based on his conviction for a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT) pursuant to 8 U.S.C. 1229(b)(1). Petitioner's…
Date: June 3, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3306
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to criminal contempt of court after refusing to testify before a grand jury. The court concluded that the district court did not plainly err in calculating a base…
Date: June 2, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3799
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs and six others filed suit against Lindsey Management alleging misclassification as exempt employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), 29 U.S.C. 201-219. The jury found in favor of Lindsey Management.…
Date: June 2, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-1620, 15-1860
Justia Opinion Summary: Cellular Sales petitions for review of the Board's determination that it violated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), 29 U.S.C. 157, 158(a)(1). The court concluded that Cellular Sales did not violate section 8(a)(1)…
Date: June 2, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2027
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of possession of an unregistered firearm and possession of a stolen firearm. The court concluded that, while there was sufficient evidence to convict defendant of possession of an unregistered…
Date: June 2, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3006
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff alleged a disability due to gout, arthritis, back pain, diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity. In this appeal, he challenged the denial of his application for disability insurance benefits under Title II…
Date: June 1, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3482
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, convicted of first degree murder, appealed the denial of his habeas corpus petition. Defendant claimed that his counsel’s last-minute change of trial strategy and failure to allow him to testify violated his…
Date: June 1, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-1580, 15-2375, 15-3225, 15-3277
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants filed a class action claiming the right to title and possession of twelve square miles of land in southern Minnesota. Appellants allege that they are lineal descendants of the Mdewakanton band of the Sioux…
Date: June 1, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3195
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen of El Salvador, moved to reopen an in absentia removal order, arguing he never received the Notice of Hearing. Alternatively, he moved to reopen to apply for asylum. The IJ denied both motions and…
Date: May 31, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1472
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an African-American, filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against the Warden, Deputy Warden, and Major, in their individual capacities, after he was terminated from the ADC. Defendants’ stated reasons for…
Date: May 31, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1583
Justia Opinion Summary: The United States filed suit against appellant under 8 U.S.C. 1451(a), seeking revocation of appellant's citizenship and cancellation of his certificate of naturalization. The United States alleged that appellant…
Date: May 31, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3579
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed the district court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence under Florida v. Jardines, and to strike a portion of the presentence report. In this case, the court concluded that the area immediately…
Date: May 27, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1397
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against his insurer, Nationwide, for breach of contract based on Nationwide’s refusal to pay for damages caused by water that leaked from a buried pipe located beneath the garage-floor slab of…
Date: May 27, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3371
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to one count of failure to register as a sex offender and then appealed his 21-month sentence. The court rejected defendant's claim that the district court procedurally erred by failing to give…
Date: May 26, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3426
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant conditionally plead guilty to one count of knowing possession of child pornography and then appealed the denial of his motion to suppress. The court affirmed the district court's denial of defendant's motion to…
Date: May 26, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3731
Justia Opinion Summary: After plaintiff was injured in a motor vehicle accident, the Plan paid medical benefits on plaintiff's behalf. Plaintiff also received a payment from a different carrier that insured the party who was allegedly…
Date: May 26, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1168
Justia Opinion Summary: Paul M. Gordon, convicted of three counts of rape of a minor child, appealed the denial of his 28 U.S.C. 2254 habeas petition. The court rejected Gordon's claim that he is entitled to equitable tolling under the one-year…
Date: May 26, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1365
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against defendant alleging various gender discrimination and retaliation claims. The district court granted summary judgment as to the discrimination and retaliation claims, and dismissed without…
Date: May 25, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2202
Justia Opinion Summary: In this insurance dispute over the adjusted value of hail-damaged crops in northwest Iowa, Bruhn challenged the district court's grant of summary judgment for Fireman's. The court concluded that there is a factual…
Date: May 25, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2645
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an insured under a commercial-property insurance policy issued by Country Mutual, was awarded $76,065.50 by the jury for covered hail and wind damage to her property. However, the jury found that the policy…
Date: May 23, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1175
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court concluded that the district court did not err in denying defendant's motion to suppress photographic identification evidence…
Date: May 23, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-1739, 15-1840
Justia Opinion Summary: FMS and Comco entered into a Management Agreement obligating Comco to broadly indemnify FMS as well as reimburse FMS for reasonable costs and expenses, including attorneys' fees. After Comco refused to indemnify FMS in…
