Justia Criminal Law Opinion Summaries

Scot Fucito pled guilty to conspiracy to receive and distribute child pornography and was sentenced to 240 months in prison. Fucito had sent child pornography to an undercover agent (UC1) on multiple occasions, attempting to establish a rapport by discussing children and sexual activities. He sent links to child pornography videos and suggested meeting up if UC1 could get his daughter alone. A search of Fucito’s electronic devices revealed 704 child pornography images and 653 child exploitative images, many depicting severe abuse. Fucito was indicted on two counts but pled guilty to one, with the other count being dismissed.The United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas applied the 2021 Sentencing Guidelines, determining a base offense level of 22, with 18 levels of enhancements, including five levels for distributing child pornography in exchange for valuable consideration and five levels for possessing 600 or more images. Fucito’s total offense level was 37, with a criminal history category of II, resulting in a recommended sentencing range of 235-240 months. The court overruled objections from both sides and sentenced Fucito to 240 months.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reviewed the case. The court affirmed the sentence, clarifying that under United States v. Halverson, a defendant does not need to actually receive valuable consideration for distributing child pornography under USSG § 2G2.2(b)(3)(B). The court also held that duplicate electronic images count as distinct images for purposes of USSG § 2G2.2(b)(7)(D). Additionally, the court found no error in the district court’s decision not to grant Fucito a minor role reduction, as he did not meet the burden of showing he played a minor role in the conspiracy. View "U.S. v. Fucito" on Justia Law

Carlos Ray Kidd was convicted in federal court in 2007 for sending threatening communications and was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit remanded the case for resentencing due to a miscalculation of the Sentencing Guidelines range. However, the resentencing hearing did not occur, and neither the Government nor Kidd’s counsel alerted the district court. Kidd continued to serve unrelated state sentences, believing his 2007 federal sentence was valid. In 2023, Kidd’s attorney discovered the oversight, and the resentencing hearing finally took place.The United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas initially sentenced Kidd to 60 months in 2007. After the remand, the district court failed to resentence Kidd, and he remained in state custody. In 2023, the district court resentenced Kidd to 60 months, denying his motion to dismiss the charges for denial of due process. The court found no prejudice resulted from the delay since Kidd was serving other sentences. Kidd appealed, arguing the delay violated his due process rights and that the district court erred in imposing the new sentence.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reviewed the case. The court held that the sixteen-year delay in resentencing did not violate Kidd’s due process rights because he suffered no prejudice from the delay. Kidd was continuously imprisoned for other sentences, and his federal sentence remained the same. The court also found that the district court did not err in denying the offense level reduction for acceptance of responsibility and that the 60-month sentence was substantively reasonable. The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court’s judgment. View "USA v. Kidd" on Justia Law

Arturo Garza, Jr. pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm as a felon and was initially sentenced to 75 months imprisonment by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas. Garza appealed, arguing that the district court erred in applying a four-level sentencing enhancement for possessing a firearm in connection with another felony offense and an elevated base offense level for possessing the firearm near a large-capacity magazine. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit agreed with Garza, vacated his sentence, and remanded the case for resentencing.Upon remand, the district court removed the enhancement and held an evidentiary hearing, which confirmed the compatibility of the firearm and magazine, thus applying the elevated base offense level. On the day of the hearing, the district court also learned of additional criminal convictions against Garza since his original sentencing, which increased his criminal history score and raised his Guidelines range. Garza objected, arguing that considering these intervening sentences violated the Sentencing Guidelines and exceeded the scope of the appellate court's mandate. The district court disagreed and sentenced Garza to 87 months imprisonment, later reducing it to 75 months to account for time already served.Garza appealed again, contending that the district court misinterpreted U.S.S.G. § 4A1.1 and violated the mandate rule. The Fifth Circuit reviewed these claims de novo and found no error. The court held that § 4A1.1 includes sentences imposed prior to resentencing and that the district court did not exceed the mandate, as the intervening sentences were not present during the original appeal. The court also rejected Garza's invocation of the rule of lenity, affirming the district court's decision. View "United States v. Garza" on Justia Law

