HELPFUL CASES JUNE 2009

    United States Supreme Court
    1st Circuit Court of Appeals 
    2nd Circuit Court of Appeals 
    3rd Circuit Court of Appeals [None this update]
    4th Circuit Court of Appeals [None this update]
    5th Circuit Court of Appeals 
    6th Circuit Court of Appeals [None this update]
    7th Circuit Court of Appeals 
    8th Circuit Court of Appeals [None this update]
    9th Circuit Court of Appeals 
    10th Circuit Court of Appeals 
    11th Circuit Court of Appeals 
    D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals [None this update]
    Supreme Court of Delaware [None this update]
    Supreme Court of Florida [None this update]
    New York Court of Appeals 
    Illinois Supreme Court [None this update]
    Texas Criminal Court of Appeals [None this update]

Federal Courts (June 1-30, 2009)

Selected Decisions:

Bobby v. Bies (6/1/2009, No. 08-598) ___ US ___ [173 LEd2d 1173; 129 SCt 2145]: Death Penalty: Post-Trial Atkins Hearing: Double Jeopardy Clause did not bar the state court from conducting a full hearing on Defendant's mental capacity after trial.

Yeager v. U.S. (6/18/2009, No. 08-67) ____ US ____ [174 LEd2d 78; 129 SCt 2360]: Double Jeopardy: Retrial precluded not withstanding apparent inconsistency between a jury's verdict of acquittal on some counts and its failure to return a verdict on other counts.

U.S. v. Boidi (6/3/2009, 1st Cir. No. 07-1527) 568 F3d 24: Simple Possession As Lesser Included OF Possession With Intent To Distribute: Court erroneously failed to give a requested lesser included offense instruction on simple possession where the facts did not necessarily compel the jury to find intent to distribute.

O'Laughlin v. O'Brien (6/10/2009, 1st Cir. No. 08-1010) 568 F3d 287: Sufficiency Of Evidence: Habeas relief granted where a rational jury could not find defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

U.S. v. Gonzalez-Melendez (6/19/2009, 1st Cir. No. 08-1497) 570 F3d 1: Response To Juror Notes: Conviction vacated where the record did not reflect that the court made any response to a jury note requesting copies of certain documents.

Wilson v. Mazzuca (6/24/2009, 2nd Cir. No. 03-2459) 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 13523: IAC: AEDPA Standard: State court unreasonably applied clearly established federal law in concluding that defendant received effective assistance of counsel at his trial, as trial counsel's performance was objectively unreasonable and there is a reasonable probability that but for counsel's unprofessional errors the result of the proceeding would have been different.

U.S. v. Armendariz-Moreno (6/15/2009, 5th Cir. No. 07-40225) 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 13077: Crime Of Violence: ACCA (18 USC 924(e)): Unauthorized use of a motor vehicle is not a "crime of violence" under the Armed Career Criminal Act, because the generic crime of violence or aggravated felony must itself involve purposeful, violent and aggressive conduct.

U.S. v. Pulungan (6/15/2009, 7th Cir. No. 08-3000) 569 F3d 326: Exporting Rifle Scopes Without A License (22 USC 2778): Knowledge Element: Conviction reversed where the evidence was insufficient that defendant knew that an export license was required.

Holley v. Yarborough (6/16/2009, 9th Cir. No. 08-15104) 568 F3d 1091: Confrontation: Victim’s Prior Claims: Court erred in prohibiting petitioner from introducing evidence that the victim had made prior claims of her own sexual appeal, because such evidence was clearly relevant to impeach the victim.

United States v. Tran (6/24/2009, 9th Cir. No. 07-30270) 568 F3d 1156: Possession To Distribute: Sufficiency Of Evidence: Government failed to prove that Defendant participated in the conspiracy to possess marijuana for distribution.

U.S. v. Torres (6/30/2009, 10th Cir. No. 07-2158) 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 14473: Brady: Defendant's drug distribution conviction is reversed where the government failed to disclose evidence of a confidential informant's work as a DEA informant prior to the drug transaction at issue, and that evidence would have been material to the impeachment of the witness.

U.S. v. Canty (6/11/2009, 11th Cir. No. 08-10659) 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 12525: ACCA (18 USC 924(e)): Carrying Concealed Firearm: Carrying a concealed firearm is not a violent felony under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA).

Smith v. Sec'y, Dept. of Corr. (6/30/2009, 11th Cir. No. 07-14173) 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 14226: Brady: Prosecution did not disclose in the later trial that a witness told the prosecutor that in exchange for testifying again, he wanted help with charges he faced.

U.S. v. Gari (6/30/2009, 11th Cir. No. 08-10014) 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 14224: Alien Smuggling (8 USC 1324(a)(2)(B)(iii)): Insufficient evidence that defendants lacked prior authorization to enter the United States.

People v. Bailey (6/11/2009, NY No. 97) 2009 N.Y. LEXIS 1848: Forgery: Knowing Possession Not Sufficient: Defendant's knowledge that the bills he was carrying were counterfeit was not alone sufficient to hold him criminally liable for possessing a forged instrument, because the government was required to prove his intent to use them.

People v. Buchanan (6/30/2009, NY No. 101) 2009 N.Y. LEXIS 2574: Courtroom Security: Stun Belt: Murder conviction reversed where court required defendant to wear a stun belt during trial without a finding of specific facts justifying the use of such a restraint.