Recently in Criminal Law Category

In habeas proceedings arising from a murder and robbery prosecution, dismissal of the habeas petition as untimely is vacated where petitioner's evidence, while not sufficient to establish definitively that the filing deadline should be equitably tolled, was sufficient to raise a factual issue as to whether a causal connection existed between his mental impairment and his ability to file a timely petition.

Read Hunter v. Ferrell, No. 08-16597

Appellate Information

Filed November 18, 2009

Judges

Per Curiam

In a case arising from the huge accounting fraud conspiracy at HealthSouth Corporation, defendant's securities fraud sentence is vacated on appeal by the government where the purely probationary sentence imposed by the district court was patently unreasonable in light of defendant's role in the massive corporate fraud at issue. The court of appeals further rules that any sentence of probation would be unreasonable given the magnitude and seriousness of defendant's criminal conduct, and only the imposition of a meaningful period of incarceration will achieve Congressional sentencing goals.

Read US v. Livesay, No. 08-14712

Appellate Information

Filed November 16, 2009

Judges

Opinion by Judge Dubina

Defendants' drug conspiracy convictions are affirmed where: 1) the fact that there was no evidence that defendants sold drugs to each other was not dispositive of the conspiracy issue; 2) due to the repeated nature of the transactions and the large quantities involved, a rational trier of fact could infer a corresponding conspiracy to distribute the cocaine; and 3) one defendant's prior convictions were relevant to show intent.

Read US v. Brown, No. 07-13007

Appellate Information

Filed November 10, 2009

Judges

Opinion by Judge Alarcon

In a capital habeas matter, the denial of petitioner's petition is affirmed where: 1) the trial court was not required to hold a sua sponte hearing on petitioner's competence to testify, because petitioner expressly declined the trial court's offer to hold a competency hearing, his attorney stipulated to his competence, and four mental health experts testified that he was competent; 2) there was no evidence submitted to the trial judge of any physical ailments suffered by petitioner which would have affected his competence; and 3) based on five experts' testimony that petitioner was competent, defense counsel made a reasonable investigation of petitioner's mental state.

Read Pardo v. Sec'y., Fla. Dept. of Corr., No. 08-14053

Appellate Information

Filed November 10, 2009

Judges

Opinion by Judge Birch

Defendant's conviction for failing to register in accordance with the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) is affirmed where: 1) sex offenders with pre-SORNA convictions, like defendant, had a duty to register even if the jurisdiction in which the offense occurred had not implemented SORNA; 2) defendant's guilty plea waived his right to claim that he was physically unable to register under SORNA; and 3) defendant had adequate notice of his duty to register.

Read US v. Brown, No. 08-17244

Appellate Information

Filed November 5, 2009

Judges

Opinion by Judge Birch

In a capital habeas matter, denial of the petition is affirmed where: 1) a witness's testimony about her criminal history was literally accurate; 2) it was unclear what evidence petitioner claimed was suppressed by the state; 3) the district court's finding that the prosecutor did not bully petitioner into testifying was not clear error; 4) there was no evidence that the prosecutor received exculpatory test results and hid them; and 5) certain suppressed evidence was not material, given the overwhelming evidence of petitioner's guilt.

Read Hammond v. Hall, No. 08-11108

Appellate Information

Filed November 4, 2009

Judges

Opinion by Judge Carnes

Defendant's firearm possession sentence is affirmed where a conviction for eluding the police under Section 316.1935(3)(a) of Florida's penal code qualified as a "crime of violence" for the purposes of U.S.S.G. section 2K2.1(a)(4)(A).

Read US v. Harris, No. 08-15909

Appellate Information

Filed November 3, 2009

Judges

Opinion by Judge Marcus

Defendant's bank robbery conviction and sentence are affirmed where 1) the district court properly concluded that there was sufficient information to establish probable cause for the issuance of a search warrant; 2) there was no evidence that the district court made an erroneous ruling regarding the prosecution's peremptory challenges that required immediate correction; and 3) there was substantial evidence from which a reasonable fact finder could find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Read US v. Tate, No. 09-10288

Appellate Information

Filed October 30, 2009

Judges

Opinion by Judge Alarcon

Defendants' marijuana possession convictions are affirmed where: 1) the district court did not abuse its discretion in admitting defendants' cellular call records into evidence; 2) the district court properly instructed the jury that the prosecution's summaries of the call records were not evidence. However, certain defendants' sentences are reversed where the district court plainly erred in treating some drug offenses as "serious drug offenses" under 18 U.S.C. section 3559(c) and then imposing the mandatory life sentences.

Read US v. Sanchez, No. 06-15143

Appellate Information

Filed October 30, 2009

Judges

Opinion by Judge Tjoflat

Defendant's firearm possession conviction is affirmed where defendant lacked standing to contest a search that led to the discovery of the gun at issue because the search was of a co-defendant's car.  However, his sentence is reversed where a non-violent "walkaway" escape is not a violent felony for purposes of the Armed Career Criminal Act.

Read US v. Lee, No. 08-14724

Appellate Information

Filed October 26, 2009

Judges

Opinion by Judge Birch