Justia U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

Petitioner pled guilty to four counts of sexual assault in the fourth degree under Connecticut General Statute 53a-73a(a)(2), which criminalizes subjecting "another person to sexual contact without such other person's consent." The United States then commenced removal proceedings against petitioner under 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(A)(ii). Under federal immigration law, petitioner's removal turns on whether the crime he was convicted of is a crime involving moral turpitude. Because the court is unable to predict what level of mens rea the Connecticut courts would require, and because the issue involves the weighing of important policy considerations, the court certified questions to the Connecticut Supreme Court. View "Efstathiadis v. Holder" on Justia Law

Defendant appealed his convictions stemming from his participation in coordinated suicide bombings in the New York City subway system. Defendant eventually caused a high-speed collision with another car, attempting to trigger an explosion that would kill himself and others. On appeal, defendant sought a new trial solely on the basis that the district court erred in denying his motion to suppress postarrest statements. The court concluded that, even assuming that Miranda rights may properly be asserted by a suspect prior to his being in custody and prior to his being questioned, there was no clear and unambiguous invocation of the right to counsel by defendant before his arrest; defendant's signing of the Miranda waiver was knowing and voluntary; the court rejected defendant's contention that the government's interference with the attorney-client relationship prior to his indictment ripened into a violation of his Sixth Amendment right to counsel upon his indictment and that the government's refusal to honor his choice to deal with the government through counsel violated his right to substantive due process under the Fifth Amendment; and, therefore, the court affirmed the judgment of conviction. View "United States v. Medunjanin" on Justia Law

Petitioners filed a petition for limitation on liability after visitors of their powerboat were involved in a fistfight on a floating dock operated by Claimant. At issue was whether federal admiralty jurisdiction extended to tort claims arising from a physical altercation among recreational visitors on and around a permanent dock surrounded by navigable water. The court held that federal admiralty jurisdiction did not reach the claims at issue because this type of incident did not have a potentially disruptive effect on maritime commerce. Accordingly, the court affirmed the district court's dismissal of the action for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. View "Tandon v. Ulbrick" on Justia Law

The SEC filed a civil enforcement action against defendant, alleging that defendant failed to follow directives issued by the mutual funds and his employer to cease his market timing, and that he used different "financial advisor numbers" when mutual funds blocked trading from the ones he customarily used. The jury found that defendant engaged in no intentional misconduct but that he violated Section 17 of the Securities Act of 1933, 15 U.S.C. 77q, which has no scienter element, with respect to six out of sixty mutual funds. The court concluded that the evidence established without contradiction that the funds were inconsistent in their proscriptions on market timing and that the employer supported defendant's practices - and the jury could not find negligence in these circumstances without evidence as to an appropriate standard of care. Accordingly, the court reversed and remanded for the district court to dismiss the complaint against defendant. View "SEC v. O'Meally" on Justia Law

Defendants Mandell and Harrington appealed from their convictions of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, wire fraud, and mail fraud; securities fraud; wire fraud; and mail fraud. The principal issue on appeal was whether there was sufficient evidence to convict defendants of securities fraud. The court concluded that, in light of the evidence of domestic transactions, and viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the government, a rational jury could have found the essential elements of defendants' convictions beyond a reasonable doubt. Therefore, there was sufficient evidence to convict defendants of securities fraud. The government conceded that the forfeiture order should have made defendants jointly and severally liable for forfeiture. Accordingly, the court vacated and remanded as to this issue. The court rejected defendants' remaining arguments and affirmed in all other respects. View "United States v. Mandell" on Justia Law

Defendant pled guilty to drug-related offenses. On appeal, defendant argued that his erratic and irrational behavior following the entry of his plea required the district court to hold a competency hearing before imposing sentence and that he was deprived of his Sixth Amendment right to counsel by the denial of his multiple post-plea requests for an attorney to help him withdraw his plea. The court held that the district court was not required to hold a competency hearing before defendant's plea; defendant's post-plea behavior was not so erratic that it should have given the district court reason to doubt his competency; the district court did not abuse its discretion by denying defendant's post-plea requests for an attorney in light of defendant's alternating positions with respect to representation and his attempt to delay the proceedings; and defendant's sentence was reasonable. The court rejected defendant's arguments in his pro se brief. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment of the district court. View "United States v. Kerr" on Justia Law

Plaintiff filed suit against the Town after a decade of dealing with the Town in plaintiff's efforts to apply for subdivision approval. The court reversed the district court's decision to dismiss plaintiff's federal takings claims, concluding that his claim became ripe because of the way the Town handled his application under Williamson County Regional Planning Commission v. Hamilton Bank of Johnson City where the Town employed a decade of unfair and repetitive procedures, which made seeking a final decision futile. The Town also unfairly manipulated the litigation of the case in a way that might have prevented plaintiff from ever bringing his takings claim. The court vacated the district court's dismissal of plaintiff's non-takings claims based on ripeness grounds and declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over his state law claims. The court affirmed the district court's decision to dismiss plaintiff's 42 U.S.C. 1981 claim, to deny plaintiff leave to amend to add a 42 U.S.C. 1982 claim, and to dismiss plaintiff's procedural due process claim based on the consultants' fee law. View "Sherman v. Town of Chester" on Justia Law

Plaintiff filed suit against defendants, a medical center and four of its employees. Plaintiff alleged that had any of the defendants performed their duties properly, they would have realized that she was never a danger to herself or others and that she should never have been certified for forcible sedation or involuntary hospitalization. The district court granted defendants' motion to dismiss. The court affirmed, concluding that plaintiff failed to allege state action for the purpose of her 42 U.S.C. 1983 claims and that she failed to allege actionable discrimination for the purpose of her Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. 794, claim. View "McGugan v. Aldana-Bernier" on Justia Law

Plaintiff filed suit against the City, the NYPD, and four individual State and Federal law enforcement officials under 42 U.S.C. 1981, 1983, 1985, and 1988 and State law. Plaintiff claimed that a Federal agent presented false testimony to the State grand jury that returned the indictment against him. The court concluded that the district court correctly concluded that plaintiff's Bivens and section 1983 claims were foreclosed by Rehberg v. Paulk; plaintiff's allegation that his indictment was premised on faulty laboratory results failed to support a plausible fair trial claim; the district court correctly held that plaintiff failed to state a claim for abuse of process as to either the individual NYPD defendants or the agent; the district court did not err in dismissing plaintiff's claim of malicious prosecution; plaintiff failed to plead facts showing that defendants acted with discriminatory animus, as required to state a claim under sections 1981 or 1985; and the district court properly dismissed plaintiff's claim against the City and the NYPD for municipal liability. Accordingly, the court affirmed the district court's dismissal of plaintiff's second amended complaint. View "Morales v. City of New York" on Justia Law

Defendant appealed the district court's application of a sentencing enhancement pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 2252(b)(2), which requires a minimum term of imprisonment of ten years. The enhancement applied when a defendant is found guilty of possessing child pornography and was previously convicted under state law of a crime "relating to aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse, or abusive sexual conduct involving a minor or ward." Defendant had previously been convicted in state court of first degree sexual abuse of his fifty-three year-old girlfriend. The court affirmed the judgment of the district court, concluding that section 2252(b)(2) does not require that a prior state-law aggravated sexual abuse or sexual abuse conviction involve a minor. View "United States v. Lockhart" on Justia Law