Enhancement Upheld for ‘Generic’ Burglary

Convictions Upheld for Fraudulent Marriage Scheme

By Deborah Elkins
Published: June 5, 2013
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Criminal, Judge Albert Diaz

At defendant’s trial for his role in a scheme to arrange fraudulent marriages between Navy sailors and foreign nationals in return for payments, the trial court did not err in admitting hearsay statements made on recorded prison telephone calls, or in seating a juror who hosted a conservative radio talk show and had expressed opinions [...]

‘Grabbing’ Officer’s Hand Not ‘Violent’ Crime

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 14, 2013
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Immigration, Judge Albert Diaz

The 4th Circuit grants an Afghan citizen’s petition for review of a final order of removal, and says the government failed to prove that his act of “grabbing” the hand of a police officer who was processing his Maryland DUI charge was not a “crime of violence” and thus an “aggravated felony” that would trigger [...]

Lien-Stripping Approved in Chapter 20 Cases

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 14, 2013
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Bankruptcy, Judge Albert Diaz

In a “Chapter 20” bankruptcy case – a Chapter 13 bankruptcy filed within four years of a Chapter 7 discharge – there is no per se rule barring lien-stripping, and the 4th Circuit affirms an order stripping off liens secured by collateral with no value to support them in this suit involving debtors’ residences. The [...]

Appeals court strikes down Virginia anti-sodomy law

By The Associated Press
Published: March 18, 2013
Tags: Criminal, Federal Courts, Judge Albert Diaz, Judge Diana Gribbon Motz, Judge Robert B. King

(AP) The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a Virginia anti-sodomy law that remains on the books a decade after a similar Texas statute was invalidated by the U.S. Supreme Court. In a 2-1 ruling March 12, a panel of the 4th Circuit declared that Virginia’s law against oral and anal sex violates [...]

Denial of Gender Surgery States Claim

By Deborah Elkins
Published: January 29, 2013
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Civil Rights, Judge Albert Diaz

A Virginia inmate who has the condition of Gender Identity Disorder has stated an Eighth Amendment claim for defendant Department of Corrections’ denial of her request for gender reassignment surgery, and the complaint survives screening under 28 U.S.C. § 1915, the 4th Circuit says. The sole issue before us is whether plaintiff’s complaint states a [...]

Homeowner’s ‘Screwed’ Sign Struck

By Deborah Elkins
Published: January 23, 2013
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional, Judge Albert Diaz

A resident of Cary, N.C., loses his constitutional challenge to a local sign ordinance, cited by the town to demand removal of a sign painted on the resident’s house saying “Screwed by the Town of Cary”; the 4th Circuit reverses the district court decision for the resident, and says the Cary sign ordinance is content [...]

Manslaughter Conviction Upheld in Traffic Death

By Deborah Elkins
Published: January 7, 2013
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Criminal, Judge Albert Diaz

A driver’s conviction of involuntary manslaughter in the death of her passenger in a one-car accident on a National Park Service parkway is affirmed by the 4th Circuit, based on evidence of her conduct and her blood alcohol content after the accident. The government charged defendant with homicide during the commission of an unlawful act [...]

Judge orders a 20-year ban in trade secrets case

By Peter Vieth
Published: September 17, 2012
Tags: Federal Courts, Intellectual Property, Judge Albert Diaz, Judge Andre M. Davis, Judge Dennis W. Shedd, Judge Robert E. Payne

In a rapid volley of court actions, a Korean company fighting a $920 million judgment for theft of trade secrets was hit with a “devastating” 20-year ban on sales of its body armor product, and then promptly won a stay of that injunction from a federal appeals court. Senior U.S. District Judge Robert E. Payne, [...]

Officer’s Speed Estimate Supported Traffic Stop

By Deborah Elkins
Published: August 16, 2012
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Judge Albert Diaz, Search & Seizure

The 4th Circuit upholds a traffic stop based on two officers’ separate visual estimates of defendant’s speed, as the officers’ radar certification training required them to visually estimate vehicle speed within a narrow margin of error; the subsequent open-air search by a drug-sniffing dog did not violate defendant’s Fourth Amendment rights, and his convictions for [...]