Date: May 23, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2235
Justia Opinion Summary: Gosiger filed suit seeking damages for the diminished value of an aircraft that Elliott damaged. The district court granted summary judgment to Elliott. The court affirmed the district court's ruling that the contract…
Date: May 23, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2885
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against the City of St. Paul, its police chief, and police officer Patricia Englund, alleging violations of his First Amendment right to engage in religious speech at the 2014 Irish Fair. The…
Date: May 20, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3432
Justia Opinion Summary: Bellingham filed a beach of contract claim against BancInsure after BancInsure denied coverage for loss that BancInsure claimed was not caused by employee-caused loss exclusions, exclusions for theft of confidential…
Date: May 20, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1492
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a medical doctor certified in internal medicine, filed suit against Mayo after he was terminated. The court concluded that the district court properly dismissed plaintiff's claim under Minnesota's Vulnerable…
Date: May 20, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1735
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, all owners of residential properties, filed suit against General Mills alleging that General Mills caused the chemical substance trichloroethylene (TCE) to be released onto the ground and into the…
Date: May 19, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3141
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his convictions for conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute cocaine. The court concluded that both the government and the district court correctly recited some of the purposes…
Date: May 19, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-1815, 15-1819
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against various municipalities and their employees under the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act (DPPA), 18 U.S.C. 2721-25, alleging that these employees had improperly accessed her personal data on…
Date: May 19, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-2317, 15-2318
Justia Opinion Summary: A.H. and Renna Yi, both minors, were passengers on a school bus that collided with a pickup truck, causing them serious injuries. A.H. and Yi's parents, on behalf of the minors, filed suit in Missouri state court…
Date: May 17, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-1927, 15-1929
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against the company for interest she claimed it owed her on a payout it made on a policy. The company counterclaimed, asking for its money back because it had paid plaintiff by mistake and so…
Date: May 17, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2688
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and subsequently appealed his 188-month sentence. The district court sentenced defendant under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), 18…
Date: May 16, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1008
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court concluded that the district court did not err in applying a four-level enhancement under USSG 2K2.1(b)(6)(B) of…
Date: May 16, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1536
Justia Opinion Summary: The Estate of Robert Jason Johnson, who was killed in a motorcycle and car accident, filed suit against the St. Louis Board of Police, various police board officials, and three police officers, alleging civil rights…
Date: May 16, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1979
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against her insurer, Allied, after Allied refused to pay a claim she submitted under her policy's underinsured motorist (UIM) endorsement. In this case, Allied only owed coverage when the tortfeasor…
Date: May 16, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-2060, 15-2061, 15-2062
Justia Opinion Summary: The trustee for PCI and eight associated special-purpose entities (SPEs) filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy petitions in the aftermath of Thomas Petters' Ponzi scheme. The bankruptcy court consolidated the bankruptcy estates of…
Date: May 16, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2316
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against ATK and several of its employees for race, gender, and age discrimination after the company terminated her employment for elbowing another employee in the back. The district court granted…
Date: May 16, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2359
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm and sentenced to 72 months in prison. The court held that the district court did not err in admitting the victim's prior grand jury testimony as a prior…
Date: May 16, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3050
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. On appeal, defendant challenged his 100 month sentence. The court concluded that the district court did not err by applying a four level…
Date: May 13, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1968
Justia Opinion Summary: After a Bamford employee caused a car accident resulting in third party injuries, Bamford requested that its insurer, Regent, settle the claims within Bamford's policy limits. Regent did not settle the claims, the case…
Date: May 13, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-2042, 15-2428
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against his employer, BATO, alleging that BATO violated his rights under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), 29 U.S.C. 2601. The district court ruled in favor of BATO on plaintiff's FMLA…
Date: May 13, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2211
Justia Opinion Summary: North Memorial and MNA, pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement (CBA), referred a grievance to arbitration. The district court subsequently granted in part MNA's motion to vacate the arbitral award. The arbitrator…
Date: May 13, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-2596, 15-2598
Justia Opinion Summary: The utility and its insurers filed suit against BendTec for negligence, alleging that its pipes were the source of grit and had been improperly cleaned. The district court granted summary judgment to BendTec. The court…
Date: May 13, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2674
