253 results for 'cat:"Civil Rights" AND cat:"Constitution"'.
J. Eagles partially grants a medical doctor’s motion for summary judgment in her suit against the state for its strict regulatory laws regarding Mifeprex, an abortion-inducing drug. While the FDA eased restrictions on the drug in 2007, North Carolina kept the same restrictions and added more to its own legislation, which now conflict with federal law. However, federal law in this case trumps state law. Thus, the state provisions requiring physician-only prescribing; in-person prescribing, dispensing and administering; scheduling of an in-person follow-up appointment; and non-fatal adverse event reporting are unconstitutional.
Court: USDC Middle District of North Carolina, Judge: Eagles, Filed On: April 30, 2024, Case #: 1:23cv77, NOS: Constitutionality of State Statutes - Other Suits, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Health Care
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J. Rosenbaum finds that the district court properly convicted defendant, the ex-sheriff of Clayton County, Georgia, of using his position to deprive pretrial detainees in his custody of their constitutional right to be free from excessive force. On six occasions, defendant had non-violent, compliant detainees handcuffed and confined to restraint chairs for hours without bathroom breaks. Defendant had fair warning that his conduct was unconstitutional. Restraint chair use qualifies as "force" and defendant's use of force was objectively excessive since the detainees were not actively resisting. There was sufficient evidence to allow the jury to find that defendant's conduct had no legitimate nonpunitive purpose and caused the detainees injuries including open wounds and scarring. The district court correctly questioned a juror after receiving reports that they refused to follow the law and properly issued two Allen charges during deliberations. Affirmed.
Court: 11th Circuit, Judge: Rosenbaum, Filed On: April 29, 2024, Case #: 23-10934, Categories: constitution, Jury, civil Rights
J. Chutkan denies a motion to reconsider a determination that a search warrant, which led officers to search a house where the suspect they were seeking did not live, was valid. The court's decision not to grant the searched civilians' request for an adverse inference based on the absence of a report from the database a detective said he searched before seeking the warrant was not "outcome determinative," a school employee's statement to the detective has not been shown to be inadmissible hearsay, a form used to confirm the address was not inadmissible by reason of being unauthenticated, and the searched civilians did not timely raise issues with testimony that another officer conducted a second database search, the admission of which would have been harmless error if it was error at all.
Court: USDC District of Columbia, Judge: Chutkan, Filed On: April 26, 2024, Case #: 1:17cv1046, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, constitution
J. Pyle finds that the trial court properly found for prison employees in a prisoner's civil rights claims contending an employee was loud, disruptive, and disrespectful. Meanwhile, the prisoner was properly temporarily removed from employment in the law library since the prisoner's comments on the restroom policy did not constitute speech protected under the first amendment. Affirmed.
Court: Indiana Court Of Appeals, Judge: Pyle, Filed On: April 26, 2024, Case #: 23A-CT-201, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Prisoners' Rights
J. Dick grants a request by the state to dismiss as moot a voting rights suit by black litigants that preceded legislative enactment of a new congressional map containing two first-ever majority-black districts. The litigants do not oppose the new congressional map but argue their case is not moot due to pending legislation in the Western District of Louisiana. State officials have sufficiently shown the earlier redistricting conduct challenged by litigants will not recur with the state’s voluntary enactment of a new congressional map with two black-majority districts.
Court: USDC Middle District of Louisiana, Judge: Dick, Filed On: April 25, 2024, Case #: 3:22cv211, NOS: Voting - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Government
J. Erickson finds a lower court properly dismissed a case manager and a corrections employee's motion for qualified immunity concerning an inmate's Eighth Amendment claims. The case manager and the corrections employee argued that they did not act with deliberate indifference when they deprived him from obtaining toothpaste. However, the inmate sufficiently showed in court that he used his money from an inmate account to buy toothpaste, and suffered tooth decay as a result of not receiving it. Affirmed.
