Justia Criminal Law Opinion Summaries

The case concerns a defendant who, while driving in Memphis, Tennessee, nearly collided with a police vehicle. When officers attempted to stop him, he fired several shots at them, with one bullet striking the police car and narrowly missing an officer. After a pursuit that ended in a crash, the defendant was arrested. A search of his vehicle revealed a loaded Glock 23 handgun equipped with a device that converted it into a machinegun, as defined by federal law. The defendant did not have a valid registration for the machinegun and did not dispute that the weapon met the statutory definition.A grand jury indicted the defendant for possessing a machinegun in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(o). He moved to dismiss the indictment, arguing that the statute was unconstitutional under the Second Amendment, both facially and as applied to him, in light of the Supreme Court’s decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen. The United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee denied the motion, holding that § 922(o) was constitutional. The defendant then pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 108 months in prison, after which he appealed.The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reviewed the case. The court held that its prior decision in Hamblen v. United States, which upheld the constitutionality of § 922(o) under District of Columbia v. Heller, remained binding after Bruen because Bruen did not alter the relevant aspects of Heller. The court further conducted an independent analysis under the text-and-history methodology set forth in Heller and Bruen, concluding that § 922(o) is consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of prohibiting private possession of dangerous and unusual weapons. The court therefore affirmed the district court’s judgment, holding that § 922(o) is constitutional both on its face and as applied to the defendant. View "United States v. Bridges" on Justia Law

After completing a prison sentence for a prior conviction of being a felon in possession of a firearm, the defendant began a term of supervised release. Less than two months later, he was arrested after police responded to a report that he had threatened someone with a gun. Officers found a firearm at the scene, and the defendant admitted to possessing it. He was initially charged in state court, but the state charges were dismissed after a federal indictment for being a felon in possession of a firearm was issued. The conduct also constituted a violation of the conditions of his supervised release from the earlier federal conviction.The United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio handled both the new substantive offense and the supervised-release violation in joint proceedings. The defendant pleaded guilty to the new firearm charge and, at a subsequent hearing, admitted to the supervised-release violation. The district court sentenced him to 96 months for the new offense and 24 months for the supervised-release violation, to be served consecutively. The defendant appealed, arguing that he did not knowingly waive his right to a revocation hearing, that the district court misapplied sentencing factors for the supervised-release violation, and that his sentence for the substantive offense was based on an improper application of the career-offender enhancement.The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit found that the defendant knowingly and voluntarily waived his right to a revocation hearing and that the district court properly applied the career-offender enhancement for the substantive offense. However, the appellate court held that the district court erred by considering retributive and punishment factors, which are not permitted under 18 U.S.C. § 3583(e) as clarified by the Supreme Court’s decision in Esteras v. United States, when sentencing for the supervised-release violation. The Sixth Circuit affirmed the substantive offense sentence, reversed the revocation sentence, and remanded for resentencing on the supervised-release violation. View "United States v. Hoyle" on Justia Law

The case concerns a defendant who, after being excluded from Medicare and Medicaid as part of a civil False Claims Act settlement, purchased a Medicare-participating home healthcare company using an alias and forged documents. The company then submitted hundreds of fraudulent claims to Medicare, resulting in over $2.7 million in payments for services that were never provided. The defendant transferred the proceeds to India, where they remain unrecovered. During the criminal investigation, the defendant also attempted to prevent a former employee from testifying by impersonating another person and making false reports to U.S. authorities, which led to the employee’s visa being denied.A grand jury in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan indicted the defendant on charges including health care fraud, money laundering, conspiracy, aggravated identity theft, and witness tampering. The trial was delayed, and shortly before it began, the defendant’s counsel experienced internal conflict, leading to motions to withdraw and requests for a mistrial, all of which the district court denied. During trial, the defense sought to call a surprise witness, an unindicted co-conspirator, on the last day. The district court excluded this witness, citing a violation of a discovery order and concerns about delay, prejudice, and the likelihood the witness would invoke the Fifth Amendment.On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reviewed whether the district court violated the defendant’s constitutional rights by excluding the witness, denying counsel’s motion to withdraw, and excluding the defendant from an in-chambers conference. The Sixth Circuit held that the exclusion of the witness did not violate the Sixth Amendment, as the district court reasonably balanced the defendant’s right to present a defense against countervailing interests, and the defendant failed to show what exculpatory evidence the witness would have provided. The court also found no abuse of discretion in denying the motion to withdraw and no reversible error in excluding the defendant from the conference. The Sixth Circuit affirmed the district court’s judgment. View "United States v. Pancholi" on Justia Law

