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Criminal – Sex trafficking – Expert evidence
Where a jury found a defendant guilty of sex trafficking and obstruction of a sex trafficking prosecution, the convictions should be affirmed despite the defendant’s claim that the trial court abused its discretion in admitting expert testimony on the impact of sexual assault on memory.
Criminal – Double jeopardy – Child pornography
Where a defendant was convicted of receipt and possession of child pornography charges, he must be resentenced because possession of child pornography is a lesser included offense of receiving child pornography.
Criminal – Limitations – Superseding indictment
Where a defendant was found guilty following a bench trial, his convictions should be affirmed despite his argument that the district court wrongly denied his motion to dismiss Counts Two and Six of the superseding indictment as time-barred.
Constitutional – Second Amendment – Immigration status
Where a defendant was charged with violating 18 U.S.C. §922(g)(5)(A)., which makes it unlawful for a person who is an alien “illegally or unlawfully in the United States” to possess a firearm, the dismissal of the indictment must be reversed because the government met its burden to show that §922(g)(5)(A) fits comfortably within the tradition of firearm regulation.
Constitutional – Second Amendment – Immigration status
Where a defendant was convicted under 18 U.S.C. §922(g)(5)(A) of possessing a firearm as an alien “illegally or unlawfully in the United States,” the denial of his motion to dismiss the indictment should be affirmed because the government has met its burden to show that §922(g)(5)(A) comports with the country’s tradition of firearm regulation.
Immigration – Removal
Where a petitioner was removed to Colombia, his petition for judicial review should be dismissed in part for lack of jurisdiction and otherwise denied on the merits.
Jurisdiction – FTCA – Suits in Admiralty Act
Where a plaintiff brought suit under the Federal Tort Claims Act alleging that agents of the Coast Guard used unlawful force when they fired several gunshots at a vessel he was helming, the dismissal of the plaintiff’s complaint should be affirmed because his claim satisfies both the location and connection elements of a maritime claim and thus falls under maritime jurisdiction.
Criminal – Sentencing – Ammunition
Where an upwardly variant sentence has been challenged on appeal, the defendant’s possession of 31 rounds of ammunition could not alone justify the upward variance, so he must be resentenced.
Administrative – Catch limits – Appointments Clause
Where an alliance of commercial fishermen has challenged the catch limit reductions in a federal rule, arguing that the rule must be invalidated under the Appointments Clause of the U.S. Constitution because of the involvement of the New England Fishery Management Council, there is no basis for the award of any remedy, as the council was merely acting as an advisor and was not the source of the in[...]
Appeals – Stay
Where a U.S. District Court judge issued a preliminary injunction to prevent the repeal of New Hampshire’s motor vehicle emissions inspection and maintenance program, the state’s request for a stay pending appeal should be granted because the state has made a strong showing that it is likely to succeed on appeal.
Public utilities – Disability discrimination – Meters
Where a plaintiff suffering from cancer chose to opt out of a defendant power company’s “Advanced Metering Infrastructure” (AMI) and then brought suit alleging disability discrimination after he was denied a waiver of the opt-out fee, an award of summary judgment in favor of the defendant should be affirmed because the plaintiff did not meet his obligation to provide evidence showing that th[...]
Habeas corpus – Custody – Deportation
Where a petitioner requested habeas corpus relief after being deported, the dismissal of her petition should be affirmed because she was not in the custody of any Massachusetts state official when she filed her petition.
Verdicts & Settlements
- Injury during baby’s adenoidectomy leads to stroke
- Construction worker’s hand caught in cement mixer
- Worker trapped in freezer, dies during steam cleaning
- Pedestrian, 69, hit by motor vehicle while in crosswalk
- Four-vehicle pileup leaves driver with spinal cord injury
- Nursing home staff blamed for kidney-failure death
- Pharmacy’s late delivery blamed for patient’s death
- Man, 25, drowns after swimming lesson at fitness club
Opinion Digests
- Jurisdiction – Forum selection clause – Non-signatory
- Criminal – Responsibility
- Attorneys – Lien
- Landlord and tenant – Default judgment
- Zoning – Constructive grant – Comprehensive permit
- Fraud – False Claims Act – Settlement share
- Civil practice – Discovery – Cybersecurity
