No Suppression Under Posse Comitatus

Miller Act Contractor Wins Fees

By Deborah Elkins
Published: June 6, 2012
Tags: Contract, Judge Rebecca Beach Smith, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A Norfolk U.S. District Court accepts a magistrate judge’s report and enters default judgment in this Miller Act contract claim against the principal on a payment bond, and awards the contractor $46,662 plus interest, as well as reasonable attorney’s fees. Plaintiffs in this suit under the Miller Act, 40 U.S.C. §§ 3131, are the U.S. [...]

Court Conveys Titanic Salvage Artifacts

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 15, 2012
Tags: Admiralty, Judge Rebecca Beach Smith, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A Norfolk U.S. District Court conveys title to the artifacts salvaged from the R.M.S. Titanic to R.M.S. Titanic Inc., but such title is fully subject to the covenants and conditions that the U.S., through the U.S. Attorney, negotiated and finalized with RMST and the court. On Aug. 12, 2010, this court granted R.M.S. Titanic Inc. [...]

Court Records Sealed Under Local Rule

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 15, 2012
Tags: Civil Procedure, Judge Rebecca Beach Smith, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

In this pending civil action, a Norfolk U.S. District Court magistrate judge grants defendant’s motion that certain documents filed as part of defendant’s memorandum opposing plaintiff’s motion in limine be marked confidential and placed under seal under local rules. Exhibit 6 includes statements provided by Portsmouth police officers to the Virginia State Police (VSP) chief [...]

Lesser Minimum Sentence May Be Retroactive

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 8, 2012
Tags: Criminal, Judge Rebecca Beach Smith, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A Norfolk U.S. District Court stays petitioner’s motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 to change his sentence on drug charges, as there are two cases pending in the U.S. Supreme Court on the retroactivity of Fair Sentencing Act provisions governing a mandatory minimum sentence for cocaine base offenses, and the law in this circuit is [...]

PACER Transcript Redaction Denied

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 8, 2012
Tags: Criminal, Judge Rebecca Beach Smith, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Despite evidence that defendant already engaged in witness intimidation during his criminal trial, the Norfolk U.S. District Court denies the government’s request to restrict online access to trial transcripts to prevent third parties from providing defendant with copies to allow intimidation of witnesses in federal custody; defendant already heard these witnesses’ trial testimony and the [...]

No ‘Transactional Immunity’ Promise

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 1, 2012
Tags: Criminal, Judge Rebecca Beach Smith, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Although government agents and a prosecutor talked to defendant several times to discuss reduced charges in exchange for information on a gun used during a robbery and fatal shooting, the government did not offer transactional immunity to defendant in the proffer letter he signed, and the Norfolk U.S. District Court denies defendant’s motion to suppress [...]

Counterclaim May Waive Removal Right

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 17, 2012
Tags: Civil Procedure, Judge Rebecca Beach Smith, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Although defendant insurance carrier wins realignment of the parties to allow for removal of its dec action to federal court because now there is complete diversity of citizenship, the Norfolk U.S. District Court says the carrier must show cause why the court should not find the carrier waived its right to removal by filing a [...]

‘Big Case’ TV Commercial Copied

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 6, 2012
Tags: Intellectual Property, Judge Rebecca Beach Smith, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

In this copyright and trademark litigation involving two marketing companies’ claims to marketing programs involving TV commercials for the “Big Case,” the Norfolk U.S. District Court holds that plaintiff copied defendant’s “Big Case” commercial. This dispute involves various copyright and trademark claims arising out of defendant Market-Masters Legal’s and plaintiff Innovative Legal Marketing LLC’s respective [...]

Defendant’s Transcript Request Denied

By Deborah Elkins
Published: February 24, 2012
Tags: Criminal, Judge Rebecca Beach Smith, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

In light of evidence that defendant already engaged in witness intimidation during his trial, and the fact that his appellate counsel has copies of all transcripts in the criminal proceedings against defendant, the Norfolk U.S. District Court denies defendant’s request for personal copies of the transcripts, which the government argues he could use to again [...]