Devante Glenn was accused of selling drugs that led to the overdose death of Renee Ducatman. He was convicted on two counts of distributing carfentanil and one count of using a telecommunications device to facilitate the transaction. Ducatman had multiple interactions with Glenn and others through text messages and phone calls, seeking drugs. On the night of her death, she and Glenn exchanged messages and met, after which she overdosed on carfentanil.The United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio conducted the trial. The jury convicted Glenn on all charges, and the court sentenced him to 240 months of imprisonment on one count and 48 months on the other counts, to be served concurrently. Glenn appealed, arguing insufficient evidence and improper expert testimony by Agent Orlando Almonte, who interpreted text messages between Glenn and Ducatman.The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reviewed the case. The court found that the district court erred in allowing Agent Almonte to testify as an expert on the meaning of common words and phrases in the text messages, as the jury was capable of interpreting them without expert assistance. The court determined that this error was not harmless, as the text messages were a significant part of the evidence against Glenn. Consequently, the court vacated Glenn’s conviction and remanded the case for further proceedings, allowing for a retrial without the improper expert testimony. View "United States v. Glenn" on Justia Law

Mark Hartman was indicted for three counts of rape in Montgomery County, Ohio, following a late-night encounter. After a bench trial, he was convicted on all counts. Hartman filed a habeas petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2254, claiming ineffective assistance of counsel. He argued that his trial counsel improperly cross-examined witnesses and misled him into waiving his right to a jury trial. Ohio courts rejected his claims on the merits.The United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio granted Hartman relief on his cross-examination claim, finding that his counsel introduced evidence of force that the state had not proven, making the trial fundamentally unfair. However, the court denied relief on Hartman’s jury-waiver claim, holding that the strategy to advise a bench trial was sound and that Hartman failed to show prejudice.The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reviewed the case. The court reversed the district court’s grant of habeas relief on the cross-examination claim, finding that the Ohio Court of Appeals reasonably determined that trial counsel pursued a valid impeachment strategy during cross-examination. The court noted that the strategy aimed to reveal inconsistencies in the victim’s testimony, which is a common and reasonable trial tactic.Regarding the jury-waiver claim, the Sixth Circuit affirmed the district court’s denial of relief. The court held that the Ohio Court of Appeals reasonably concluded that trial counsel’s advice to waive a jury trial was within the wide range of reasonable professional conduct. The court found that counsel’s advice, despite some factual inaccuracies, did not render the waiver unknowing or unintelligent.In conclusion, the Sixth Circuit reversed the district court’s grant of a conditional habeas writ on the cross-examination claim, affirmed the denial of the jury-waiver claim, and remanded with instructions to deny Hartman’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus. View "Hartman v. Yost" on Justia Law

A 39-year-old man developed a relationship with a 16-year-old girl, his coworker, and began exchanging sexually explicit messages and images with her over Facebook. He instructed the minor to take and send him photos and videos of herself engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Forensic analysis confirmed the minor complied with these requests on multiple occasions. The man admitted to using a Facebook alias, knowing the girl’s age, and exchanging sexual content with her. He was indicted for two counts of causing a minor to produce child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography. Pursuant to a plea agreement, he pleaded guilty to one count of causing a minor to produce child pornography, and the remaining charges were dismissed.The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, at sentencing, applied two Sentencing Guidelines enhancements: a two-level increase for using a minor to commit the offense, and a five-level increase for engaging in a pattern of prohibited sexual conduct. The defendant objected to both enhancements, arguing they were either duplicative or improperly applied. The district court overruled his objections and imposed a below-Guidelines sentence of 270 months’ imprisonment.On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reviewed the district court’s application of the enhancements. The court held that the two-level enhancement for using a minor to commit the offense was appropriate because the Guidelines did not otherwise account for the defendant’s use of the minor as both the subject and the photographer of the images. The court also upheld the five-level enhancement for a pattern of activity, finding that two separate occasions of prohibited sexual conduct were established and that the relevant conduct could include acts beyond the offense of conviction. The Sixth Circuit affirmed the district court’s judgment. View "United States v. Parkey" on Justia Law