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Brentwood after he was terminated, alleging race discrimination. A jury awarded plaintiff $1 in nominal damages. Plaintiff then sought equitable relief in the form of reinstatement and front…
Date: May 11, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3473
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a financial advisor, filed suit for First Amendment retaliation, against Nebraska financial regulators after they investigated him and his broker-dealer employer around the time a newspaper reported plaintiff…
Date: May 10, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2323
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against his former employer, Yosemite, in state court for breach of contract and wrongful termination. After removal to federal court, and eight months after plaintiff filed his complaint, Yosemite…
Date: May 9, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1028
Justia Opinion Summary: After defendant was convicted of wire fraud, making a false and fraudulent claim, and making false statements, the district court granted a judgment of acquittal on two counts of making false statements, and a new trial…
Date: May 4, 2016
Docket Numbers: 14-2715, 14-2937
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants Nshanian and Nash were convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and wire fraud. Defendants' convictions stemmed from their involvement in a scheme to purchase real estate using material…
Date: May 4, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3164
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, two men previously arrested in Ramsey County, filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983, contending that the County's collection of all of a detained arrestee's cash upon booking and its related practices violated…
Date: May 4, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1137
Justia Opinion Summary: After defendant successfully moved to suppress his statements to authorities made at a telemarketing firm where he worked, the United States appealed. Weighing the totality of the circumstances, the court agreed with the…
Date: May 4, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1350
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and sentenced to 42 months in prison followed by 3 years of supervised release. Defendant Krug and co-defendant Elliot operated a Ponzi scheme. The court…
Date: May 4, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1650
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, a potato farmer, was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States, making false statements to influence the United States USDA, and making false statements to law enforcement. Defendant's convictions…
Date: May 4, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2856
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), 18 U.S.C. 924(e), based on his four prior convictions for aggravated burglary. The court…
Date: May 3, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1004
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to possession of fifty grams or more of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, and the district court sentenced him as a career offender. The government concedes that defendant's conviction for…
Date: May 3, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1317
Justia Opinion Summary: After Sandusky received an unsolicited fax from MedTox, Sandusky filed a class action under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), 47 U.S.C. 227. The district court denied class certification, finding the class…
Date: May 3, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2085
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court reduced defendant's sentence of 324 months in prison to 294 months after an amendment to the sentencing guidelines lowered the advisory guideline range applicable to his offense of conviction…
Date: May 3, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2319
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud and the district court subsequently granted his request to withdraw his guilty plea. Petitioner proceeded to trial and was convicted. Petitioner then filed a motion…
Date: May 3, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2329
Justia Opinion Summary: The IRS disallowed all deductions and losses reported by RJT on its 2001 partnership return. It also determined that a 40-percent accuracy-related penalty for gross misstatement of partnership basis would be applied to…
Date: May 2, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3833
Justia Opinion Summary: At the time defendant committed the crime of strangulation in violation of 18 U.S.C. 113(a)(8), the Sentencing Commission had yet to promulgate a corresponding sentencing guideline. Defendant was sentenced under the…
Date: May 2, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3847
Justia Opinion Summary: Federated Mutual, the insurer, filed an interpleader suit to determine the rights of Moody Station and the Big Store to insurance proceeds. The district court found Moody Station was not entitled to the full amount and…
Date: May 2, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2153
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, a citizen of Burma, pleaded guilty to one count of failing to depart because he willfully failed or refused "to make timely application in good faith for travel or other documents necessary" for his departure…
Date: April 29, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-2096, 15-2328
Justia Opinion Summary: NSC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Fireman's Fund, filed a declaratory judgment action against Dustex seeking a judicial determination that it did not have a duty to defend or indemnify Dustex in an arbitration…
Date: April 29, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2320
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant conditionally plead guilty to possession of child pornography and then appealed the district court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence. The court concluded that reasonable suspicion existed for the…
Date: April 29, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3193
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to failing to register as a sex offender and preserved his right to appeal the denial of his motion to dismiss the indictment. Defendant concedes that circuit precedent forecloses his claim that…
Date: April 28, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1226
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner and his wife and kids seek review of the BIA's denial of their applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). Petitioners contend that members of the…
Date: April 28, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1586
