J. Connors finds that the lower court properly convicted defendant for intentional or knowing murder, aggravated attempted murder and elevated aggravated assault. Defendant argues that the lower court erred in admitting a certain statement that he made to the police regarding the "number and names" of the victims, but any error in the admission of the statement was harmless. The other evidence indicating his guilt was "overwhelming." Affirmed.
Court: Maine Supreme Court, Judge: Connors, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 2023ME31, Categories: Evidence, Murder
J. Agee finds the lower court properly denied the defendant's motion for acquittal. The government showed sufficient evidence of the defendant, convicted of 13 robberies, using a firearm because he had a matching bullet in his pocket at the time of his arrest despite no fingerprints. Affirmed.
Court: 4th Circuit, Judge: Agee, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 21-4438, Categories: Firearms, Robbery, Speedy Trial
J. Feuer finds the trial court properly upheld the valuation of a shopping center in this property tax refund action, sustaining the demurrer filed by the county, and denying the owner’s motion for summary judgment. Although the owner was not able to cross-examine the appraiser who had passed away, they had an opportunity to examine the appraiser testifying on his behalf. Absent a constitutional right, a cited precedential case does not authorize reversal of an administrative decision where the petitioner was provided the evidence relied on by the agency and was able to examine a knowledgeable representative. Affirmed.
Court: California Courts Of Appeal, Judge: Feuer, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: B315898, Categories: Property, Tax, Agency
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J. Mazzant awards the guitar maker $1,248 in net profits and $9,176 in attorney fees on its post-verdict claim of contempt against the competitor that was still selling infringing guitars in violation of the permanent injunction against it.
Court: USDC Eastern District of Texas , Judge: Mazzant, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 4:19cv358, NOS: Trademark - Property Rights, Categories: Sanctions, Trademark, Attorney Fees
J. Thurston denies a farm labor contractor’s motion to exclude an expert witness and decertify a class on a worker’s wage claims. Contrary to the contractor's argument, the worker's expert testimony, which is based, in part, on data submitted by the contractor, is reliable.
Court: USDC Eastern District of California, Judge: Thurston, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 1:15cv1489, NOS: Other Labor Litigation - Labor, Categories: Experts, Class Action, Labor
J. Moorer remands a couple's negligence and warranty case against a timber company and others to state court. The company's removal of the action was untimely, as it was clear from the initial complaint the amount in controversy exceeded $75,000.
Court: USDC Southern District of Alabama, Judge: Moorer, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 1:22cv516, NOS: Tort Product Liability - Real Property, Categories: Negligence, Jurisdiction, Warranty
J. Kindred grants the state's motion for summary judgment regarding an individual's personal injury claims stemming from a standoff with state troopers. The individual was found slumped over in his truck with a pistol in his lap an an open alcoholic beverage. In trying to get the individual to exit the truck, the troopers tossed a stinger grenade inside, resulting in a fire which caused third-degree burns to the man's legs. The individual "chose to file suit directly against the State and chose to assert state law claims from which the State is immune."
Court: USDC Alaska, Judge: Kindred, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 4:21cv6, NOS: Other Personal Injury - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: Tort
J. Patricco denies in part an employer's motion for summary judgment regarding an employee's wage claims and allegations of breach of contract. There is a genuine dispute of material fact as to whether the employee's transition plan was a contract and the related Wage Claim Act claim continues.
Court: USDC Idaho, Judge: Patricco, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 1:22cv82, NOS: Other Labor Litigation - Labor, Categories: Employment
J. Bilbrey grants the statewide guardian ad litem office review of the trial court's refusal to strike a caregiver's objection to efforts to reunify the dependent child with the mother because the court departed from essential requirements of law. The caregivers may be heard in opposition as participants, not as parties to the action.
Court: Florida Courts Of Appeal, Judge: Bilbrey, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 1D23-0073, Categories: Family Law, Guardianship
[Consolidated]. J. Erickson finds a lower court properly sentenced two defendants to 240 months in prison for Hobbs Act robbery, but improperly convicted them for commission of murder during a crime of violence. The government argued that the defendants were not entitled to a motion to suppress evidence based on their "rubber stamp" theory, and that the murder conviction should move ahead because the defendants shot and killed the homeowner, who maintained a "very impressive video surveillance system." However, the defendants presented sufficient evidence in court that their only intention was to knowingly possess firearms to forcibly to steal money and drugs from the residence. Affirmed in part.
Court: 8th Circuit, Judge: Erickson, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 21-2469, Categories: Evidence, Murder, Robbery
J. Pietsch finds the Board of Veterans Appeals improperly denied the Air Force vet’s initial compensable disability rating for allergic rhinitis and service connection for sinusitis, headaches and diabetes. The decision didn’t provide a required general statement, failing to correctly identify evidence it did not consider in its decision. The general statement must accurately inform the claimant why evidence was not considered and of what options are available for having it considered. The board did not consider evidence submitted during the period between the original decision and the notice of disagreement, and provided a misleadingly inaccurate general statement informing the vet that it did not consider only evidence received after the 90 days following the notice. This prejudiced the veteran. Remanded.
