2020 Eighth Circuit US Court of Appeals Case Law
Opinions 1001 - 1213 of 1213
Date: March 12, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3711
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction for transportation of pornography and receipt of child pornography. The court held that the district court did not err in allowing the government to introduce…
Date: March 11, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3294
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit reversed the district court's grant of defendant's motion to dismiss plaintiff's action alleging a claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The court held that the district court erred by…
Date: March 11, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3683
Justia Opinion Summary: After a car accident killed the insured, her mother, and her son, the trustee sought underinsured motorist coverage for the son, who was not named as an insured on the policy. The district court granted judgment on the…
Date: March 11, 2020
Docket Number: 19-1068
Justia Opinion Summary: After plaintiff's fingers were severely injured by a machine that uses a hydraulic clamp to crimp metal tubes, he filed suit against Addition, the machine designer's successor. The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district…
Date: March 11, 2020
Docket Number: 19-1357
Justia Opinion Summary: After the United States simultaneously prosecuted and removed defendant, he sought to dismiss the indictment. Defendant argued that the Executive Branch violated his rights under the Bail Reform Act (BRA) and the…
Date: March 10, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3195
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against several out-of-state defendants in Minnesota state court, alleging that defendants participated in a fraudulent scheme. After defendants removed to federal district court, the case was…
Date: March 10, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3257
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Continental, seeking damages for breach of contract, bad faith, and misrepresentation, and declaratory relief. The district court dismissed all claims, holding that TLC, the registered…
Date: March 9, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2842
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, a former police officer, filed a 42 U.S.C. 1983 action against the city and the chief of police, alleging unlawful retaliation for exercising his First Amendment right to participate in a media interview,…
Date: March 9, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3269
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit denied a petition for review of the BIA's denial of petitioner's application for asylum based on his claim that he belonged to a particular social group of "individuals with schizophrenia who exhibit…
Date: March 9, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3489
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit reversed the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel's (BAP) conclusion that Lariat's claim against debtor no longer exists because her husband discharged his liabilities in an earlier bankruptcy. Rather, the court…
Date: March 9, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3746
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the denial of social security disability benefits to plaintiff, holding that substantial evidence supported the ALJ's residual functional capacity (RFC). The court held that the ALJ's finding…
Date: March 6, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2809
Justia Opinion Summary: After plaintiff was sexually assaulted by a deputy acting within the scope of his employment with the sheriff's office, she filed claims of unreasonable search and seizure, equal protection, due process, supervisory…
Date: March 5, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2240
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arose when plaintiff fell from the trunk of the car that her friend was driving and sustained serious injuries. In a related case, the district court held a bench trial to apportion the fault between the…
Date: March 5, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2624
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Owners, which had issued an insurance plan to her father, for underinsured motorist benefits. On Owner's first appeal, the Eighth Circuit held that the district court improperly applied a…
Date: March 5, 2020
Docket Numbers: 18-2981, 18-3019
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed Defendants Pugh and Warren's convictions for drug related crimes and affirmed Pugh's sentence. The court held that the informant's testimony, together with the government's other evidence, was…
Date: March 5, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3254
Justia Opinion Summary: Nelson Auto filed suit against KARE 11, alleging that the news provider published false and defamatory statements regarding a criminal complaint filed by the State of Minnesota in Otter Tail County District Court…
Date: March 5, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3437
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit denied a petition for review challenging the BIA's decision reversing the IJ's ruling that petitioner merited asylum because he had a well-founded fear of future persecution in Nigeria for his…
Date: March 4, 2020
Docket Number: 19-1291
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction as a career offender under USSG 4B1.1 based on his controlled substance convictions in Illinois and in Iowa. The court held that the district court did not err in…
Date: March 3, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3411
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction for possessing a firearm, possessing with intent to distribute a controlled substance, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and possessing a…
Date: March 3, 2020
Docket Number: 19-1814
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit alleging that she suffered permanent injuries from a fall caused by the negligent removal of ice and maintenance of an asphalt parking lot operated by U-Park. Plaintiff's husband sought damages for…
Date: March 2, 2020