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction of attempted commercial sex trafficking of a minor. Before trial, the government sought to prohibit defendant from introducing at trial e-mails that he had previously exchanged with…
Date: April 28, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3751
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a former federal inmate, appealed the district court’s preservice dismissal of his action seeking relief under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552. The court concluded that, while it agrees…
Date: April 27, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3280
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, as personal representative for the Estate of Jeffry Alan Barton, filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 and the Arkansas Civil Rights Act of 1993 (ACRA), Ark. Code Ann. 16-123-105, alleging that Arkansas State…
Date: April 27, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3627
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm, admitting at he plea hearing that he had a prior third degree felony conviction for assaulting a police officer in violation of Neb. Rev. Stat.…
Date: April 27, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2040
Justia Opinion Summary: Debtors Mathew and Marilynn held title to real property as joint tenants with Marilynn's parents. After debtors filed for bankruptcy, and Marilynn's parents died, the Trustee notified debtors that he intended to sell the…
Date: April 26, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1465
Justia Opinion Summary: American Family filed suit seeking a declaratory judgment as to whether an umbrella insurance policy issued to Todd Patton provided any coverage for an automobile accident in which a passenger in a vehicle driven by…
Date: April 26, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1727
Justia Opinion Summary: 32nd Street filed suit against the insurers for quantum meruit, unjust enrichment, and vexatious refusal to pay an insurance claim, as well as injunctive relief arising out of medical services provided to the insurers'…
Date: April 26, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3070
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court concluded that the evidence was sufficient to convict defendant where a reasonable jury could have found that the special agent's…
Date: April 25, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1415
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against the MPRB and the superintendent of the MPRB, asserting claims under 42 U.S.C. 1983 for violations of her First Amendment and equal protection rights, as well as for reprisal and aiding and…
Date: April 25, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3020
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed an amended judgment sentencing him to the statutory maximum of 120 months in prison for possessing an unregistered sawed-off shotgun. The court granted counsel's motion to withdraw pursuant to Anders…
Date: April 22, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3179
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Pakistan, petitioned for review of the BIA's dismissal of his appeal from an IJ's decision finding him removable as an alien who was convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude…
Date: April 22, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1473
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to possession of pseudoephedrine, knowing it would be used to manufacture methamphetamine. After Amendment 782 to the Guidelines retroactively lowered the base offense level for this offense,…
Date: April 22, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2024
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native and citizen of Mexico, seeks review of the BIA's dismissal of his appeal from an IJ's decision (1) finding him removable under 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(A)(ii), for having been convicted of two or more…
Date: April 21, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1378
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a citizen and political activist, filed suit against the Township and its clerk, alleging violations of his Minnesota and federal constitutional rights and unlawful retaliation. The district court dismissed…
Date: April 20, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1527
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit against Green Tree to prevent it from foreclosing on plaintiffs' home. Plaintiffs alleged that Green Tree lacked authority to foreclose. The district court granted Green Tree's motion to dismiss…
Date: April 19, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3415
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, who suffers from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, filed suit against the Department after it denied him "shelter needy" benefits, raising claims under 42 U.S.C. 1983; the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 12…
Date: April 15, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1956
Justia Opinion Summary: Silgan and the Union challenge an arbitration award. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of Silgan and the Union appealed. The court concluded that the question of validity and formation is not within…
Date: April 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1742
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and then challenged the warrantless search of his residence. The court concluded that the officers acted in their community caretaking function when…
Date: April 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1790
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his 108 month sentence after pleading guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court concluded that the district court did not commit procedural error by imposing a…
Date: April 12, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3178
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit against Best Buy and three of its executives, alleging violation of section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, 15 U.S.C. 78j(b), and Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 10b-5, 17…
Date: April 12, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3886
Justia Opinion Summary: St. Jude filed suit against Jose B. de Castro and Biosense, alleging state law claims of breach of contract and tortious interference. The court concluded that the district court correctly concluded that the Minnesota…
Date: April 12, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1215
