Where the former corrections officer convicted for his role in the death of a detainee argued that the jury instructions were erroneous, but he did not raise that objection at trial, his motion for habeas relief was denied. Background A ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Allison Jones Rushing

Where Justin Fairfax, the Virginia lieutenant governor, failed to plead facts plausibly suggesting that CBS aired reports of two women who accused him of sexual assault with a “high degree of awareness” that he likely did not assault them, his ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Allison Jones Rushing Tort

In a case of first impression, the court held a local government’s policy of enforcing state law renders it susceptible to Monell liability if the municipal policymaker made a meaningful and conscious choice that caused a constitutional injury. Because the ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Constitutional Judge Allison Jones Rushing

A defendant sentenced in 2009 to 151 months in prison for distributing crack cocaine is eligible for relief under the First Step Act of 2018. When the law changed the quantities of crack cocaine to which 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C) ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Allison Jones Rushing

Although regulations prohibit “commercial vehicles” from driving on the George Washington Parkway unless authorized by permit, the mere fact the defendant was driving a commercial vehicle on the parkway did not provide a basis to stop his vehicle. The marijuana ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Allison Jones Rushing

After the defendant was sentenced to life without parole for crimes committed when he was 17, the Supreme Court held that, when sentencing a minor to life without parole, the court must consider the defendant’s “youth and attendant characteristics.” Because ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Allison Jones Rushing

Where an FBI attaché interviewed the defendant about his association with the Islamic State of Iraq without providing him Miranda warnings, and a different team of FBI agents interviewed him 10 days later after giving Miranda warnings, there was no ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Allison Jones Rushing Judge Henry F. Floyd

Where a former deputy commonwealth’s attorney brought a claim under the 14th  Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause claiming she was fired in retaliation for reporting alleged sex discrimination, her claim was dismissed because the Equal Protection Clause cannot sustain a pure ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Employment Discrimination Judge Allison Jones Rushing

Minor inaccuracies in two CBS Evening News reports about a West Virginia pharmacy and its role in the opioid crisis did not support a claim for defamation because the broadcast likely had the same effect on the viewer as the ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Allison Jones Rushing Tort

The stop of the defendant after a bar brawl was supported by multiple elements, including a tip from a witness describing a person with a gun, with a physical description matching the defendant, in a known problem area. Background Shortly ...

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