In 1992, six-year-old Angelo Garcia, Jr. was kidnapped and murdered after two masked intruders broke into the apartment of his parents, Arturo Rodriguez and Diana Garcia. Diana was sexually assaulted during the incident. The case went cold until 2007 when DNA evidence linked Obel Cruz-Garcia to the crime. Cruz-Garcia was convicted of capital murder in 2013 and sentenced to death. His conviction and sentence were affirmed on direct appeal, and his state habeas applications were denied.The United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas denied Cruz-Garcia’s federal habeas petition. Cruz-Garcia then sought a certificate of appealability (COA) from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, raising three issues: jurors’ use of the Bible during deliberations, ineffective assistance of counsel, and the exclusion of DNA evidence affecting his ability to present a complete defense.The Fifth Circuit denied the COA. The court found that the jurors’ reference to the Bible did not constitute an improper external influence, as it did not relate directly to the facts of the case. The court also determined that Cruz-Garcia’s ineffective assistance of counsel claims lacked merit, as his counsel’s performance was within the wide range of professionally competent assistance. Lastly, the court held that the trial court’s exclusion of certain DNA evidence did not violate Cruz-Garcia’s right to present a complete defense, as he was allowed to introduce other evidence regarding the DNA’s reliability.The Fifth Circuit concluded that Cruz-Garcia failed to make a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right and denied his motion for a COA. View "Cruz-Garcia v. Guerrero" on Justia Law

George Peterson was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) for illegal firearm transactions at his business, PDW Solutions, LLC, which he operated from his home. The ATF conducted undercover operations where Peterson sold firearms without reporting the transactions as required. Based on this, a magistrate judge issued a warrant to search Peterson's home and business. During the search, agents found an unregistered firearm suppressor in Peterson's bedroom-closet safe. Peterson was indicted for possession of an unregistered suppressor.The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana denied Peterson's pretrial motions to dismiss the indictment on Second Amendment grounds and to suppress the evidence on Fourth Amendment grounds. Peterson argued that the National Firearms Act's (NFA) registration requirement for suppressors violated his Second Amendment rights and that the search warrant lacked probable cause. The district court rejected these arguments, and Peterson entered a conditional guilty plea, reserving the right to appeal the denial of his motions.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reviewed the case. The court held that suppressors are not "Arms" protected by the Second Amendment, as they are accessories and not weapons themselves. Therefore, the NFA's registration requirement does not violate the Second Amendment. Additionally, the court found that the good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule applied, as the officers reasonably relied on the warrant issued by the magistrate judge. The court affirmed the district court's denial of Peterson's motions to dismiss and suppress. View "USA v. Peterson" on Justia Law

Ignacia Carmona, representing herself and the estate of Veronica Carmona, filed a lawsuit against the City of Brownsville and several officers, claiming that the officers failed to provide necessary medical care to Veronica Carmona, who died while in pretrial detention. Veronica had been involved in multiple car accidents on the same night and exhibited visible injuries. Despite this, the officers did not seek medical attention for her, and she was later found dead in her cell due to internal bleeding from liver lacerations.The United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas dismissed the claims against the officers, granting them qualified immunity. The court concluded that the complaint did not plausibly allege that the officers had subjective knowledge of a substantial risk of serious harm to Veronica Carmona. The court found that the officers' failure to seek medical care did not amount to deliberate indifference because the injuries were not visibly apparent, and there were no complaints from Carmona that revealed the full extent of her injuries.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reviewed the case and affirmed the district court's decision. The appellate court held that the plaintiff failed to plausibly allege that the officers were subjectively aware of the risk of internal bleeding. The court emphasized that actual knowledge of the risk is required for liability, and mere negligence or the fact that the officers should have known about the risk is insufficient. As a result, the officers were entitled to qualified immunity, and the dismissal of the deliberate-indifference claims was upheld. View "Carmona v. Olvera" on Justia Law

Damion Giglio, while on supervised release for a previous felony, was arrested and convicted for violating 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), the felon-in-possession statute. He appealed, arguing that the statute is unconstitutional as applied to him and that the district court erred in calculating his sentencing guideline range, entitling him to a less severe sentence.The United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi denied Giglio's motion to dismiss the indictment, rejecting his constitutional challenge. Giglio pleaded guilty, and the court sentenced him to 27 months' imprisonment, noting that it would have imposed the same sentence regardless of any potential guideline calculation errors.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reviewed the case. The court held that the government could regulate Giglio’s firearm possession without violating the Second Amendment, as historical practices support disarming individuals serving criminal sentences. The court also found that any error in the sentencing guideline calculation was harmless because the district court explicitly stated it would have imposed the same sentence regardless of the guideline range.The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's decision on both grounds, upholding Giglio's conviction and sentence. View "United States v. Giglio" on Justia Law