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and to distribution of cocaine. Defendant moved to withdraw his guilty plea after a presentence report recommended an enhanced advisory guidelines sentence…
Date: April 12, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1329
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his 188 month sentence after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. The court concluded that the district court did not err by applying a role enhancement under USSG 3B1.1(b)…
Date: April 12, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1830
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against LP, alleging claims for fraudulent misrepresentation, unfair or deceptive practices, and breach of warranty against LP for the purported defectiveness of its TrimBoard product. The district…
Date: April 12, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2571
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and the district court sentenced him under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), 18 U.S.C. 924(e), based on his three prior violent felony convictions.…
Date: April 11, 2016
Docket Numbers: 14-3339, 14-3354
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for armed bank robbery and violating the terms of supervised release imposed following an earlier conviction. Defendant argued that the district court clearly erred when it…
Date: April 11, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3823
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to conspiring to possess with intent to distribute cocaine base. Subsequently, the United States Sentencing Commission reduced the drug quantity base offense levels by two (Amendment 782). The…
Date: April 11, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3887
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs challenged the USDA's determination that a portion of their farmland is a wetland within the meaning of the pertinent federal statutes and regulations. The court affirmed the district court's grant of summary…
Date: April 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1097
Justia Opinion Summary: After Eric Orloske shot his brother, Brian, to death after Eric tripped and fell down the stairs in his home while holding a loaded shotgun, the trustee for Brian's next of kin filed a wrongful death suit against Eric.…
Date: April 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1882
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed the district court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence found in his camper pursuant to a search warrant and any statements following the search. The court concluded that the district court did…
Date: April 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1914
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of drug and firearms offenses, appealed the denial of his 28 U.S.C. 2255 petition for habeas relief. Petitioner claimed that his counsel had rendered ineffective assistance at sentencing by failing…
Date: April 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2063
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant conditionally pled guilty to illegal reentry by a removed alien and then appealed the denial of his motion to suppress and motion to dismiss the indictment. The court concluded that law enforcement had…
Date: April 8, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-1015, 15-2540, 15-2733
Justia Opinion Summary: In his second trial, petitioner was again convicted of first degree murder and attempted murder. On appeal, petitioner challenged the district court's denial of his petition for habeas relief under 28 U.S.C. 2254 based…
Date: April 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1755
Justia Opinion Summary: Nikko Jenkins killed four people, including Curtis Bradford, three weeks after he was released from prison after serving ten and a half years of a twenty-one year sentence. Plaintiff, Bradford's mother, filed suit under…
Date: April 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2500
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to receipt of child pornography. The district court applied an advisory guidelines cross reference under USSG 2G2.2(c)(1) and sentenced defendant to the statutory…
Date: April 8, 2016
Docket Numbers: 16-1572, 16-1604
Justia Opinion Summary: Robinson Helicopter petitioned for a writ of prohibition that would prevent the district court from enforcing an order directing Robinson Helicopter to file with the district court exhibits from depositions taken in Long…
Date: April 7, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1074
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants challenged the district court's judgment under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), 29 U.S.C. 203(s)(1)(B), 213(a)(1), in favor of the Secretary for unpaid wages, re-judgment and post-judgment interest, as…
Date: April 7, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1427
Justia Opinion Summary: Nikko Jenkins killed four people, including Andrea Kruger, three weeks after he was released from prison after serving ten and a half years of a twenty-one year sentence. Plaintiff, Andrea's husband, filed suit against…
Date: April 6, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3841
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against the Institute and several of its employees, alleging unlawful discrimination based on race and national origin under federal and Minnesota law. Plaintiff's claims stemmed from defendants'…
Date: April 5, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3858
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against BNSF, claiming that BNSF refused to hire him on account of his obesity and thereby discriminated against him in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), 42 U.S.C.…
Date: April 5, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1313
Justia Opinion Summary: Cargill and American Home filed suit against Greater Omaha, alleging breach of contract and warranties based on allegations that Greater Omaha sold raw beef trim tainted with E.coli O157:H7. Greater Omaha counterclaimed…
Date: April 5, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2444
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to four counts of distributing child pornography over the internet and related charges. On appeal, defendant challenged his 262 months' imprisonment. The court concluded that defendant's sentence is…
Date: April 5, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2510
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed her conviction of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and five counts of wire fraud. Defendant's conviction stemmed from her involvement in a conspiracy to solicit participation in fake credit-repair or…
