Search | Punch and Jurists

U.S. v. Greenfield, No. 94-1001 (2nd Cir.) (44 F.3d 1141) (June 13, 1995) (Judge Guido Calabresi)

Article • March 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Double Counting

U.S. v. Greenfield, No. 94-1001 (2nd Cir.) (44 F.3d 1141) (June 13, 1995) (Judge Guido Calabresi) by This credit card fraud case discusses the relationship between sentencing enhancements for a leadership (under § 3B1.1 of the Guidelines) and an enhancement for "more than minimal planning" (under § 2F1.1 (b)(2)). The …

U.S. v. Bustamonte, No. 93-8705 (5th Cir.) (45 F.3d 933) (February 13, 1995) (Judge W. Eugene Davis)

Article • March 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Bribes and Gratuities

U.S. v. Bustamonte, No. 93-8705 (5th Cir.) (45 F.3d 933) (February 13, 1995) (Judge W. Eugene Davis) by Here the Court held that to convict a public official of accepting an illegal gratuity, the Government is not required to prove some quid pro quo; it need only show that the …

U.S. v. Zapatka, No. 93-1805 (2nd Cir.) (44 F.3d 112) (December 29, 1994) (Judge Ellsworth A. Van Graafeiland)

Article • March 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

U.S. v. Zapatka, No. 93-1805 (2nd Cir.) (44 F.3d 112) (December 29, 1994) (Judge Ellsworth A. Van Graafeiland) by This is a somewhat interesting case which deals with the interpretation of Burns v. United States, 501 U.S. 129 (1991), which held that a defendant is entitled to advance notice of …

U.S. v. Bustamonte, No. 93-8705 (5th Cir.) (45 F.3d 933) (February 13, 1995) (Judge W. Eugene Davis)

Article • March 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

U.S. v. Bustamonte, No. 93-8705 (5th Cir.) (45 F.3d 933) (February 13, 1995) (Judge W. Eugene Davis) by Here the Court affirmed the principle that, unless the government has abused its immunity power, a defendant has no due process right to have the trial court immunize defense witnesses.

U.S. v. Greenfield, No. 94-1001 (2nd Cir.) (44 F.3d 1141) (June 13, 1995) (Judge Guido Calabresi)

Article • March 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Leader, Manager, Organizer

U.S. v. Greenfield, No. 94-1001 (2nd Cir.) (44 F.3d 1141) (June 13, 1995) (Judge Guido Calabresi) by After a defendant was given a two level enhancement for his role as an "organizer", he appealed, arguing that he and his co-defendants were of equal culpability. Citing a line of cases, the …

U.S. v. Chunza-Plazas, No. 94-1009 (2nd Cir.) (45 F.3d 51) (January 23, 1995) (Judge George C. Pratt)

Article • March 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Acquitted Conduct/Uncharged Crimes/Dismissed Counts

U.S. v. Chunza-Plazas, No. 94-1009 (2nd Cir.) (45 F.3d 51) (January 23, 1995) (Judge George C. Pratt) by The Court limited its consideration of a § 4A1.3 upward departure to the 5 specific factors in the guideline, rejecting the government's attempt to expand the reach of factor (e) to "authorize …

U.S. v. Thurlow, No. 94-1785 (1st Cir.) (44 F.3d 46) (January 19, 1995) (Per Curiam)

Article • March 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Special Conditions

U.S. v. Thurlow, No. 94-1785 (1st Cir.) (44 F.3d 46) (January 19, 1995) (Per Curiam) by A case dealing with special conditions of supervised release - this one upholding the authority of a court to require total abstention from alcohol during a three year term of supervised release, even though …

U.S. v. Chunza-Plazas, No. 94-1009 (2nd Cir.) (45 F.3d 51) (January 23, 1995) (Judge George C. Pratt)

Article • March 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Criminal Conduct/Purpose

U.S. v. Chunza-Plazas, No. 94-1009 (2nd Cir.) (45 F.3d 51) (January 23, 1995) (Judge George C. Pratt) by Court rejected a 16-level upward departure under § 5K2.9 based on uncorroborated unreliable "triple hearsay" evidence which it labeled as unreliable - calling the Government's theories in support of the departure "irreconcilable". …

U.S. v. Longfellow, No. 94-1629 (7th Cir.) (43 F.3d 318) (December 22, 1994) (Judge Richard D. Cudahy)

Article • February 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

U.S. v. Longfellow, No. 94-1629 (7th Cir.) (43 F.3d 318) (December 22, 1994) (Judge Richard D. Cudahy) by In this case, the defendant was charged with engaging in six fraudulent loan transactions, all of which were too old to charge under the statute of limitations. However, the indictment charged as …

U.S. v. Huckaby, No. 94-41200 (5th Cir.) (43 F.3d 135) (January 12, 1995) (Judge Edith H. Jones)

Article • February 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Presentence Reports (PSRs)

U.S. v. Huckaby, No. 94-41200 (5th Cir.) (43 F.3d 135) (January 12, 1995) (Judge Edith H. Jones) by The Court articulated three compelling reasons underlying the need for confidentiality of a Presentence Report: "First, the defendant has a privacy interest in the presentence report because it reveals not only details …