The defendant was found guilty of felony possession of a firearm after a bench trial, having waived his right to a jury trial. The case arose from a traffic stop on December 5, 2020, where the defendant was stopped for driving past a stop bar at a traffic light. During the stop, the defendant refused to provide identification and was subsequently arrested. A search of his vehicle revealed marijuana and a loaded firearm. The defendant challenged the traffic stop, his arrest, and the vehicle search as violations of his Fourth Amendment rights and argued that his conviction was not supported by sufficient evidence.The United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio denied the defendant's motion to suppress the evidence. The court found that the initial traffic stop was supported by probable cause, the arrest was justified by probable cause, and the vehicle search was permissible under the automobile exception. The court also found sufficient evidence to support the conviction based on the stipulated facts presented during the bench trial.The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reviewed the case and affirmed the district court's decisions. The appellate court agreed that the traffic stop was justified by probable cause due to the observed traffic violation. The arrest was deemed lawful based on probable cause for multiple offenses, including driving with a suspended license and refusing to provide identification. The search of the vehicle was upheld under the automobile exception, as the officers had probable cause to believe it contained illegal contraband. The court also found that the defendant's stipulation to all elements of the offense constituted a waiver of his right to challenge the sufficiency of the evidence. The conviction was affirmed. View "United States v. Watson" on Justia Law

Deangelus Thomas was indicted on two counts of being a felon in possession under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) for his involvement in a shooting. Although his indictment indicated potential enhanced penalties due to his criminal history, he was not formally indicted as an armed career criminal. A jury found him guilty of both counts. During sentencing, Thomas argued that he could not be sentenced under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) because he had not been indicted for it, and the jury had not found that he had three prior violent-felony convictions committed on different occasions. The district judge disagreed and imposed an enhanced 432-month sentence based on Thomas's criminal history.The United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee at Memphis followed then-binding Sixth Circuit precedent, which allowed the judge to find the necessary facts for the ACCA enhancement by a preponderance of the evidence. Thomas appealed, and the Sixth Circuit affirmed the sentence. However, the Supreme Court later decided Erlinger v. United States, which required a jury to find the three-occasions element of an ACCA conviction. The Supreme Court remanded Thomas's case for further consideration in light of Erlinger.The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reviewed the case and determined that Erlinger errors are subject to harmless-error review. The court found that the error in Thomas's case was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt because the Shepard documents and the Presentence Report provided clear evidence that Thomas's three prior violent felonies occurred on different occasions. The court also rejected Thomas's double jeopardy argument, concluding that the enhanced sentence did not violate his Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights. Consequently, the Sixth Circuit affirmed Thomas's enhanced sentence. View "United States v. Thomas" on Justia Law

Rodney Higgins pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl. He appealed, challenging the search that led to his arrest, arguing that the search warrant lacked probable cause. From June to August 2021, Higgins was involved in a drug distribution ring. Officers used a confidential source to conduct two controlled buys from Higgins. A Drug Enforcement Administration task force officer prepared an affidavit for a search warrant for Higgins’s apartment, detailing the officer’s training, the confidential source’s knowledge of Higgins’s drug activities, Higgins’s criminal history, and the controlled buys. The affidavit also included a text exchange where Higgins used coded language to indicate he had more drugs.The magistrate judge found probable cause and issued a search warrant. The search of Higgins’s apartment yielded 370 grams of methamphetamine and over 200 grams of fentanyl. Higgins was indicted for conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl. He moved to suppress the evidence, but the district court denied the motion. Higgins pled guilty but reserved the right to appeal the denial of his suppression motion, raising three issues: the nexus between his drug trafficking and residence, entitlement to a hearing based on alleged misrepresentations or omissions in the affidavit, and the applicability of the good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule.The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reviewed the case. The court held that the affidavit provided sufficient probable cause, establishing a fair probability that contraband would be found in Higgins’s apartment. The court also found that Higgins was not entitled to a Franks hearing, as he failed to make a substantial preliminary showing of a knowing, intentional, or reckless falsehood in the affidavit. The court affirmed the district court’s denial of Higgins’s motion to suppress. View "United States v. Higgins" on Justia Law

The defendants, Richard Maike, Doyce Barnes, and Faraday Hosseinipour, were involved in a company called Infinity 2 Global (I2G), which the FBI determined to be a pyramid scheme. The company collected approximately $34 million from investors, most of whom lost money. After a 25-day trial, a jury convicted the defendants of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud. The defendants appealed their convictions, presenting numerous arguments for reversal.The United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky initially handled the case, where the jury found the defendants guilty on both counts. The defendants were sentenced to varying prison terms: Maike received 120 months, Barnes 48 months, and Hosseinipour 30 months. The defendants then appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence and the jury instructions, among other issues.The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reviewed the case and rejected all the defendants' arguments. The court found that there was sufficient evidence to support the jury's verdicts on both counts. The court also determined that the jury instructions were appropriate and did not mislead the jury. The court affirmed the criminal judgments of Maike and Barnes. For Hosseinipour, the court affirmed her criminal judgment but vacated the district court's denial of her Rule 33 motion for a new trial, remanding her case for reconsideration of that motion. View "United States v. Maike" on Justia Law