Date: April 4, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3250
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pleaded guilty to receiving and distributing child pornography, and was sentenced to a fifteen-year mandatory minimum term of imprisonment under 18 U.S.C. 2252(b)(1). The Supreme Court's decision in Lockhart v.…
Date: April 4, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1116
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court concluded that the evidence was sufficient to support defendant's conviction; the district court properly admitted the expert…
Date: April 1, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1023
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for several drug and firearms charges. The court affirmed the district court's denial of defendant's motion to suppress the evidence because the officer's initial stop of…
Date: April 1, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1248
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, employed as a juvenile detention officer, filed suit against the County, alleging discrimination in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 12 U.S.C. 12101 et seq., and Section 504 of the…
Date: March 31, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3434
Justia Opinion Summary: Andover appealed the district court's denial of its 28 U.S.C. 1782 petition for discovery to be used in a patent-infringement suit in Germany. The district court considered Andover’s petition in light of the…
Date: March 31, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2105
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Wal-Mart, alleging disability discrimination, failure to continue to accommodate, retaliation, and harassment. After being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, plaintiff was transferred to a…
Date: March 29, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3665
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Defendants Barton, Weiss, and CACi, raising claims under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), 15 U.S.C. 1692d-f, alleging misrepresentations along with certain claims for interest…
Date: March 29, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1139
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for aiding and abetting embezzlement from an agency receiving federal funds. The district court overruled defendant's objection to receiving a criminal history point for a…
Date: March 25, 2016
Docket Numbers: 14-3099, 14-3211
Justia Opinion Summary: MikLin, owner and operator of a Jimmy John's franchise, petitioned for review of the Board's order holding that the company engaged in unfair labor practices in violation of sections 8(a)(1) and (3) of the National Labor…
Date: March 25, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3287
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, former president, CEO, and chairman of the board of Bixby, was convicted of four counts of mail fraud, eight counts of wire fraud, conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, witness tampering, and three counts…
Date: March 25, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1198
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a native of Guatemala, petitioned for review of the BIA's denial of asylum and voluntary departure. The court concluded that the BIA's findings regarding past persecution are supported by substantial…
Date: March 25, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1766
Justia Opinion Summary: BN applied for an exemption permitting expeditious abandonment of a railroad line. The STB granted but then revoked an exemption prior to completion of the abandonment and instead authorized BN to enter into an “interim…
Date: March 24, 2016
Docket Numbers: 14-3102, 14-3216
Justia Opinion Summary: Securitas petitioned for review of the Board's order allowing certain class of Securitas's workers to seek union representation when the Board determined that Securitas failed to show the workers were supervisors under…
Date: March 24, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1425
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Matt Holten and Jeff Ellis under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging that defendants, law enforcement officers, used excessive force while taking plaintiff into custody. Plaintiff subsequently filed a…
Date: March 24, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1695
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for possession with intent to distribute fifty grams or more of methamphetamine. The court concluded that the district court permissibly concluded that an investigator's…
Date: March 23, 2016
Docket Numbers: 15-1098, 15-1100, 15-1101
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs Kozlov and Tchikobava, employees of Albatross, were injured in a tractor-trailer driven by an employee of AWG. The employee, Michael Scott, was killed in the crash. Kozlov and Tchikobava both filed personal…
Date: March 23, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2229
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant conditionally plead guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. The district court sentenced defendant to 180 months in prison under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), 18 U.S.C. 924(e)(1). Because…
Date: March 22, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3457
Justia Opinion Summary: ERISA Plaintiffs, administrators of Employee Benefit Plans governed by the Employees Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. 1001 et seq., who entered into securities lending agreements with Wells Fargo, seek…
Date: March 22, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3468
Justia Opinion Summary: Homecare providers challenge the constitutionality of a Minnesota statute designating them state employees for the purpose of unionization, Minn. Stat. 179A.54. In this interlocutory appeal, the homecare providers renew…
Date: March 22, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3605
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed her conviction for one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and two counts of making a false claim against the United States. Defendant's convictions stemmed from her filing of fraudulent…
Date: March 22, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3707
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant and the entities he controls appeal a judgment entered on jury verdicts finding securities fraud. The SEC alleged that defendant and his companies violated Section 17(a) of the Securities Act, 15 U.S.C. 77q(a);…
Date: March 22, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1346
