Here the Court held that the charging document is the only source of information on which the court may properly rely in classifying a prior offense used to enhance the punishment for the offense of conviction.

Reversing an earlier panel decision, the en banc court held that sexual intercourse with ...

While this case deals primarily with a tax issue - namely, whether and under what circumstances a person may be deemed to be a "responsible person" who is liable for a corporation's unpaid employment taxes - it also explores a noteworthy principle of criminal law. The defendant sought to defend ...

In 1982, the defendant in this strange case was indicted and arrested for using the mails to transmit obscene materials in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1461 and using minors to produce sexually explicit photographs in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2251. Pursuant to a plea agreement, the defendant pled ...

This is one of two Ninth Circuit decisions that were reversed by the Supreme Court's recent decision in U.S. v. Watts, 136 L.Ed.2d 554 (1997). At issue in both cases was the concept of using conduct underlying counts for which the defendant was acquitted to increase a defendant's sentence. Here, ...

Case held that district court abused its discretion in denying motion for reduction of sentence for a crime involving wet marijuana where there were witnesses who could testify as to weight of dry marijuana.

in this case, the defendant was arrested transporting some marijuana soaked in water. The presentence report ...

United States v. Palacios, 957 F.Supp. 50 (S.D.N.Y. 1997) (Judge Cedarbaum)
United States v. Skinner, 957 F.Supp 228 (M.D.Ga. 1997) (Judge Fitzpatrick)

What is unusual about this trio of cases is that in each case the courts granted defense motions to suppress evidence that was improperly seized.

Palacios dealt with ...

In this somewhat surprising decision, the 8th Circuit reversed a district court's finding that the defendant was not eligible for an acceptance of responsibility sentence reduction after he went to trial - since he had tried to plead guilty several times.

Among the many issues raised in this appeal, one ...

Case is noted for its statement that the practice of informing juries about the sentencing consequences of their verdicts is "strongly disfavored" - although the Court pretended not to comment on the propriety of jury nullification.

This is a reprise of another case we reported last November; and it is one of those ugly cases that tells much about the lunacy of some of our sentencing practices - and the gleeful malice of some of our prosecutors.

After the Ninth Circuit rejected a Government appeal in ...

This is the sixth appellate review of a case that has attracted worldwide notoriety; and it is a case that is nothing short of a travesty of justice. It involves the Federal prosecution and conviction of Peter Larson, the president of the Black Hills Institute of Geological Research, for violating ...

United States v. Ogunbiyi, 957 F.Supp. 89 (N.D.W.Va. 1997) (Judge Maxwell)
United States v. Skinner, 957 F.Supp 228 (M.D.Ga. 1997) (Judge Fitzpatrick)

What is unusual about this trio of cases is that in each case the courts granted defense motions to suppress evidence that was improperly seized.

Palacios dealt with ...

This case, which involves the activities of FBI agent Devecchio, is noted for its review of the Government's disclosure obligations under Brady v. Maryland and for its description of that happens when a Government agent goes bad.

This lengthy and gripping decision reads like a preview of a forthcoming novel ...

This case is noted because it is one of the few reported cases in which a defendant actually wins a motion under Rule 41(e) of the Fed.R.Crim.P. for the return of property seized at the time of his arrest, which is neither evidence of a charged offense nor the fruit ...

In this case, the court ruled that the subsequent vacatur of the previous aggravated felony was irrelevant to the application of the 16-level e3nhanced penalty provisions of U.S.S.G. § 2L1.2(b). The court did so exclusively by resort to the plain language of § 2L1.2(b) and § 1326(b). It stated:

"Given ...

In 1982, the defendant in this strange case was indicted and arrested for using the mails to transmit obscene materials in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1461 and using minors to produce sexually explicit photographs in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2251. Pursuant to a plea agreement, the defendant pled ...

Case held that Federal Debt Collection Procedure Act was inapplicable to a U.S. attempt to enforce restitution order under the Child Recovery Support Act.

[Editor's Note: Congress amended 18 U.S.C. § 228 on June 24, 1998. That Act, previously denominated the Child Support Recovery Act of 1992 (CSRA), was renamed ...

United States v. Palacios, 957 F.Supp. 50 (S.D.N.Y. 1997) (Judge Cedarbaum)
United States v. Ogunbiyi, 957 F.Supp. 89 (N.D.W.Va. 1997) (Judge Maxwell)

What is unusual about this trio of cases is that in each case the courts granted defense motions to suppress evidence that was improperly seized.

Palacios dealt with ...

As any seasoned defense counsel has learned, sometimes - in fact usually quite often - the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure just don't mean what they say. Rule 11(e)(2) of the Fed.R.Crim.P. provides that, before a sentencing court may accept a guilty plea entered pursuant to a Rule 11(e)(1)(B) agreement, ...