LATEST SUMMARIES

CIVIL PROCEDURE, CIVIL RIGHTS, GOVERNMENT LAW
• Berube v. Conley

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE, EVIDENCE, SENTENCING
• US v. Vega-Santiago

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE, EVIDENCE
• US v. Jimenez

LATEST SUMMARIES

CIVIL PROCEDURE, CIVIL RIGHTS, GOVERNMENT LAW
Berube v. Conley, No. 06-2644
In an action against police officers alleging the use of excessive force, denial of summary judgment for the officers is reversed where the facts were not in dispute and, as a matter of law, the officers did not use excessive force and were entitled to qualified immunity. Read more...

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE, EVIDENCE, SENTENCING
US v. Vega-Santiago, No. 06-1558
Conviction and sentence for armed carjacking and related weapons charges are affirmed over defendant's arguments that: 1) the victims' identification of him was tainted and improperly admitted; 2) the court erred in allowing testimony concerning his confession; 3) the district court abused its discretion in reopening the case to allow the government to introduce additional evidence after he moved for a judgment of acquittal; 4) the evidence presented at his trial was insufficient to establish all elements of the charged offenses; 5) his sentence was unreasonable; and 6) he was not given proper notice of the court's intent to impose a sentence above the Sentencing Guidelines' range. The case is remanded for correction of the written judgment, however, as it records an inaccurate sentence on one charge. Read more...

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE, EVIDENCE
US v. Jimenez, No. 06-2044
Conviction for identity theft is affirmed over defendant's arguments that: 1) certain evidence admitted at trial should have been excluded for want of relevance or because it was unduly prejudicial; 2) the term "person" in the statute defining aggravated identity theft refers only to the living; and 3) the statute is sufficiently ambiguous to require reversal under the rule of lenity. Read more...