Court: 8th Circuit, Judge: Erickson, Filed On: April 24, 2024, Case #: 22-3617, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Immunity
J. Palafox denies habeas relief to defendant, who argued that his Eighth Amendment rights were violated when he was arrested and charged for murder as an adult despite being only 17 at the time of the offense. Pretrial habeas relief is not available unless the asserted rights would be "undermined if not vindicated before trial," which is not the case here. Affirmed.
Court: Texas Courts of Appeals, Judge: Palafox, Filed On: April 22, 2024, Case #: 08-23-00154-CR, Categories: constitution, Juvenile Law, civil Rights
J. Palafox denies habeas relief to defendant, who argued that his Eighth Amendment rights were violated when he was arrested and charged for murder as an adult despite being only 17 at the time. Pretrial habeas relief is not available unless the asserted rights would be “undermined if not vindicated before trial,” which is not the case here. Affirmed.
Court: Texas Courts of Appeals, Judge: Palafox, Filed On: April 22, 2024, Case #: 08-23-00159-CR, Categories: constitution, Juvenile Law, civil Rights
J. Biggs partially sustains a civil rights advocacy organization’s rejection of a magistrate judge’s memorandum opinion and recommendation in this ongoing voting rights suit. The judge incorrectly employed the moot doctrine because, although an amendment to a bill — which would prosecute anyone convicted of a crime if they vote — included a scienter requirement, the organization still has a concrete interest in the outcome of this litigation. The scienter requirement is still not specific enough about how someone convicted of a crime would restore the rights of their citizenship, so it is too vague and violates equal protection and due process rights. Thus, the organization still has a demonstrable interest, which the judge should have recognized, and the organization can proceed on a summary judgment motion.
Court: USDC Middle District of North Carolina, Judge: Biggs, Filed On: April 22, 2024, Case #: 1:20cv876, NOS: Voting - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Elections
J. Robinson denies a civilian's motion to stay proceedings pending the outcome of a decision from a Supreme Court concerning claims of viewpoint-discrimination against a county commission. The county commissioners sufficiently showed in court that the civilian, who referred to them as "child abusing motherfuckers," is not entitled to relief based on qualified immunity.
Court: USDC Kansas, Judge: Robinson, Filed On: April 17, 2024, Case #: 5:24cv4005, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Equal Protection
J. Peterson partially grants the motion for summary judgment from the city, city officials and fire and police commission in a lawsuit from a firefighter claiming his First and 14th Amendment rights were violated when, among other things, he was demoted from his position as assistant fire chief and had a restraining order entered against him when he began arriving at fire scenes while he was on leave. The firefighter's due process claim against the city and the commission will proceed to trial, as there is a dispute regarding whether he was deprived of his property interest in his position through his demotion after a change in the law governing how such employment decisions are made. Summary judgment is granted to the city, officials and commission on all of the firefighter's remaining claims, and the individual officials are dismissed as parties.
Court: USDC Western District of Wisconsin, Judge: Peterson, Filed On: April 10, 2024, Case #: 3:22cv640, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Due Process
J. Stras finds a lower court properly ruled in favor of a imprisoned transgender woman's Fourth Amendment claims against prison officials. The prison officials argued that corrections officers were entitled to place the detainee in a high security unit where guards confiscated her personal property as punishment for wearing pigtails and a homemade skirt, and then placed her in a "wrap" in a "rubber room" for an extended period of time. However, the transgender detainee sufficiently showed in court that the guards are not entitled to relief based on violations of her right to be free of unreasonable searches. Affirmed in part.
Court: 8th Circuit, Judge: Stras, Filed On: April 4, 2024, Case #: 22-2893, Categories: civil Rights, constitution
[Consolidated.] J. Grosshans finds that the court of appeal properly ruled in claims contending state statute that allows abortions up until the 15th week of gestation concerns a personal right because the privacy clause in the state constitution does not "guarantee the right to an abortion through the end of the second trimester." Affirmed.
