Although the plaintiff failed to list her potential tort claims on her bankruptcy schedule, that omission does not necessarily preclude the plaintiff from bringing those claims if the district court concludes on remand the omission was the result of a ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge J. Overton Harris

Although a defendant’s sentence was boosted to 10 years from the recommended 30 to 37 months because the district court said the interstate nature of his criminal conduct made his crime more serious, there was no evidence the conduct involved ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Julius N. Richardson

Where the district court wrongly concluded that the defendant’s prior conviction for conspiracy qualified as a controlled substance offense under the Sentencing Guidelines, the defendant was not entitled to resentencing because the defendant failed to raise his objection before the ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Diana Gribbon Motz

The combination of the police officer’s knowledge that the defendant might have been engaged in criminal conduct and defendant’s reaction when he encountered the police, provided a basis for the search that resulted in the discovery of a firearm. Background ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Henry E. Hudson U.S. District Court - Eastern District

The case of a nursing home patient raped by a staff member split the Supreme Court of Virginia in its position on vicarious liability. The justices largely agree that an employer’s liability under the doctrine of respondeat superior is best ...

Tagged with: Chief Justice Donald W. Lemons Criminal Judge Cheryl V. Higgins Justice D. Arthur Kelsey Justice Elizabeth A. McClanahan Justice S. Bernard Goodwyn Justice Stephen R. McCullough Supreme Court of Virginia News

The Supreme Court of Virginia has recognized a church’s “special relationship” duty to protect children from a known dangerous employee. The new opinion also offers a host of guidance in other aspects of pleading a case. The decision builds on ...

Tagged with: Criminal Employment Justice D. Arthur Kelsey Justice Elizabeth A. McClanahan Supreme Court of Virginia News

A divided federal appeals panel has overturned the convictions of three accused drug distributors because a jury never was asked if the charges were brought in the right locality. A two-judge majority of a panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals News Criminal Judge Irene C. Berger Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III Judge Robert B. King

Although the defendant challenged the search warrant that led to his plea to possession of child pornography, there was probable cause for the warrant because the facts in the affidavit supported a reasonable inference that someone using his IP address ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Albert Diaz

Although the government persuaded the district court to impose a sentence above the guidelines range, the plea agreement allowed only the defendant, not the government, to ask for a sentence outside the recommended range. Background Pursuant to a plea agreement, ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge James A. Wynn Jr.

Where agents demonstrated that a wiretap was necessary in light of the defendant’s remote location and the lack of success that traditional investigative methods had against his co-conspirator, the defendant charged with conspiracy could not suppress the evidence. Background Demetrius ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Albert Diaz