In 2012, three people were shot and killed outside a nightclub in Houston, Texas. Feanyichi E. Uvukansi was identified by an eyewitness, Jeresano, who picked him out of a photo array. Uvukansi was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life without parole. At trial, Jeresano testified that he had no agreement with prosecutors regarding his testimony, but it was later revealed that he did have an agreement that could reduce his federal drug sentence in exchange for his testimony.Uvukansi did not raise the issue of false testimony on direct appeal but did so in state habeas proceedings. The state district court found that Jeresano's testimony was false but deemed it immaterial because the jury was aware of parts of the agreement through other testimony. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals denied Uvukansi’s application without a written order. Uvukansi then filed a Section 2254 application in federal district court, which was dismissed on the grounds that the state court's decision was not contrary to, or an unreasonable application of, clearly established Supreme Court precedent.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reviewed the case. The court held that the state district court applied the correct "reasonable likelihood" standard for materiality and did not impose a higher burden of proof on Uvukansi. The court also found that the state district court did not err in considering the false testimony's impact on Jeresano's credibility rather than the identification itself. The Fifth Circuit concluded that the state court's decision was not contrary to, or an unreasonable application of, clearly established Supreme Court precedent and affirmed the dismissal of Uvukansi's Section 2254 application. View "Uvukansi v. Guerrero" on Justia Law

Nghia Le was involved in a methamphetamine distribution operation centered at a motorcycle shop rented by Ryan Negrotto. Le supplied methamphetamine to the shop, where drug transactions took place. Le was indicted on multiple charges, including using or maintaining a drug premises. Le admitted to using the shop for drug distribution but contested that he maintained it.The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana applied a two-level offense enhancement under U.S.S.G. § 2D1.1(b)(12), concluding that Le maintained the premises for drug distribution based on his admission in the factual basis supporting his guilty plea. Le objected, arguing that he did not have control over the shop, but the district court overruled his objection and sentenced him to 135 months for the methamphetamine charges, with additional sentences for other charges.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reviewed the case and found that the district court erred in applying the enhancement based solely on Le's ambiguous admission. The appellate court noted that the factual basis did not clearly establish that Le maintained the shop, as it primarily indicated his use of the premises. The court also found insufficient evidence that Le had a possessory interest or control over the shop. Consequently, the Fifth Circuit vacated Le's sentence for the methamphetamine charges and remanded for resentencing, allowing the district court to reconsider the enhancement with more developed arguments. The court affirmed the rest of Le's conviction and sentence, rejecting his argument that his sentence was substantively unreasonable. View "United States v. Le" on Justia Law

Abdul Fatani was involved in a fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan scheme during the COVID-19 pandemic. The scheme, led by Amir Aqeel, involved submitting false PPP loan applications with fabricated payroll information and supporting documents. Fatani, as a borrower, submitted a fraudulent application for his company, Route 786 USA, Inc., which had no employees or payroll. The loan was approved, and $511,250 was deposited into Route 786’s bank account. Fatani then wrote checks to co-conspirators and created fake payroll checks to make it appear that the funds were used for legitimate expenses.The United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas tried Fatani, and a jury found him guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and engaging in a monetary transaction with criminally derived property. Fatani moved for a judgment of acquittal, which the district court denied. The court sentenced him to 36 months in prison for each count, to run concurrently, along with 3 years of supervised release and restitution of $511,250. Fatani appealed the conviction and sentence.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reviewed the case. The court affirmed the district court’s judgment, finding sufficient evidence to support Fatani’s wire fraud conviction. The court held that the scheme to defraud was not complete until Aqeel, the mastermind, received his share of the proceeds, and the wire transfer in question was part of that scheme. The court also found that Fatani’s 36-month sentence was substantively reasonable, considering the mitigating factors presented. However, the court remanded the case for correction of a clerical error in the written judgment, which incorrectly listed aiding and abetting convictions. View "USA v. Fatani" on Justia Law