Court: Florida Supreme Court, Judge: Grosshans, Filed On: April 1, 2024, Case #: SC2022-1050, Categories: civil Rights, constitution
J. Gustafson finds that the Attorney General's ballot statement, which was prepared in response to an order from this court, fails to meet the statutory requirement to inform voters about an initiative's provisions. Instead, the statement covers topics not addressed by the initiative. And the ballot statement prepared by the authors of the initiative also misstates the scope of the proposed constitutional amendment, which would create an explicit right to make and carry out decisions about one's own pregnancy, including the right to abortion. Therefore, a ballot statement prepared by the court is certified by the court.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Gustafson, Filed On: April 1, 2024, Case #: OP 24-0182, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Elections
J. Blackwell dismisses the doctor and former gubernatorial candidate's suit alleging that the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice sought to chill his speech by investigating complaints against him for his comments on the Covid-19 pandemic and the incumbent governor's response to it. The candidate has not established an injury in fact, since he has not alleged any instances in which the board's investigations prevented him from speaking on those topics. His challenges to Minnesota statutes granting the board regulatory authority also fail since he has not identified how he was impacted by the statute in ways different from third parties. He also has not adequately pleaded that he suffered differential treatment during the investigation process.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Blackwell, Filed On: March 29, 2024, Case #: 0:23cv1689, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Administrative Law, civil Rights, constitution
J. Flanagan partially denies a police officer and municipality their motion to dismiss allegations of Fourth Amendment violations brought by a resident whom the officer grabbed in an attempt to pull her out of her home. The officer, standing just outside the threshold of the resident’s front door, repeatedly ordered her to step outside, twice grabbing her arm in an attempt to pull her outside although he had no warrant. His argument of suspicion is also insufficient, and, thus, he cannot use official immunity as a defense and neither can the city as his employer.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Flanagan, Filed On: March 27, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv207, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Police Misconduct
Per curiam, the Northern District of Florida grants judgment to the Secretary of State in a suit alleging that congressional districting maps in North Florida intentionally dilute the votes of voters of color. At a bench trial, the voting-rights groups failed to prove that the Legislature ratified racial animus, whether it existed or not in the map's creation by the Governor, by failing to preserve a majority-Black district in North Florida.
Court: USDC Northern District of Florida, Judge: Per curiam, Filed On: March 27, 2024, Case #: 4:22cv109, NOS: State Reapportionment - Other Suits, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Elections
J. Peterson partially grants the U.S. Coast Guard and Coast Guard officials' motion to dismiss a pro se lawsuit from a former member of the Coast Guard Auxiliary claiming he was removed from his position after refusing orders to remove posts he made on social media. The former Auxiliary member can proceed with his claim against the Coast Guard under the Administrative Procedures Act, but all his other claims, including those stating violations of due process and the First Amendment, are dismissed.
Court: USDC Western District of Wisconsin, Judge: Peterson, Filed On: March 27, 2024, Case #: 3:23cv170, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Government
J. Flanagan grants in part a municipality’s motion for summary judgment following allegations of constitutional rights violations brought by a former owner of a group home for at-risk youth. The owner had previously been charged with a felony sex offense against a minor, but the charges were voluntarily dismissed and his record expunged. However, a warrant for his arrest remained in one county’s system, and when he applied for a concealed handgun permit 15 years later, he was falsely arrested. The owner argues that the county should have implemented a policy to prevent this, but just because he disagrees with the policy does not throw the policy into question.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Flanagan, Filed On: March 27, 2024, Case #: 5:21cv388, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, constitution
J. Reidinger grants a group of advocates of homeless people their motion for preliminary injunction after the City of Asheville and some of its police officers banned the advocates from city parks and imposed other punishments. The advocates have been helping homeless people get access to food and other necessities and protesting public policy on their behalf. In response, the city and officers have banned the advocates and charged them with felony littering, which could lead to imprisonment if the advocates visited a park. The felony charges have affected some advocates’ ability to be hired. They were also not given a hearing before the charges were filed. The advocates sufficiently demonstrate likelihood of success on the merits, that their right to due process has been violated, and that it is in the public interest that a preliminary injunction be granted.
Court: USDC Western District of North Carolina, Judge: Reidinger, Filed On: March 25, 2024, Case #: 1:23cv103, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: civil Rights, constitution, Injunction