United States v. Vargas
Opinion Date: July 28, 2021
Judge: Higginbotham
Areas of Law: Criminal Law
Defendant Joel Vargas was convicted of two counts of transporting stolen goods in interstate or foreign commerce and one count of conspiracy to do the same based on his leadership of a crew of burglars, which targeted commercial tire stores. Defendant Angelica, Joel's wife, was convicted of conspiracy to transport stolen goods based on her role as the crew's paymaster and alternate burglary driver. Joel was also convicted of witness tampering based on evidence that he threatened the father of the crew member who cooperated with law enforcement in Joel's arrest. The Fifth Circuit affirmed defendants' convictions, concluding that defendants failed to show that any constructive amendment to their indictment affected their substantial rights because the trial record contained evidence supporting a guilty verdict on the crime actually charged in the indictment. Furthermore, in such cases, the court declined to exercise its discretion to grant relief. The court also concluded that the evidence was sufficient to support defendants' convictions for transportation of stolen goods in foreign commerce, conspiracy to transport stolen goods in interstate commerce, and witness tampering.
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US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Opinions
Harbor Healthcare System, LP v. United States
Judge: Per Curiam
Harbor filed a pre-indictment motion under Rule 41(g) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, seeking return of documents seized by the United States in five searches of Harbor locations and offices. The district court had exercised discretionary jurisdiction for a time to oversee the implementation of protective process to screen Harbor's privileged information. However, the district court declined to exercise its equitable jurisdiction further and dismissed the case. After determining that it has jurisdiction to consider this appeal, the Fourth Circuit concluded that the district court erred in its assessment of the pre-indictment harm resulting from an allegedly unlawful seizure of privileged material. The court explained that the district court erred in its understanding of the four factors under Richey v. Smith, 515 F.2d at 1243–44, in determining whether to grant a pre-indictment motion for return of property and therefore abused its discretion by declining to further exercise its equitable jurisdiction. Accordingly, the court reversed the district court's judgment and remanded for further proceedings.
Louisiana - Where You Can't Beat a Bad Ticket
www.youtube.com/watch?v=kb_9NaSr2PE
How will Louisiana's historic veto override session work? Even lawmakers aren't quite sure.
www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/politics/legislature/article_f7f8e004-e8db-11eb-8ee5-2f253ced5c37.html
United States v. Hudgens
Judge: Edith Brown Clement
The Fifth Circuit affirmed defendant's sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to both counts of a two-count indictment for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin and methamphetamine. The court concluded that defendant's sentence was not substantively unreasonable and the district court did not abuse its discretion by imposing a 240-month sentence on each count, to run concurrently. In this case, the district court did not abuse its discretion in considering the 18 U.S.C. 3553(a) sentencing factors, including the fact that death resulted from defendant's offense; the upward variance fell within the statutory maximum; and the district court did not improperly consider that the drugs defendant provided the deceased caused her death.
Here Are The Full Details Of The New Federal Marijuana Legalization Bill
www.marijuanamoment.net/here-are-the-full-details-of-the-new-federal-marijuana-legalization-bill-from-chuck-schumer-and-senate-colleagues/
Federal Appeals Court rules banning handgun sales to citizens under 21 violates Second Amendment
s3.documentcloud.org/documents/20988578/document20.pdf
Former Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards has died at 93
www.wafb.com/2021/07/12/former-la-governor-edwin-edwards-has-died-93/
Gov. Edwards Signs Bill Allowing College Athletes to Earn Money off of Their Own Name, Image, or Likeness
www.houmatimes.com/sports/gov-edwards-signs-bill-allowing-college-athletes-to-earn-money-off-of-their-own-name-image-or-likeness/
McMillan v. Amazon.com
Opinion Date: June 29, 2021
Judge: Don R. Willett
Areas of Law: Products Liability
The Fifth Circuit certified the following question to the Supreme Court of Texas: May Amazon be held liable as a "seller" under Texas products-liability law for third-party products sold on Amazon's website and handled through Amazon's Fulfillment by Amazon program? The Supreme Court of Texas has now answered the question, holding that "potentially liable sellers are limited to those who relinquished title to the product at some point in the distribution chain." Because third-party sellers do not relinquish their title to their products, "Amazon is not a 'seller'" of those "products under Texas law." Accordingly, the court reversed the district court's conclusion that Amazon is a "seller" under Texas law with instructions to grant Amazon's motion for summary judgment in full on remand.
Boudreaux v. Louisiana State Bar Ass'n
Opinion Date: July 2, 2021
Areas of Law: Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Legal Ethics
Plaintiff filed suit challenging Louisiana law that forces lawyers to join and pay annual dues to the Louisiana State Bar Association (LSBA). Plaintiff contends that compelling dues and membership violates his First Amendment rights, and that LSBA's failure to ensure that his dues are not used to fund the Bar's political and ideological activities also violates his First Amendment rights. The Fifth Circuit reversed the district court's dismissal of plaintiff's claims. The court concluded that Lathrop v. Donahue, 367 U.S. 820 (1961), and Keller v. State Bar of California, 496 U.S. 1 (1990), foreclose plaintiff's challenge to mandatory membership in LSBA. In this case, plaintiff's claim presents the (previously) open free association question from Keller (which the court closed today in this circuit with the court's concurrently issued opinion in McDonald v. Longley, No. 20-50448, __ F.3d __ (5th Cir. 2021)). The court also concluded that the Tax Injunction Act does not preclude federal courts from exercising jurisdiction over plaintiff's challenge to mandatory dues. The court explained that the bar dues are a fee, not a tax, and thus dismissal under the Act was improper. Finally, the court concluded that plaintiff has standing to pursue his claim that LSBA does not employ adequate procedures to safeguard his dues. The court found that plaintiff has pleaded an injury-in-fact by alleging that LSBA does not regularly provide notice of its expenditures with sufficient specificity. Accordingly, the court remanded for further proceedings.
Louisiana v. Burton
Docket: 2019-K-01079
Areas of Law: Constitutional Law, Criminal Law
Defendant Randall Burton was found guilty as charged of the second degree murder of Cody Fletcher. The trial court sentenced him to serve life imprisonment at hard labor without parole eligibility. The court of appeal affirmed. The Louisiana Supreme Court granted defendant's application to examine whether the trial court erred in excluding evidence of the victim's dangerous character, pursuant to La. C.E. art. 404(A)(2). This evidence was relevant to defendant's claim that the homicide was justifiable, under La. R.S. 14:20(A). After examining the record, the arguments of the parties, and the jurisprudence, the Supreme Court found defendant was entitled to a new trial because the trial court erred when it excluded this evidence after defendant introduced appreciable evidence of an overt act or hostile demonstration by the victim. Accordingly, the Court vacated the sentence, set aside the conviction, and remanded for further proceedings.
Calls for Louisiana's first veto override session grow over guns, roads, transgender athletes
www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/politics/legislature/article_b19a1fde-d921-11eb-a5e9-531a2a0f0d26.html