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Public Defense

Second Circuit Blog

Case Summaries and Commentary by Attorneys from the Federal Defenders Office in New York City

Post Frequency: 2.4/day

Last Entry: March 25, 2016 at 12:33:00

PC World

Posted on March 13, 2010
United States v. Muse, No. 07-4483-cr (2d Cir. March 11, 2010)(Walker, Calabresi, Wesley, CJJ) (per curiam)Two defendants in a large khat prosecution appealed the multi-million dollar forfeiture orders against them, arguing that a defendant in a drug case is not subject to forfeiture where he does not have assets to satisfy the judgment at the time of sentencing...

Glock-In-Trade

Posted on March 13, 2010
United States v. Gardner, No. 08-4793-cr (2d Cir. March 10, 2010)(Feinberg, Katzmann, CJJ, Castel, DJ)18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A) makes it a crime to possess a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Here, the defendants challenged the applicability of this section in their case, where they purchased firearms using drugs as payment...

Summary Summary

Posted on February 15, 2010
As noted below, the circuit has been a bit slow this month. But here are three more summary orders of interest.In United States v. Valentin, No. 07-5278-cr (2d Cir. February 9, 2010), the court ordered a Jacobson remand for the district court to clarify whether it would have imposed a shorter sentence if it understood it was permitted to do so under the Williams/Whitley decisions...

PC World

Posted on February 15, 2010
It's been more than a month since the court issued a signed opinion in a criminal case. But here is its latest Per Curiam.In Re Grand Jury Subpoena Issued June 18, 2009, No. 09-3561-cv (2d Cir. February 1, 2010) (per curiam). In this case, the court rejected a challenge to a subpoena for corporate records where the corporate entities had a sole shareholder, officer and employee, Douglas Rennick...

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PC World

Posted on January 29, 2010
The court's latest Per Curiam opinion, United States v. Rossi, No. 08-6108 (Kearse, Cabranes, Straub, CJJ) (2d Cir. January 28, 2010) (per curiam), holds that the district court had jurisdiction under the pre-1996 restitution statute, 18 U.S.C. § 3663, to amend a restitution order after the defendant had completed her sentence and her term of supervised release...

Summary Summary

Posted on January 29, 2010
Here are two recent summary orders of interest:In United States v. Prescott, No. 08-2886-cr (2d Cir. January 12, 2010), the government waived its objection to the defendant's untimely notice of appeal, and the court considered the appeal as if the notice were timely...

Moving Violations

Posted on January 07, 2010
United States v. Guzman; United States v. Hall, Nos. 08-5561-cr; 08-6004-cr (2d Cir. January 7, 2010) (Miner, Straub, Wesley, CJJ)Defendants Guzman and Hall were both registered sex offenders in New York. Each moved to another state without updating his registration, and was charged with violating 18 U...

Conditional Love

Posted on January 07, 2010
United States v. Reeves, No. 08-2966-cr (2d Cir. January 7, 2010) (Leval, Pooler, Parker, CJJ)Lamont Reeves pled guilty to possessing child pornography. As a condition of his supervised release the district court required that he ?notify the Probation Department when he establishes a significant romantic relationship and ...

PC World

Posted on January 04, 2010
We close out 2009 with two interesting per curiam opinions.In United States v. MacPherson, No. 08-1829-cr (2d Cir. December 30, 2009) (Newman, Calabresi, Katzmann, CJJ) (per curiam), the defendant argued that the government violated a Pimentel-like non-binding plea agreement by advocating for a sentence higher than the estimate contained in the agreement...

Summary Summary

Posted on January 04, 2010
United States v. Doe, No. 08-4064-cr (2d Cir. December 14, 2009), looks the First Amendment implications of a defendant's request to seal his case. At sentencing, Doe had asked for the total and permanent sealing of his sentencing transcript. The court denied the request, and Doe appealed...

SORNA Doom

Posted on December 16, 2009
United States v. Hester, No. 08-4665-cr (2d Cir. December 16, 2009) (Winter, Cabranes, Hall CJJ) (per curiam)After pleading guilty to two sex offenses in New York State, Hester was required to register as a sex offender. He completed his initial registration - which included explicit instructions that Hester update if he moved or changed jobs - and four change of address forms...

Role Away

Posted on December 16, 2009
United States v. Labbe, No. 08-0673-cr (2d Cir. December 4, 2009) (Newman, Pooler, Katzmann, CJJ)About a week before Labbe?s sentencing, the district court issued a written Sentencing Opinion describing the sentence it was likely to impose. The Opinion included a 4-level role reduction for Labbe?s ?minimal? participation and announced that ?Labbe is hereby sentenced to ...

Summary Summary

Posted on December 16, 2009
It's been a while but at last the court has issued enough summary orders of interest for another post. Here they are:In United States v. Madarikan, No. 08-5589-cr (2d Cir. December 16, 2009), the court found a Confrontation Clause violation in the admission into evidence of a Certificate of Nonexistence of Record at an illegal reentry trial...

Money Disorder

Posted on December 15, 2009
United States v. Garcia, No. 08-1621-cr (2d Cir. December 1, 2009) (Jacobs, Sack, Lynch, CJJ)In Cuellar v. United States, 128 S.Ct. 1994 (2008), the Court held that, for the crime of transportation money laundering under 18 U.S.C. § 1956(a)(2)(B)(i), the government most prove more than that the money was hidden during its transportation...

Fare is Foul

Posted on December 03, 2009
United States v. Rodriguez, No. 08-2805-cr (2d Cir. November 30, 2009) (Newman, Calabresi, Katzmann, CJJ)This interesting opinion concludes that a dispute over a taxi fare did not violate the Hostage Taking Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1203.BackgroundIn 2005, Azucena Gonzalez Mendez was smuggled into the United States from Mexico...