Court: Court Of Appeals For Veterans Claims, Judge: Pietsch, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 20-6853, Categories: Health Care, Veterans, Due Process
J. Delaney finds the lower court properly granted permanent custody of the child to family services. Although the mother made some progress on her case plan, she was arrested and pleaded guilty to child endangerment at the outset of the case, was arrested for DUI shortly thereafter, had numerous inappropriate relationships with partners who had violent histories and criminal records, and also refused to complete domestic violence treatment. Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Court Of Appeals, Judge: Delaney, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 2023-Ohio-1731, Categories: Evidence, Family Law
J. Richman finds the district court properly granted summary judgment to the city in this suit brought by a DWI arrestee claiming false arrest, excessive force, negligence and vicarious liability. The arresting officer responded to a 911 call reporting an intoxicated driver. He observed the vehicle crossing lines and striking a curb before pulling it over to discover the driver with her minor children in the car. Sobriety tests suggested that she was likely impaired, and after the arrest she admitted to taking Xanax and Hydrocodone. Video evidence of the arrest shows that the officers had probable cause. There is no basis for a negligence claim. Because her underlying state law claims were properly dismissed, there is no basis for a vicarious liability claim. Affirmed.
Court: 5th Circuit, Judge: Richman, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 20-30507, Categories: Civil Rights, Municipal Law, Police Misconduct
J. Mayle finds the trial court properly granted permanent custody of a pair of twins to family services. The mother does not have an adequate bond with the children and made numerous false accusations against the foster parents, under whose care both children have thrived. The mother also refuses to maintain stable housing despite being employed, and, therefore, is unable to provide a safe environment for the children. Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Court Of Appeals, Judge: Mayle, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 2023-Ohio-1732, Categories: Evidence, Family Law
J. Mentel finds the lower court properly granted family services' motion for permanent custody of the child. Neither parent obtained permanent housing after the child was placed in foster care, the parents did not interact appropriately with the child during visitation, and neither could prove their sobriety during their case plan, all of which proved they could not provide a safe and stable environment for the child, who had developed a strong bond with her foster mother. Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Court Of Appeals, Judge: Mentel, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 2023-Ohio-1721, Categories: Evidence, Family Law
J. Calabrese grants the employer's partial motion to dismiss, ruling the employee's wrongful disclosure claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act fails as a matter of law. The company's questions about her Covid-19 vaccination status, religious beliefs, and past vaccinations were not inquiries used to determine whether she was disabled. Meanwhile, Louisiana law applies to the employee's discrimination claims, which differs from Ohio law through the availability of punitive damages, because she worked and sustained her injuries in that state; therefore, that portion of her suit will also be dismissed.
Court: USDC Northern District of Ohio, Judge: Calabrese, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 5:22cv2281, NOS: Employment - Civil Rights, Categories: Ada / Rehabilitation Act, Choice Of Law, Employment Discrimination
J. Rothstein dismisses the state's immunity defense for the parents' claim that the state followed a New York court order and wrongfully separated the parents from their five minor children and that the children faced severe neglect and harm while under the state's care. The parents provide colorable allegations that the state's investigation was incomplete or biased, as several social workers testified positively about the parents, "yet the state chose to premise its case almost entirely on the testimony" of one social services specialist.
Court: USDC Western District of Washington, Judge: Rothstein, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 2:21cv1263, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Immunity, Negligence
J. Karofsky finds the circuit court properly ordered defendant to register as a sex offender for 15 years subsequent to his conviction upon pleading guilty to five counts of possession of child pornography at the same hearing in a single case. The state's argument that defendant should have been required to register as a sex offender for life according to Wisconsin law fails, as the relevant statute's lifetime registry requirement is triggered when a person has been convicted of sex offenses "on two or more separate occasions," and the term "separate occasions" does not apply to multiple convictions within a single case under the statute's plain meaning and the common and ordinary meaning of the term. The circuit court also did not err when it determined defendant was ineligible for an earned release program because the record shows his substance abuse was not what caused his crime. Affirmed.
Court: Wisconsin Supreme Court, Judge: Karofsky, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 2020AP001213-CR, Categories: Sentencing, Sex Offender
J. Whitman finds the trial court properly found in favor of the utility district in this purported class action alleging that its tiered-rate water structure to determine the cost of water service violates the California Constitution. If notice was required under the Government Claims Act, any of the Act’s time requirements did not extend the statute of limitations applicable to the action seeking refund of allegedly illegal fees. Because the complaint mainly challenges the tiered-rate structure, the validation statute’s shorter statute of limitations governs. Affirmed.
Court: California Courts Of Appeal, Judge: Whitman, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: A163054, Categories: Constitution, Government, Class Action
J. Cannataro finds that the appellate division properly held that a city could relinquish authority to collect delinquent taxes to its home county through enactment of a local law repealing its collections role. St. Lawrence County objected on grounds that it would be forced to pursue tax delinquents from the city of Ogdensburg and Ogdensburg school district, but the result was "simply a consequence" of the state legislature giving cities the ability to revoke tax foreclosure responsibilities. Affirmed.
Court: New York Court Of Appeals, Judge: Cannataro, Filed On: May 23, 2023, Case #: 43, Categories: Municipal Law, Tax