Where an operator has complied with the water-quality standards promulgated under the Clean Water Act, an assertion that same conduct violates the Surface Mining Act fails because the Mining Act’s saving clause prevents liability for conduct that is otherwise shielded ...

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

Where a 911 caller requested medical care for the decedent because of his consumption of alcohol and prescription drugs, and the officers knew the man was substantially inhibited in his ability to talk, walk or sit and they witnessed his ...

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

Officers that arrested and jailed a severely intoxicated man who later died of an overdose are not entitled to qualified immunity in a lawsuit alleging they should have sought medical help, a federal appeals court has ruled. The ruling by ...

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

Where a man convicted for his role in a murder for hire requested admission of witness testimony from the prior trial of man wrongfully convicted of the crime, the district court’s refusal to admit it was not an abuse of ...

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

Where one company received escrow funds for a tax payment to be made on behalf of a borrower, and the servicing rights were transferred in the window between the borrower’s payment to escrow and the tax’s due date, the Real ...

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

A rule promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Services, prohibiting physicians and other providers in Title X programs from referring patients for an abortion and imposing other requirements on entities receiving Title X funds, was enjoined. HHS inadequately ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Administrative Judge Albert Diaz Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III Judge Julius N. Richardson Judge Stephanie Dawn Thacker

Because there were good reasons why defense counsel for a man on trial for beating, shooting and robbing a prostitute decided to not test certain items for DNA, including the risk of undermining the trial strategy, the habeas court’s rejection ...

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

Where an inmate whose prison release was delayed brought a suit claiming Eighth Amendment violations, two attorneys with the South Carolina Department of Corrections, or SCDC, acted reasonably in interpreting a state statute regarding calculation of the inmate’s work and ...

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

Based on a “straightforward interpretation” of 28 U.S.C. § 1332(c)(1), which governs citizenship of corporations, the credit union is a citizen of Virginia because that is its principal place of business. This analysis was not changed by the fact the ...

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

Although the defendant argued his two Virginia convictions for possession with intent to distribute heroin did not qualify as controlled substance offenses under the sentencing guidelines, because Virginia law defines controlled substances more broadly than federal law, his argument ignored ...

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