Where the trial court improperly excluded an expert who would have provided testimony material to the defendants’ defense, two defendants convicted of drug conspiracy charges are entitled to a new trial. Background A federal jury convicted Benjamin Galecki and Charles ...

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

Because a sentencing judge who denied the victim’s request for restitution erred by not articulating how he balanced various competing factors, the victim will have another opportunity to argue he should be awarded restitution as part of the drunken driving ...

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

Where a subcontractor’s faulty excavation work on a building construction project caused a delay in the project and required the subcontractor to perform significant remediation work, the resulting damages incurred by the site owner and general contractor were not covered ...

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

Where a mother alleged that her obstetrician caused injuries to her child by using excessive force during her vaginal delivery but agreed that he did not violate the standard of care by proceeding with the vaginal delivery, she was precluded ...

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

A multiemployer pension fund can pursue an alleged delinquent exit contribution from a former participating employer after the court held the complaint plausibly alleged this contribution was required by the plan documents. Background The Board of Trustees of the Sheet ...

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

Where an employee was charged with fraudulently obtaining hydrocodone in 2011 through her position at a solo dental practice, the employee’s history of ordering drugs for the practice since 2002 was admissible to show the employee’s pattern of conduct and ...

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

A defendant who made furtive actions regarding a firearm, while running from a law enforcement officer, triggered a sentencing enhancement because his conduct could have resulted in injury to him or another person. Background A grand jury indicted Kevin Lee ...

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

In an issue of first impression, the court held that a defendant who persuaded a jury in a civil False Claims Act case that he did not defraud the government could not use that success as a shield against criminal ...

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

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