Steve Statsinger United States v. Gyanbaah, No. 10-2441-cr (2d Cir. November 8, 2012) (Winter, Lynch, Carney, CJJ) The appellant here was part of a group that, for more than three years, stole names and other identifying information, then used it to file thousands of fraudulent tax returns in those victims’ names. The group expected that about half … Read more
United States v. Lacey, No. 11-2404-cr (2d Cir. November 7, 2012) (Winter, Straub, Lynch, CJJ) Defendants Lacey and Henry were convicted after a jury trial of various offenses resulting from their involvement in a mortgage fraud scheme. In the scheme a real estate company, MTC, would purchase “short-sale” properties from distressed homeowners, then resell them … Read more
United States v. Harrison, No. 11-1240-cr (2d Cir. November 6, 2012) (Cabranes, Chin, Carney, CJJ) (per curiam) The court’s latest per curiam opinion holds that the appellate waiver provision of the standard Southern District plea agreement is enforceable, even in the wake of Dorsey v. United States, 132 S.Ct. 2321 (2012). Thus, although the defendant … Read more
United States v. Wilson, No. 11-915 (2d Cir. October 25, 2012) (Jacobs, Calabresi, Pooler, CJJ) Defendant Wilson was subject to a car stop near New York’s border with Canada. He was just outside of the St. Regis Mohawk reservation, not a member of the tribe, and the officers who stopped the car – which was … Read more
United States v. Oehne, No. 11-2286 (2d Cir. October 25, 2012) (Kearse, Katzmann, CJJ, Gleeson, DJ) (per curiam) This latest per curiam looks at the pretrial ruling on a motion to suppress, and the long sentence imposed in a child pornography production and distribution case. Finding no error, the circuit affirms. The suppression issue involved … Read more
Young v. Conway, No. 11-830-cr (2d Cir. October 16, 2012) (Parker, Hall, Carney, CJJ) While decisions on state prisoners’ federal habeas corpus petitions are not consistently covered on this site, this particular case is fascinating. In it, the circuit agrees with the district court that the New York state courts misapplied federal law in finding that the … Read more
United States v. Colasuonno, No. 11-1188-cr (2d Cir. October 12, 2012)(Kearse, Walker, Raggi, CJJ) Answering a question of first impression, here the circuit holds that the automatic stay provisions of the bankruptcy code does not apply to either a restitution order or a probation violation proceeding based on a failure to comply with a restitution … Read more
United States v. Ageloff, No. 11-2474-cr (2d Cir. October 10, 2012) (Pooler, Wesley, Lohier, CJJ) (per curiam) This short per curiam opinion affirms the district court’s authority, under the All Writs Act, 28 U.S.C. 1651, to retrain a convicted defendant’s property – here, some $536,000 of Ageloff’s money – in anticipation of ordering restitution. Preventing … Read more
United States v. Briggs, No. 12-2988-cr (2d Cir. October 5, 2012) (Calabresi, Carney, CJJ) Antonio Briggs, charged in a large, multi-defendant drug conspiracy, was ordered detained in September of 2010, and remains in jail today. In this appeal, he claimed that this lengthy pretrial detention deprived him of due process. The circuit, although clearly concerned … Read more
United States v. Carter, No. 11-3605-cr (2d Cir. September 28, 2012) (Leval, Cabranes, Katzmann, CJJ) The “parsimony clause” of 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) requires that the court impose a sentence that is not “greater than necessary” to serve the goals of sentencing. Many offense statutes, however, contain a mandatory minimum sentence: a “blunt directive that … Read more