Appellant inmate challenged the judgment of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey sentencing him 324 months in prison after applying a four-level increase in his offense level under U.S.S.G. § 3B1.1(a) following the inmate's guilty plea to violating 21 U.S.C. § 846.

The inmate pleaded …

Here the Court reversed a 2-level "special skills" enhancement under USSG § 3B1.3, holding that the district court erred in holding that a card shark's "extraordinary eyesight" which enabled him to peek at cards qualified as such a special skill.

The defendant, Jung Bing Liang, was one of 17 persons …

This case is noted principally for its discussion of the law on the topic of whether the Government may offer into evidence mug shots of the defendant; most courts have held that it is error to admit an obvious mug shot from a prior arrest.

The defendant in this case, …

Defendant pled guilty to maintaining a drug establishment in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 856. The court gave notice of its intent to depart upward under U.S. Sentencing Guidelines Manual § 4A1.3 from the sentence dictated by the sentencing guidelines. Now the court stated in a written order its reasons …

Petitioner inmate filed a petition for habeas corpus relief pursuant to 28 U.S.C.S. § 2254, challenging his state court robbery conviction, for which he was serving a term of 15 years to life.

The inmate argued that trial counsel was ineffective because he (1) failed to cross-examine the victim at …

This is Judge Weinstein’s final Report on his disposition of 500 habeas cases that were assigned to him, after it was determined that many of those cases had been languishing without action for years. Ultimately, Judge Weinstein granted Writs in nine of the 500 cases (or 1.8% of the total). …

This case involves an interpretation of the term “imprisonment” for purposes of U.S.S.G. § 5C1.1(d)(2), which permits split sentences in cases where the applicable Guideline range falls within Zone C of the Sentencing Table, “provided that at least one-half of the minimum term is satisfied by imprisonment.” The First Circuit …

Here the majority held that "the acceptance of a criminal defendant's guilty plea is a judicial act distinct from the acceptance of the plea agreement itself. Once the district court accepts a guilty plea, the conditions under which the plea may be withdrawn are governed exclusively by Rule 11 of …

In its decision, the Tenth Circuit reafirmed its prior decisions holding that to prevail on a Second Amendment challenge, a party must show that possession of a firearm is in connection with participation in a “well-regulated” “state” “militia.” It also held that the Second Amendment does not guarantee an individual …

The district court conducted a post-trial evidentiary hearing regarding the failure of the Government to disclose, either during pretrial discovery or during the course of the seven-week trial of the captioned case, a letter sent to the U.S. Attorney's office which ostensibly was written by a witness, who was also …

In this decision, the Second Circuit affirmed two prior rulings that gave sentencing judges the authority to consider, on remand, a downward departure based on the “cumulative effects” of substantially overlapping enhancement which result in a significant increase in the sentencing range minimum (as it does at the higher end …

Adding to a Circuit split on the issue, the Fourth Circuit held that because the district court took relevant conduct into account in determining defendant's offense level, it erred in not imposing his sentence concurrently with his prior state sentence pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 5G1.3(b). However, it then held that …

Here a unanimous Court held that the Government’s authority to conduct “suspicionless” searches at international borders “includes the authority to remove, disassemble, and reassemble a vehicle’s fuel tank" - and do not violate the Constitution.

In 2002, customs officials at an international entry point in southern California seized 37 kilograms …

A defendant who feigned poverty in a request for a court-appointed public defender can’t be prosecuted for lying on a government application, since such applications are part of a “judicial proceeding” and thus immune from criminal liability under § 1001.

In this case, the Ninth Circuit reversed a conviction for …

Here the Court held that it was “clear error” for the district court to have held that statutory rape (at least as defined by Texas) was a qualifying “crime of violence” for purposes of the base-offense level enhancement contained in USSG § 2K2.1(a)(4).

We never cease to be amazed by …