Docket Numbers: 18-3444, 18-3497
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), bringing a due process challenge to the school district's individualized education plan (IEP) and school placement before the Missouri…
Date: March 2, 2020
Docket Number: 19-2134
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine base. The court held that the district court's application of the sentencing…
Date: February 28, 2020
Docket Number: 19-2090
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's revocation of supervised release for a Grade A violation for possession of heroin and three Grade C violations for disobeying the probation office. The court held that…
Date: February 28, 2020
Docket Numbers: 19-2251, 19-2254
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, a group of pretrial arrestees who were detained in St. Louis jails, filed a 42 U.S.C. 1983 action, challenging the constitutionality of the procedures by which defendants, state and city officials, set money…
Date: February 27, 2020
Docket Number: 18-1445
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction for one count of felon in possession of a firearm, two counts of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana, one count of maintaining a premise for the…
Date: February 27, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3530
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction for illegal gun possession. The court held that, under the totality of the circumstances, the police officers had probable cause to arrest defendant. Furthermore,…
Date: February 24, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3581
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of a third successive federal habeas corpus petition challenging petitioner's state law murder conviction. The court held that the district court did not err in…
Date: February 24, 2020
Docket Number: 19-1192
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction and sentence for one count of receipt of child pornography and two counts of possession of child pornography. The court held that the district court did not abuse its…
Date: February 24, 2020
Docket Number: 19-1276
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit reversed defendant's conviction for possessing a firearm while being an alien illegally or unlawfully in the United States. The court held that, based on Rehaif v. United States, 139 S. Ct. 2191…
Date: February 24, 2020
Docket Number: 19-1972
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit reversed the district court's revocation of defendant's supervise release, holding that the district court denied him the right to confront the key witness against him at his revocation hearing. The…
Date: February 21, 2020
Docket Number: 18-1174
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit reversed defendant's sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to distributing methamphetamine. The court held that the district court erred in finding that defendant's prior Arkansas conviction for…
Date: February 21, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3355
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction and sentence for three counts of wire fraud, two counts of mail fraud, and one count of money laundering. The court held that the district court did not err in failing…
Date: February 20, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3298
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against current and former members of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, alleging that adverse employment actions were taken against him in retaliation for his protected First Amendment speech. The…
Date: February 19, 2020
Docket Number: 17-3627
Justia Opinion Summary: A “confidential reliable informant” told police that Oliver and his co-conspirators would mail packages of cocaine to Minnesota from Maricopa, Arizona. The postal inspector found one package from Maricopa, Arizona and…
Date: February 19, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2436
Justia Opinion Summary: Following a guilty plea to possession of heroin with intent to distribute, the court sentenced Hamilton to 81 months imprisonment. Hamilton’s PSR criminal history score, used to calculate his Guidelines range, included a…
Date: February 19, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2984
Justia Opinion Summary: Russell, Daniel, and Carson co-owned a business. Under a succession plan, the company was to purchase life insurance. If a shareholder died, the company would use the proceeds to buy the deceased shareholder’s stock.…
Date: February 19, 2020
Docket Number: 19-1239
Justia Opinion Summary: Ali shot and killed three people during an attempted robbery in Minneapolis. He was given three consecutive life sentences, each permitting his early release after 30 years so that Ali must remain in prison for at least…
Date: February 18, 2020
Docket Number: 19-6024
Justia Opinion Summary: The bankruptcy appellate panel dismissed debtor's appeal based on lack of jurisdiction, because debtor failed to show that she was a person aggrieved by the bankruptcy court's order overruling her objection to the…
Date: February 14, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3393
Justia Opinion Summary: Thomas was charged with a 10-year conspiracy involving kidnapping, forced labor, hate crimes, and racketeering-related violent crimes. The court rejected his guilty plea and ordered competency restoration under 18 U.S.C.…
Date: February 14, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3673
Justia Opinion Summary: Jesse received a suspended sentence and probation for possession of methamphetamine, second offense. Due to several probation violations and arrests, she spent more than 332 days in custodial settings. She was arrested…
Date: February 13, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3623
Justia Opinion Summary: Paskert, an Auto$mart sales associate, was supervised by Burns. Bjorkland was also a sales associate. Paskert alleges she was prevented from completing her training. Burns frequently lost his temper with everyone, he…
Date: February 13, 2020
Docket Numbers: 18-3695, 19-1157
Justia Opinion Summary: Dolgencorp's Auxvasse, Missouri store employed six people. Price, a sales associate, contacted the Union. Myers, an organizing director, obtained authorization cards and filed an election petition. The Union and…
