Here the Court held that the DOJ had acted unlawfully in holding hundreds of deportation hearings in secret based only on the Government’s assertion of links to terrorism and invalidated, as unconstitutional, the blanket closure of special interest cases.

On September 21, 2001, Chief Immigration Judge Michael Creppy issued a ...

Here the Court held that, although a sentence based on 1) an indictment that failed to specify drug quantity and 2) absence of a jury finding as to quantity, was plain error under Apprendi, sentence is affirmed where evidence of drug quantity justifying the sentence was overwhelming and uncontroverted.

The defendant in this case entered a plea of guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). The Government then filed a notice that it would seek to enhance defendant's sentence under the Armed Career Criminal Act of 1984 (ACCA) (18 ...

Denial of an acceptance-of-responsibility sentence adjustment was not clearly erroneous, based on defendant's comments to probation officials, which demonstrated that he did not fully appreciate the illegality of his actions supporting mail fraud convictions.

Here the Court held there was no Apprenci violation where a combined consecutive sentence did not exceed the combined maximum for the two counts, but reliable evidence did not support attribution of a portion of drug quantity to the defendant.

Defendant appealed from the sentence imposed upon him on remand ...

In this case the petitioner inmate, acting pro se, filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus, pursuant to 28 U.S.C.S. § 2255, to vacate, set aside, or correct his sentence. He contended that in light of Apprendi he was improperly sentenced. The inmate's conviction became final on May ...

The defendant in this case, Richard Reid, was accused of attempting to detonate an explosive device in his shoe while aboard an international flight from Paris to Miami that was diverted to Boston after his attempt was foiled by the flight crew and some passengers. Reid moved to dismiss one ...

Here the Court vacated judgments of acquittal of charges against police officers for conspiracy to violate an individual's civil rights where a concerted concealment showed the existence of a conspiracy among the officers.

Plaintiff, the United States, challenged a decision from the United States District Court for the District of ...

The defendant in this case was indicted on 69 counts of violation of federal law related to allegedly fraudulent schemes and related financial crimes over a 12-year period. Defendant gave notice of a mental health defense pursuant to Fed. R. Crim. P. 12.2. The government moved to exclude the mental ...

In this case the petitioner filed a habeas petition, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2255, challenging his drug conviction pursuant to a plea agreement dated June 30, 1997. The petitioner claimed that the trial court had erred in sentencing because the judge, rather than the jury, determined the quantity of ...

The two individual defendants in this case, James Gebbie and James Richter, were caught in a juggernaut. They ran a mail sorting business (Midwest Presort Mailing Services) in three states, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York, through which they sorted and bar-coded mail for their business customers who were seeking lower ...

Here the Court held that the Government must disclose, as part of its wiretap application, whether it intends to use civilian monitors to assist in the interception of the wiretaps; and it presented a comprehensive review of the "necessity requirement".

The defendant in this case entered a conditional plea of ...

Back in 1978, Congress enacted the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (50 U.S.C. §§ 1801-1862) (FISA), which established certain procedures for requesting judicial authorization for electronic surveillance and physical searches of persons suspected of engaging in espionage or international terrorism against the United States on behalf of a foreign power. Pursuant ...

This case is noted because it explores the creative use of some of the “constantly-evolving conceptions” of mental health defenses to criminal charges. Among the many issues addressed by the Court in this case, several of its rulings on the admissibility of such mental health evidence were significant. For example, ...