SAMs Club

Posted on November 29, 2009
United States v. Stewart, No. 06-5015 (2d Cir. November 17, 2009) (Walker, Calabresi, Sack, CJJ)This 191-page opinion - three opinions, actually - deals with the aftermath of the Lynne Stewart trial. The defendants appealed their convictions - without success - while the government appealed the sentences...

Bye-Bye Baby

Posted on November 14, 2009
United States v. Hasan, No. 08-4921-cr (2d Cir. November 10, 2009) (Cabaranes, Sack, CJJ, Rakoff, DJ)Syed Hasan was convicted of a number of crimes in connection with his successful scheme to kidnap his infant son and spirit the child off to India. He appealed on a number of grounds...

The Things We Do For Love

Posted on November 14, 2009
United States v. Caraballo, No. 08-4640-cr (2d Cir. November 5, 2009) (Leval, Raggi, Livingston, CJJ)Gilberto Caraballo was a large-scale drug supplier in the Sunset Park section of Brooklyn. In September of 2000, he started dating Quincy Martinez, former girlfriend of Jose Fernandez, a dealer who worked for Caraballo...

Summary Summary

Posted on November 14, 2009
Two summary orders of interest:In United States v. McDarrah, No. 07-1849-cr (2d Cir. November 5, 2009), a child enticement case, the district court admitted opinion testimony from an FBI agent that was improper in two ways. First, the agent used "we" to preface one of his opinions, which suggested that the opinion was based on his and other agents' collective knowledge and experience, and thus was "specialized knowledge" and not a "lay" opinion...

Cash and Quarry

Posted on November 03, 2009
United States v. Byors, No. 08-4811-cr (2d Cir. October 29, 2009) (Cabranes, Livingston, CJJ, Korman, DJ)Defendant, while ostensibly raising money for a Vermont marble quarry, made material misrepresentations to his investors. He also converted substantial amounts of their money to pay for his personal expenses, including vacation homes, cars and horses...

Action Jackson

Posted on October 28, 2009
United States v. Jackson, No. 08-5151-cr (2d Cir. 2009) (McLaughlin, Katzmann, CJJ, Korman, DJ)Here, the circuit concluded that erroneous introduction of prejudicial ?other acts? evidence required a new trial.The FactsPolice officers responding to a ?shots fired? call in Queens encountered Jackson and others outside the target apartment building...

Summary Summary

Posted on October 27, 2009
Two more summary orders of interest:In United States v. Howard, No. 08-0944-cr (2d Cir. October 26, 2009), the court, when considering the denial of a motion to suppress wiretap evidence, questioned whether the district court correctly rejected without a hearing the defendant's claim that the government illegally began tapping his phone before it obtained a wiretap order...

Drug Abuse

Posted on October 27, 2009
United States v. Wright, No 08-0322-cr (2d Cir. October 19, 2009) (Jacobs, McLaughlin, Parker, CJJ)Here, the circuit held that the admission of defendant McCallum?s two prior drug convictions - which it termed ?propensity evidence in sheep?s clothing? - during his federal crack trafficking trial was an abuse of discretion...

PC World

Posted on October 27, 2009
Here are the two most recent PC?s.In United States v. Bell, No. 08-5506-cr (2d Cir. October 20, 2009) (Miner, Cabranes, CJJ, Rakoff, DJ) (per curiam), the court reversed the district court?s grant of a new trial under F.R.Cr.P. 33 and remanded the case for sentencing...

A Matter of Substance

Posted on October 14, 2009
United States v. Rigas, No. 08-3485-cr (2d Cir. October 5, 2009) (Feinberg, Winter, Cabranes, CJJ)When we last heard about the Rigas père et fils - former senior officers at Adelphia Communications who were convicted of conspiracy, securities, wire and bank fraud - the circuit affirmed the majority of their convictions, but reversed a single count of bank fraud for insufficient evidence...

Summary Summary

Posted on October 11, 2009
Here's a fairly large crop of summary orders of interest.In United States v. Smith, No. 07-5740-cr (2d Cir. October 8, 2009), the court agreed that it was error to admit a picture of the defendant's tattoo - which depicted the skull, arms and ribcage of a skeleton firing a weapon - in a homicide case...

Murder, She Dotes

Posted on October 11, 2009
United States v. Young, No. 07-2729-cr (2d Cir. October 8, 2009) (Jacobs, Walker, Leval, CJJ)Defendant Laval Farmer was a member of the Bloods street gang, charged with a 2001 gang-related murder and and 2002 gang-related attempted murder, along with various associated firearms offenses...

Plea Circus

Posted on October 11, 2009
United States v. Carreto, No. 06-2295-cr (2d Cir. October 8, 2009)(Parker, Livingson, CJJ, Chin, DJ)Three defendants were charged with various offenses relating to a scheme in which young women were smuggled into the United States from Mexico and forced to engage in prostitution...

PC World

Posted on October 11, 2009
This set of per curiam decisions deals with mes rea elements.In United States v. Romero-Padilla, No. 08-1817-cr (2d Cir. October 7, 2009) (Calabresi, Cabranes, Hall, CJJ), the court held that 21 U.S.C. § 959(a), a drug importation statute, requires the government to prove that the defendant actually, as opposed to constructively, knew that a controlled substance he distributed or manufactured would be illegally imported into the United States...

Summary Summary

Posted on September 13, 2009
Here are three more summary orders of interest.In United States v. Delacruz, No. 08-1192-cr (2d Cir. September 11, 2009), the district court did not inform the defendant of the possibility of a forfeiture during the plea allocution, but still entered a forfeiture order at sentencing...

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