Date: February 13, 2020
Docket Number: 19-6029
Justia Opinion Summary: The Garvens contracted with Debtor and DRMP for home repairs and improvements. Unhappy with the results, the Garvens sued Debtor and DRMP in state court and obtained a default judgment against them. At the Garvens'…
Date: February 12, 2020
Docket Numbers: 18-1959, 18-2081
Justia Opinion Summary: After the jury returned a verdict in favor of Cuker on its claims against Walmart for breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and misappropriation of trade secrets, the district court reduced the amount of damages awarded…
Date: February 12, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2887
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit denied the petition for review of the BIA's dismissal of petitioner's appeal from the IJ's order denying her request for withholding of removal under section 241(b)(3)(A) of the Immigration and…
Date: February 12, 2020
Docket Number: 19-1391
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of defendant's motions for dismissal and for summary judgment, granting summary judgment to the law firm. The court applied a five-factor test to determine the…
Date: February 10, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3577
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine base. The court held that the district court did not clearly err in determining that…
Date: February 10, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3587
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against Vermeer in Missouri state court, alleging that he was injured while operating a Vermeer wood chipper. After Vermeer successfully removed to federal court, the district court denied…
Date: February 7, 2020
Docket Numbers: 18-3007, 19-1206
Justia Opinion Summary: Trustees of three employee benefit funds filed suit against Charps and others, alleging that defendants breached collective bargaining agreements by not contributing to the employee benefit funds for work performed by…
Date: February 7, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3415
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the bankruptcy appellate panel's judgment upholding the bankruptcy court's determination that debtor's interest in his ex-wife's IRA and 401(k) retirement accounts that were awarded to him…
Date: February 6, 2020
Docket Numbers: 18-1734, 18-1737
Justia Opinion Summary: Pitchblack and Whitetail filed suit against Hess, alleging that their overriding royalty interests in a number of oil and gas leases should continue to burden various top leases that Hess acquired over the subject…
Date: February 6, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2896
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's convictions for conspiring to defraud the United States and willfully aiding and assisting in the filing of a false tax return. The court held that there was probable cause to…
Date: February 5, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3017
Justia Opinion Summary: Ambassador Press filed suit against Durst Image for fraud, alleging that the printing press that was purchased from Durst Image did not have the speed or durability Durst Image represented at the time of the…
Date: February 5, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3081
Justia Opinion Summary: After defendant pleaded guilty to assaulting a federal agent and damaging an aircraft in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, the district court sentenced him to 60 months in prison and ordered him to…
Date: February 4, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2849
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of a successive petition for a certificate of innocence, holding that the petition was barred by the doctrine of res judicata and that the district court did not…
Date: February 4, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3578
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's judgment in favor of UPS, holding that plaintiff's action alleging that he was fired because of his race in violation of the Arkansas Civil Rights Act of 1993 was…
Date: February 4, 2020
Docket Number: 19-6030
Justia Opinion Summary: The bankruptcy appellate panel affirmed the bankruptcy court's dismissal of debtor's Chapter 13 bankruptcy case. The panel held that the bankruptcy court properly dismissed the Chapter 13 case as void because it was a…
Date: February 3, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3310
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit reversed the district court's grant of summary judgment to Principal in an action brought under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). The court held that Principal is a fiduciary when…
Date: January 31, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3457
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction and sentence for conspiracy to distribute and possess methamphetamine. The court rejected defendant's claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, because the court could…
Date: January 30, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2872
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction for crossing a state line with intent to engage in a sexual act with a minor under the age of twelve. The court held that a defendant has the requisite intent under 18…
Date: January 30, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2888
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit granted a petition for review of the ARB's final decision ruling that CP violated the whistleblower retaliation provisions of the Federal Railroad Safety Act (FRSA) when it suspended a locomotive…
Date: January 30, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2970
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's determination that Westfield had a duty to defend its insurer, Miller Architects and Builders, because the claims against Miller in the underlying action did not "clearly"…
Date: January 29, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2892
