A defendant who sent gift cards to an undercover agent he believed was a member of ISIS was guilty of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization where his collection of Nazi paraphernalia suggested a predisposition to ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge G. Steven Agee

Defense attorneys who represented a man sentenced to death for kidnapping and murder failed to investigate signs of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome in the case; their admission that they did not provide this potentially mitigating evidence prompts a new trial. Background ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge G. Steven Agee

A man born in El Salvador failed to establish that gangs harassed him on account of his father’s disabilities. At most, the record showed the gangs threatened him because he would not join their ranks. However, flight from gang recruitment ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Immigration Judge G. Steven Agee

The district court properly dismissed a suit brought by nursing homes on behalf of individual residents challenging Medicaid decisions made by Maryland state agencies because the relief they sought was barred by the Eleventh Amendment. Background Several nursing homes, on ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Administrative Judge G. Steven Agee

Because an employer did not abandon its claim that a former employee breached his employment agreement by retaining company property after resignation, the district court erred in dismissing the claim. And because the employer took steps to maintain the secrecy ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Employment Judge G. Steven Agee

The Bankruptcy Code is clear that when a Chapter 13 plan is not confirmed, the trustee must return post-petition payments to the debtor. As a result, the child support division could not levy on funds held by the trustee because ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Bankruptcy Judge G. Steven Agee

After a trip to his native U.K., a lawful permanent resident in the U.S. was denied admission upon his return, based on a seven-year-old conviction for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance. His removal order was ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Administrative Immigration Judge G. Steven Agee

Despite past efforts to improve its approach, the Department of Energy’s recommended analysis of economic hardship on small fuel refineries attempting to comply with federal renewable fuel standards is facially flawed. In considering a petition for a small-refinery exemption, the ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Administrative Environmental Judge G. Steven Agee

A petitioner filed her “innocent spouse” tax claim one week late because IRS representatives allegedly misinformed her of the filing deadline, but the U.S. Tax Court had no authority to waive compliance. Background The IRS charged Shari and Derek Nauflett ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Civil Procedure Judge G. Steven Agee Taxation

A defendant waived his right to appeal an award of $100,000 restitution to his child victim, but the district court’s reasons for denying restitution to other, non-contact victims contradicted U.S. Supreme Court precedent. Background Appellant Mario Dillard used computer programs ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge G. Steven Agee Sentencing