U.S. v. Lopez-Aguilar, No. 93-CR-209 (E.D.N.Y.) (886 F.Supp. 305) (May 16, 1995) (Judge Jack B. Weinstein)

Article • January 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Family Circumstances

U.S. v. Lopez-Aguilar, No. 93-CR-209 (E.D.N.Y.) (886 F.Supp. 305) (May 16, 1995) (Judge Jack B. Weinstein) by In this case Judge Weinstein rules that fertility problems of a defendant and his wife, who was in her thirties, constituted "extraordinary family circumstances" under § 5H1.6 of the Guidelines, and warranted a …

U.S. v. Aguilar-Aranceta, No. 93-2346 (1st Cir.) (58 F.3d 796) (July 13, 1995) (Judge Juan R. Torruella)

Article • January 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Prejudice - Potential for Undue

U.S. v. Aguilar-Aranceta, No. 93-2346 (1st Cir.) (58 F.3d 796) (July 13, 1995) (Judge Juan R. Torruella) by A very rare case involving Rule 404(b) of the Fed.R.Evid. where the court actually vacates a conviction because the probative value of introducing evidence of the defendant's prior conviction of a similar …

Rosen v. CIBA-Geigy, No. 95-3064 (7th Cir.) (78 F.3d 316) (March 11, 1996) (Judge Richard A. Posner)

Article • January 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Daubert Standards

Rosen v. CIBA-Geigy, No. 95-3064 (7th Cir.) (78 F.3d 316) (March 11, 1996) (Judge Richard A. Posner) by While this is not a criminal case, the decision does include an informative discussion of the use of scientific evidence under Rule 702 of the Fed.R.Evid. and the Daubert case.

Finn v. Schiller, No. 94-2373 (4th Cir.) (72 F.3d 1182) (January 3, 1996) (Judge Robert F. Chapman)

Article • January 1, 1995 • from P&J February, 1996

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Disclosure - Improper or Wrongful

Finn v. Schiller, No. 94-2373 (4th Cir.) (72 F.3d 1182) (January 3, 1996) (Judge Robert F. Chapman) by Case held that violations of Rule 6(e)(2) provide for both civil and criminal contempt, but do not crate a private cause of action.

U.S. v. Vold, No. 95-1521 (7th Cir.) (66 F.3d 915) (October 2, 1995) (Judge William J. Bauer)

Article • January 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Co-conspirator/Accomplice liability

U.S. v. Vold, No. 95-1521 (7th Cir.) (66 F.3d 915) (October 2, 1995) (Judge William J. Bauer) by In this case, the district court found that defendant Cox possessed a .38 caliber derringer "at all times during the manufacturing process" with defendant Vold. The district court relied solely on a …

Sanchez v. U.S., No. 93-56315 (9th Cir.) (50 F.3d 1448) (March 21, 1995) (Judge Dorothy Wright Nelson)

Article • January 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Brady/Giglio/Jencks Act Issues

Sanchez v. U.S., No. 93-56315 (9th Cir.) (50 F.3d 1448) (March 21, 1995) (Judge Dorothy Wright Nelson) by Here, although the Court ultimately held there was no Brady-rule violation, it endorsed the proposition that the failure to disclose Brady material can render a plea not voluntary and intelligent, thus giving …

U.S. v. Badru, No. 94-3163 (D.C. Cir.) (97 F.3d 1471) (October 4, 1996) (Judge Judith W. Rogers)

Article • January 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Similar Acts or Crimes/Similarity in kind

U.S. v. Badru, No. 94-3163 (D.C. Cir.) (97 F.3d 1471) (October 4, 1996) (Judge Judith W. Rogers) by One of the issues discussed in this case was the difference between "extrinsic" and "intrinsic" evidence of prior bad acts under Rule 404(b). The defendants objected to the admission of evidence of …

U.S. v. Cray, No. 93-3222 (D.C. Cir.) (47 F.3d 1203) (February 24, 1995) (Judge Douglas Ginsburg)

Article • January 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Withdrawal

U.S. v. Cray, No. 93-3222 (D.C. Cir.) (47 F.3d 1203) (February 24, 1995) (Judge Douglas Ginsburg) by A case involving the attempted withdrawal of a guilty plea and the criteria that a court must use under Rule 32(d) of the Fed.R.Crim.P., which in theory permits a plea to be withdrawn …

Barrera-Echavarria v. Rison, No. 93-56682 (9th Cir.) (44 F.3d 1441) (January 12, 1995) (Judge Cynthia Holcomb Hall)

Article • January 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Detention - Generally

Barrera-Echavarria v. Rison, No. 93-56682 (9th Cir.) (44 F.3d 1441) (January 12, 1995) (Judge Cynthia Holcomb Hall) by Here the Court held that the Attorney General had statutory authority to detain indefinitely an undeportable, excludable alien in part because the INS had an annual administrative review which precluded nature of …

U.S. v. Cleary, No. 94-3290 (3rd Cir.) (46 F.3d 307) (January 27, 1995) (Judge Jane R. Roth)

Article • January 1, 1995

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

U.S. v. Cleary, No. 94-3290 (3rd Cir.) (46 F.3d 307) (January 27, 1995) (Judge Jane R. Roth) by One of the many cases involving an appeal based on a violation of Rule 11 of the Fed.R.Crim.P. where the Court dances between what the rule actually says and what it pretends …