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Friday, August 31, 2012

More from Court on Hobbs Act Sufficiency

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In US v. Powell , No. 11-2432 (Aug. 30, 2012), the Court looks again at sufficiency of the evidence to prove interstate commerce in a Hobbs...

Court Rejects Third-Party Appeal; No Implied Right to Victim Appeal Under MVRA

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In U.S. v. Stoerr , No. 11-2787 (Aug. 28, 2012), Stoerr’s employer, Sevenson Environmental Services, appealed the restitution order in his ...

Court Rejects Challenge to USVI Gun Statute

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In U.S. v. Fontaine , No. 11-2602 (August 28, 2012), a Virgin Islands case, the Circuit held that the local statute criminalizing unauthori...

Court Finds Proof of Witness Tampering Insufficient

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In U.S. v. Shavers , No. 10-2790 (Aug. 27, 2012), the Court considered the defendants’ Hobbs Act and witness tampering convictions, arising...
Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Implied bias doctrine disqualifies jurors who are close relatives of the parties involved in a trial, but does not categorically impute bias to coworkers of key trial witnesses.

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In U.S. v. Ricardo Mitchell , No. 11-2420 (3d Cir. Aug. 7, 2012) , D efendant Mitchell was convicted on charges relating to his possession o...

Evidence seized in warrantless search of house admissible where police had mistaken but reasonable belief that the house was abandoned, based on totality of circumstances.

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In U.S. v. Harrison , No. 11-2566 (3d Cir. Aug. 7, 2012) , Defendant Khayree Harrison was charged with possessing crack cocaine with intent ...
Monday, July 30, 2012

Phrase in federal assault statute, 18 U.S.C. § 113(a)(3), stating "without just cause or excuse," is an affirmative defense, rather than an element of the offense

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In United States v. Taylor , No. 11-2875 (3d Cir. July 25, 2012), the Third Circuit was presented with the question of whether, by includin...
Friday, July 20, 2012

Unlicensed Distribution of Prescription Drugs Not an 'Aggravated Felony'

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In Borrome v. Attorney General , No. 11-1975 (July 18, 2012), the Circuit applies the "categorical" approach used to assess the na...
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Monday, July 16, 2012

Grant of Rule 29 Motion Based on Sufficiency Grounds and Issued After Jury’s Guilty Verdict Reversed

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In United States v. Claxton , No. 11-2552 (July 9, 2012), the Third Circuit addressed an interesting issue of whether a rational fact-finder...
Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Circuit Invalidates Waiver of Counsel at Trial Because Court Misinformed Defendant re Maximum Penalty

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       In United States v. Booker (3d Cir. 7/2/12), http://www.ca3.uscourts.gov/opinarch/072835p.pdf, the defendant represented himself at ...

Plain Error Rule Applies to Review of Honest Fraud Jury Instructions Administered Before Skilling; Extraordinary Circumstances Required Review of Waived Sentencing Claim

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In United States v. Ashley Andrews, No 11-1239 (Third Circuit, June 4, 2012), The Defendant, Ashley Andrews, was a contractor whose c...
Friday, July 06, 2012

Definition of “Sexual Contact” under U.S.S.G. § 2G1.3(b)(4)(A) Does Not Require Contact with Minor Victim

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In United States v. Pawlowski, No. 10–4105 (3d Cir., June 19, 2012) , the defendant challenged his conviction for attempted enticement of a ...

Mixed Motives Jury Instruction Proper in Prosecution under Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3631

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In United States v. Piekarsky, Nos. 11–1567, 11–1568 (3d Cir., June 18, 2012), two of several defendants charged in the brutal beating death...
Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Double Jeopardy and Due Process did not preclude trial on a bifurcated 922(g) count after the district court declared a mistrial on a 924(c) count.

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The defendant in United States v. Figueroa, No. 11-2597 was charged with two counts of drug distribution, carrying a firearm during a drug ...
Tuesday, June 26, 2012

S.Ct.: No Mandatory LWOP for Juveniles

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       In Miller v. Alabama , and Jackson v. Hobbs , Nos. 10-9646 and 10-9647 (June 25, 2012), the Court held that the Eighth   ...
Monday, June 25, 2012

Court Emphasizes Scope of Remand / Rejects Multiplicity Findings in Drug/Gun Case

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      In United States v. Kennedy , 2012 WL 2161380 (June 15, 2012), the government appealed the district court’s decision, on a remand for ...
Friday, June 22, 2012

Third Circuit Does Not Have Jurisdiction To Hear Direct Appeals Of Orders To Produce Supposedly Privileged Documents.

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      The Third Circuit reaffirmed the jurisdictional requirements for appealing an order to produce allegedly privileged documents in In Re...

The Third Circuit Expands Definition Of "a different location" For Application Of The Abduction Enchancement.

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In United States v. Reynos, No. 11-1398, (3d Cir. May 22, 2012), the Third Circuit clarified the definition of abduction for purposes of fou...

No Relief for Career Offenders (Sentenced Within § 4B1.1 Range) Seeking Crack Reductions

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     In United States v. Thompson , defendant pled guilty to distribution of fewer than five grams of crack cocaine, but his sentencing rang...

S.Ct.: Fair Sentencing Act’s Lower Mandatory Minimums to Apply to the Post-Act Sentencing of Pre-Act Offenders

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    Consistent with the Third Circuit’s decision in United States v. Dixon , 648 F.3d 195, 203 (3d Cir. 2011) , the Court held in Dorsey v. ...