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant conditionally pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. Officers received a report that a man might need medical attention. The officers found defendant lying on the sidewalk next to a fallen…
Date: March 21, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1509
Justia Opinion Summary: After defendant pleaded guilty to receipt and distribution of child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 2252(a)(2), the district court sentenced him to the mandatory minimum of 180 months in prison. The district court…
Date: March 21, 2016
Docket Number: 15-3420
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, sentenced to death in Missouri, filed suit against defendants, alleging that the State's method of execution is unconstitutional under the Eighth Amendment. The district court dismissed the complaint without…
Date: March 18, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2243
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of possessing a firearm as a felon, possessing heroin with intent to distribute, and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug-trafficking crime. The court concluded that the evidence…
Date: March 17, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3517
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed her conviction and sentence on four counts of making and subscribing a false tax return. The court concluded that the evidence was sufficient to support the jury's finding that defendant knowingly and…
Date: March 17, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1030
Justia Opinion Summary: Robert Dean Carter appealed the denial of his application for disability insurance benefits and supplemental security income. The ALJ concluded that Carter was not disabled because he did not have an impairment or…
Date: March 17, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1990
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for producing child pornography. The court affirmed the district court's denial of defendant's motion for judgment of acquittal where the jury had more than ample evidence to convict…
Date: March 16, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1494
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against his former employer, CSL, alleging violations of the Missouri Human Rights Act (MHRA), Mo. Rev. 213.055, 213.070. The district court granted CSL's motion for summary judgment. In regard to…
Date: March 16, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2385
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. On appeal, defendant argued that the officer violated his Fourth Amendment rights by performing a Terry stop without reasonable suspicion. The court…
Date: March 15, 2016
Docket Numbers: 14-3636, 14-3639, 14-3640, 14-3642
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants Brenda Laws, Lareka Laws, Milton Laws, and Jameel Laws were convicted of charges related to their involvement in a scheme in which they filed more than 200 tax returns claiming first-time homebuyer tax credits…
Date: March 15, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1072
Justia Opinion Summary: The SEC filed a civil law enforcement action against Todd Duckson, the Fund, and related individuals and entities. A jury found Duckson liable for violating the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws and for…
Date: March 15, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1420
Justia Opinion Summary: Loftness filed suit against Terry Twiestmeyer, Steven Hood, and TAI, seeking a declaratory judgment involving contracts associated with the development, manufacture, and sale of grain-bagging equipment. Defendants…
Date: March 15, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1692
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction after pleading guilty to violating 18 U.S.C. 3146(a)(1) based on his failure to appear at a supervised release revocation hearing. Defendant argued that he had not been released under 18…
Date: March 15, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2321
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against her former employer, alleging claims of gender discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq. On appeal, plaintiff challenged the district court's grant of…
Date: March 14, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3802
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for charges related to his involvement in a scheme to defraud mortgage lenders. The court affirmed the district court's denial of defendant's motion to suppress and…
Date: March 14, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3807
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioners, natives of Iraq, appealed the denial of their petitions for naturalization. The court concluded that the district court did not clearly err by determining that Petitioner Hamod had not lawfully been admitted…
Date: March 14, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1309
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his 600-month sentence after being convicted of various charges related to his involvement in a gang, including murder. The court rejected defendant's Eighth Amendment challenge and concluded that…
Date: March 11, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3603
Justia Opinion Summary: The ACLU filed suit against the director of the Missouri Department of Corrections, in his official capacity, under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging that Mo. Rev. Stat. 546.720 is unconstitutional as applied to department…
Date: March 11, 2016
Docket Number: 15-2424
Justia Opinion Summary: Larkin moved to withdraw as counsel of Maid-Rite and two of the company's employees, after the franchisor failed to pay for its legal fees and to provide important information related to its defense. The district court…
Date: March 10, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1946
Justia Opinion Summary: SEARK, operator of two hospice-care facilities, voluntarily entered into a provider agreement with the Secretary of Health and Human Services to receive Medicare reimbursement pursuant to the Medicare Act, 42 U.S.C.…
Date: March 8, 2016
Docket Number: 14-3752
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, on behalf of himself and his father's estate, filed a wrongful death action alleging that Amtrak negligently caused his father's death. Plaintiff claimed that the moving train from which his father fell had…
Date: March 8, 2016
Docket Number: 15-1503
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his 88-month sentence after pleading guilty to possessing a firearm as a felon. The court concluded that the district court did not err in applying a USSG 2K2.1(a)(4)(A) enhancement because defendant's…
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