United States Fourth Circuit - January 2013 Opinion Summaries

Bethel World Outreach v. Montgomery County Council

Constitutional Law, Property Law & Real Estate
Summary judgment for defendant-county on plaintiff's challenge to defendant's land use regulation, which prevented plaintiff from constructing a...

Mondragon v. Holder

Constitutional Law, Criminal Law & Procedure, Evidence, Immigration Law
Petitions for review is denied, where: 1) the BIA's application of the modified categorical approach was appropriate to determine if petitioner was...

De'Lonta v. Johnson

Civil Procedure, Civil Rights, Constitutional Law
District court's dismissal was in error because plaintiff's complaint states a plausible Eighth Amendment claim, where plaintiff, a prisoner and...

Patel v. Napolitano

Administrative Law, Immigration Law
In action by federal inmate under 8 USC section 1503(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act for a judgment declaring him a United States national,...

In re Application of US for Order Pursuant to 18 USC 2703(d)

Communications Law, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law & Procedure, Cyberspace Law
Petition for mandamus brought by Subscribers whose Twitter records and other documents were obtained by the US pursuant to a request under the Stored...

Tobey v. Jones

Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Transportation
In 1983 action alleging violations of plaintiffs' First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendment Equal Protection Clause rights when defendant-TSA agents...

Merzbacher v. Shearin

Criminal Law & Procedure, Habeas Corpus
Habeas relief granted by the district court from a state court judgment of conviction for child rape and related crimes is reversed, where: 1) even if...

Stuart v. Huff

Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Health Law
In action challenging the constitutionality of a North Carolina statute that requires certain informed consent procedures prior to the performance of...

US v. Abramski

Criminal Law & Procedure, Evidence
In appeal of convictions for two firearm offenses, judgment is affirmed, where the district court: 1) properly denied defendant's motion to dismiss...

US v. Allmendinger

Criminal Law & Procedure, Sentencing
In appeal of conviction and sentence for several crimes relating to an investment scheme that resulted in nearly $100 million dollars in losses for...