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 a Hungarian businessman sold a company to another Hungarian company, violating an injunction, the Hungarian company’s participation in the businessman’s injunction violation was insufficient to provide the court a basis for exercising personal jurisdiction over it.

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

Where a police officer suffered post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of being frequently exposed to child pornography at work, and could not sue under the under the Americans with Disability Act because the state was immune, but he could ...

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

Where a child placement agency did not exercise sufficient control over foster parents to be held vicariously liable for their alleged negligence, the mother of the child placed in home could not sue the agency for wrongful death. Background The ...

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

Where an administrative judge explained why an expert convincingly opined that a miner who smoked two packs of cigarettes a day for 50 years did not suffer from black lung disease, the miner was not entitled to benefits under the ...

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

Where the detective’s facially sufficient search warrant affidavit was imprecise,  but had no proof an alleged error was intentionally or recklessly false,  the drug defendant’s post-conviction challenge to the affidavit failed. Background After a jury convicted Benitez Auguarius Moody of ...

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

Although a prisoner wanted to engage in “communal” feasts as part of his celebration of annual Rastafarian holy days, he provided no direct evidence to show that other inmates would join his gatherings, and thus he could not show prison ...

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

Where plaintiffs challenging Mississippi’s death penalty practices subpoenaed the Virginia Department of Corrections in the hopes of gathering information that would help them prove deficiencies in Mississippi’s practices, the subpoena was quashed because the department had already produced relevant information ...

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

Where a juror had to be excused after expressing fear that she would be retaliated against if she found the defendants guilty, the other jurors, who confirmed their ability to be fair and impartial, were not tainted, and the defendants ...

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

A university professor who alleged she was paid less than male colleagues failed to persuade the court the difference in pay was due to her gender. Instead, the court held the difference was based on legitimate factors, including different job ...

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