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit vacated the district court's dismissal of plaintiff's amended complaint against TAW Enterprises, alleging that TAW retaliated against plaintiff in contravention of public policy established by the…
Date: January 28, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2982
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against the city under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging that it had jailed her without inquiring into whether she had the means to pay the fines imposed and without appointing counsel for her. The district…
Date: January 28, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3450
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed suit against the city and others, seeking damages and injunctive and declaratory relief under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging unlawful arrest, detention, and prosecution, and the setting of an excessive…
Date: January 27, 2020
Docket Number: 19-2260
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of a preliminary injunction enjoining the enforcement of Ark. Code Sec. 7-6-203(b)(1), which provides that candidates can only accept contributions within two years…
Date: January 23, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3375
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction and sentence for assault with a dangerous weapon, assault resulting in serious bodily injury; and discharge of a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence. The Eighth…
Date: January 21, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3472
Justia Opinion Summary: In this interlocutory appeal, the Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of qualified immunity to a police officer who stopped, frisked, and handcuffed a person who had been watching another police officer…
Date: January 17, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3244
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an employee of 4T Construction, filed suit against McKenzie under both negligence-based and strict liability law principles after he was seriously injured while replacing a high voltage transmission line for a…
Date: January 16, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3264
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, an assistant professor at Macalester College, filed suit against the college after she was terminated for violating the college's policies on student-teacher relationships. The Eighth Circuit affirmed the…
Date: January 16, 2020
Docket Number: 19-1021
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's revocation of defendant's supervised release and sentence of 36 months in prison for assault of a law enforcement officer. The court held that there was a sufficient basis…
Date: January 14, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2603
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of defendant's motion to suppress and his request for a hearing under Franks v. Delaware, 438 U.S. 154 (1978). Defendant pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual…
Date: January 14, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3122
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit previously affirmed defendant's 600 month sentence after a jury convicted him of sexual exploitation of a minor, exploiting a minor while being required to register as a sex offender, two counts of…
Date: January 10, 2020
Docket Number: 17-3501
Justia Opinion Summary: On remand from the district court, the Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of Catamaran's motion for summary judgment. Pursuant to recent Supreme Court precedent in Lamps Plus, Inc. v. Varela, 139 S. Ct.…
Date: January 10, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2237
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to distributing child pornography. The district court imposed a sentence at the bottom of the advisory guidelines range, 262 months, but…
Date: January 10, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2407
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of defendant's motion to suppress nearly 2000 grams of heroin found in a rental car defendant was driving. The court held that, even if a strawman eliminated Fourth…
Date: January 10, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3110
Justia Opinion Summary: The union appealed the district court's order denying the union's motion to compel arbitration of the grievances regarding early retirement benefits for employees terminated as the result of a plant closing. Applying…
Date: January 8, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2611
Justia Opinion Summary: A Missouri statute and two regulations that regulate retail advertising by alcohol producers and distributors violated the First Amendment right to free speech. The Eighth Circuit held that, although the statute on its…
Date: January 8, 2020
Docket Number: 18-2958
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction and sentence for conspiracy to distribute heroin and aiding and abetting the distribution of heroin. The court held that the evidence was sufficient to support the jury…
Date: January 7, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3236
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit reversed the district court's dismissal, based on lack of personal jurisdiction, of plaintiffs' action against defendants over a dispute involving an investment agreement. The court held that…
Date: January 7, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3669
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court held that the district court did not err by denying defendant's Rule 29 motion for judgment of acquittal, because…
Date: January 3, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3448
Justia Opinion Summary: After an underground storage facility in a cave that formerly housed a limestone mine experienced a series of dome-outs, the primary insurer sought a declaratory judgment that the operator of the facility's claimed…
Date: January 2, 2020
Docket Number: 18-3488
Justia Opinion Summary: The Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction and sentence for conspiracies to import and possess cocaine and attempted possession of the drug. The court also held that the district court did not err in calculating…
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