Case held that a general waiver of the right to appeal a sentence does not cover an action to appeal a restitution order, because restitution is not calculated using the Guidelines, but rather is determined by a separate statute, namely § 3663.

This case re-visits one of the most disturbing episodes in the long and sometimes disquieting history of the DEA. It started in April 1990 with abduction from Mexico of a doctor by the DEA and his subsequent removal to the United States for a trial on charges that he had …

Here the Court explored the meaning of the "fully taken into account language" of USSG § 5G1.3(b) for purposes of determining when and whether a new Federal sentence must be imposed concurrent with or consecutive to a prior undischarged sentence.

This Guidelines case deals with one of those thorny issues …

United States v. Haut, 107 F.3d 213 (3rd Cir. 1997)
United States v. Otis, 107 F.3d 487 (7th Cir. 1997)

At the time the Federal Sentencing Guidelines were adopted, then-Commissioner Paul H. Robinson expressed the view that the Guidelines had failed "to provide a rational and coherent sentencing system"; and …

Although the court acknowledged that death and bodily injury are factors that may justify an upward departure, it reversed such a departure because the court made no findings that such elements were present.

Here the Court rejected the lower court's decision to depart upwards because the sentence was comparatively light based on a number of factors including its conclusion that the sentence undervalued the seriousness of the crime.

While this case is noted primarily to show the impact of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Old Chief
v. U.S., 136 L.Ed.2d 574 (1997), it is also noted to show an important ruling dealing with Rule 404(b).
Until recently, whenever a defendant was charged as a felon in possession …

Klinger v. Department of Corrections, 107 F.3d 609 (8th Cir. 1997) (Judge McMillian)
Inmates of Suffolk County v. Sheriff of Suffolk Cty., 952 F.Supp. 869 (D.Mass 1997) (Judge Keeton)

Both of these long-standing, landmark prison cases are noted because they are part of a breed of cases that are rapidly …

This case is noted because it is one of those rare cases in which a judge ruled that the Government's factual allegations were insufficient to support a forfeiture action arising out of a drug case. Here, Judge Moran ruled that "the Government must come forward with more than a ‘drug-courier …

This case dealt with the almost impossible to win issue of whether the indictment that was brought was legally sufficient; and while the majority's decision concluded, in a somewhat pedestrian manner, that the indictment contained all the elements of the offense charged and fairly informed the defendant of the charge, …

This is one of the first cases to discuss the Supreme Court's decision in Old Chief v. U.S., 136 F.3d 574, where it ruled that it was an abuse of discretion for a trial judge to accept a stipulation about the name and nature of a prior conviction.

United States …

United States v. Blake, 107 F.3d 651 (8th Cir. 1997) (Judge Alsop)
United States v. Wilson, 107 F.3d 774 (10th Cir. 1997) (Judge Henry)

These are two of the first reported cases to apply, and show the impact of, the Supreme Court's recent decision in Old Chief v. U.S., 136 …

Klinger v. Department of Corrections, 107 F.3d 609 (8th Cir. 1997) (Judge McMillian)
Inmates of Suffolk County v. Sheriff of Suffolk Cty., 952 F.Supp. 869 (D.Mass 1997) (Judge Keeton)

Both of these long-standing, landmark prison cases are noted because they are part of a breed of cases that are rapidly …

United States v. Haut, 107 F.3d 213 (3rd Cir. 1997) (Judge Cowen)
United States v. Otis, 107 F.3d 487 (7th Cir. 1997) (Judge Eschbach)

At the time the Federal Sentencing Guidelines were adopted, then-Commissioner Paul H. Robinson expressed the view that the Guidelines had failed "to provide a rational and …

Case held that the provisions of USSG § 2D1.1(b)(4) can apply even in cases where the defendant is not subject to a statutory mandatory minimum sentence.

In this case the Court disagreed with the rationale and holding in U.S. v. Torres Sanchez, 945 F.Supp. 482 (E.D.N.Y. 1996) that § 2D1.1(b)(4) …

One of the issues raised in this case was the validity of a four point enhancement that was imposed for the use of a dangerous weapon under U.S.S.G. § 2A2.2(b)(2)(B). Here, the "weapon" in question was a flashlight; and the defendant argued that the court engaged in impermissible double counting …

This rather extraordinary case depicts a new level of prosecutorial misconduct and portends a new, thoroughly outrageous, tactic that is certain to grow like wildfire now that Judge Green has found a way to justify its use. As part of its investigation in this tax case, the Department of Justice …

This somewhat amusing musing involved the sad tail of an Assistant U.S. Attorney who was on her way home for the weekend on Friday evening in Miami. While waiting for a train on a "People Mover" platform, a group of rowdies approached her and one of them "grabbed her rear …

Here, although the Court held that a warrantless search of a car by the DEA exceeded the scope of a permissible inventory search, it also held that the cocaine seized from the car during the initial illegal search was admissible under the inevitable discovery doctrine.

Case held that inevitability of …

The Court emphasized that two conditions must be met before the crime fraud exception can be invoked:, namely the client must have made or received the otherwise privileged communication with the intent to further an unlawful act and the client must have carried out the crime. If both conditions are …

This is one of those shocking - almost laughable - cases where the Government attempted to involve the defendants in a drug trafficking scheme on the basis of evidence that even the Court had to agree was speculative at best.

This is a rare case in which a court overturned …

QUOTE OF THE WEEK - Does the Government have the right to break the law in its efforts to stop crime?

"Decency, security, and liberty alike demand that government officials shall be subjected to the same rules of conduct that are commands to the citizen. In a government of laws, …

Among its more notable statements, the Court held that "the right of access to federal courts is not a free-floating right, but rather is sibject to Congress' Article III power to set limits on federal jurisdiction." (Id., at 231).

Here the Court held that the filing fee provisions of the …

This case dealt with the almost impossible to win issue of whether the indictment that was brought was legally sufficient; and while the majority's decision concluded, in a somewhat pedestrian manner, that the indictment contained all the elements of the offense charged and fairly informed the defendant of the charge, …

Case held that inventory search exception to warrant requirement must not be a ruse for general rummaging to discover incriminating evidence, but rather an administrative procedure designed to produce an inventory.

Here, although the Court held that a warrantless search of a car by the DEA exceeded the scope of …