2015 Sixth Circuit US Court of Appeals Case Law
Opinions 1 - 500 of 1284
Date: December 29, 2015
Docket Number: 14-4017
Justia Opinion Summary: Five multi-employer fringe benefit funds of the Plumbers, Pipe Fitters & Mechanical Equipment Service, Local Union 392, sued to collect delinquent employee fringe benefit contributions from B&B, an Ohio commercial…
Date: December 27, 2015
Docket Number: 15-5038
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2005, Watkins was sentenced to 185-months’ imprisonment for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Watkins had three prior convictions: arson, felony escape, and voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced under…
Date: December 23, 2015
Docket Numbers: 13-2599, 13-2598
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2008, Javidan shadowed Shahab, who was involved with fraudulent home-health agencies. Javidan, Shahab, and two others purchased Acure Home Care. Javidan managed Acure, signing Medicare applications and maintaining…
Date: December 23, 2015
Docket Number: 15-1442
Justia Opinion Summary: When Michigan police officers arrested Bachynski on suspicion of murder, she invoked her right to remain silent and asked for an attorney. During later interactions between the officers and Bachynski, she changed her…
Date: December 23, 2015
Docket Number: 15-3106
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2004, the Baumans purchased Ohio property with a loan from Taylor, secured by a mortgage that listed Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems as nominee on behalf of Taylor. In previous litigation involving the…
Date: December 22, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2364
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2006, Scarber was sentenced to life imprisonment; the Michigan Court of Appeals affirmed. The Michigan Supreme Court denied leave to appeal. On November 12, 2009, Scarber moved to dismiss the charges for lack of…
Date: December 17, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1501
Justia Opinion Summary: Hawver claims that the Jackson, Michigan, Center for Family Health a federally qualified health center, caused her mother’s death by providing negligent medical care. The Federal Tort Claims Act provides the exclusive…
Date: December 17, 2015
Docket Number: 15-3252
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2003, Sanchez-Robles, a citizen of Mexico, and her four children, all born in Mexico, illegally entered the U.S.. Her husband, who does not have legal status in the U.S., has traveled back and forth between Mexico and…
Date: December 16, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2148
Date: December 16, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2206
Date: December 16, 2015
Docket Number: 15-8030
Justia Opinion Summary: Martin filed a chapter 7 bankruptcy petition on January 28. On April 9, the Pecks sought relief from stay to continue state court litigation against Martin. On April 29, the Pecks filed an adversary proceeding seeking…
Date: December 15, 2015
Docket Number: 15-5136
Justia Opinion Summary: Priddy pled guilty to two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, 18 U.S.C. 922(g). His presentence report recommended that the court adjudge Priddy an armed career criminal (18 U.S.C. 924(e)(1)), identifying…
Date: December 14, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2478
Justia Opinion Summary: Michael worked as a Troy patrol officer since 1987. In 2000-2001 he had partially successful surgeries to remove a non-cancerous brain tumor and returned to the force. In 2007, Michael’s then-wife Jamie found a box of…
Date: December 10, 2015
Docket Number: 15-3104
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2004, Yates, 17 years old, was sexually active and was suffering from severe menstrual cramps. Smith, a licensed physician assistant, counseled Yates about various contraceptives, and the risks and benefits…
Date: December 9, 2015
Docket Number: 15-4270
Justia Opinion Summary: The Libertarian Party claimed unequal treatment under Ohio’s election laws. The court entered partial summary judgment, finding that the statutes did not violate the First or Fourteenth Amendments and that sovereign…
Date: December 8, 2015
Docket Number: 13-3165
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of murder and sentenced to death, seeks to reopen his federal habeas case in light of Martinez v. Ryan, which was decided a month before petitioner filed his petition for certiorari in his federal…
Date: December 7, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2319
Justia Opinion Summary: AVIC filed an interlocutory appeal of the district court's denial of its motion to dismiss asserting immunity under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA), 28 U.S.C. 1602 et seq. The court held that the district…
Date: December 7, 2015
Docket Number: 15-3302
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff and her companies, Tri-Serve and Capital Concepts, brought a claim for improper use of trade name and false designation of origin under the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. 1125, against Sheakley Entity Defendants on the…
Date: December 4, 2015
Docket Number: 15-1139
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed a qui tam action under the False Claims Act (FCA), 31 U.S.C. 3729 et seq., and for defamation under Michigan law, alleging that WSU engaged in a fraudulent scheme to inflate the amount of funding that it…
Date: December 4, 2015
Docket Number: 15-3484
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court dismissed plaintiff's suit alleging that police officers violated his constitutional rights during a 2009 arrest. Plaintiff now brings a new suit stemming from the 2009 arrest raising similar…
Date: December 2, 2015
Docket Number: 15-1404
Justia Opinion Summary: A family member reported to Michigan Children’s Protective Services (CPS) that Barber was neglecting J.B. Miller, a CPS social worker, interviewed J.B. at his public elementary school without a court order or Barber’s…
Date: December 1, 2015
Docket Number: 13-4189
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, convicted of murder and felonious assault, filed a federal habeas petition and the district court denied relief. Then petitioner asked the state trial court to vacate his sentence because it failed to include…
Date: November 24, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2444
Date: November 20, 2015
Docket Number: 13-1072
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his convictions for two counts each of transporting explosives without a permit, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 842(a)(3)(A), and improper storage of explosives, and one count each of possessing explosives…
Date: November 20, 2015
Docket Numbers: 14-6039, 14-6315
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2009, a first grade student complained to a teacher that her genitals hurt and the teacher sent her to the school nurse who visually inspected the girl. Plaintiff, the girl's mother, filed a money-damages action…
Date: November 20, 2015
Docket Number: 14-6254
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, the father of Armetta Foster, filed suit against the deputy sheriff that shot and killed Armetta. On appeal, the deputy appealed the district court's denial of his motion for summary judgment based on…
Date: November 18, 2015
Docket Number: 15-3199
Date: November 13, 2015
Docket Numbers: 14-4278, 14-4223
Justia Opinion Summary: For some time, Broad Street Energy has owned many Ohio oil-and-gas leases. The market has changed to use of shale-drilling (fracking) to extract oil and gas from shale formations deeper than the formations from which…
Date: November 12, 2015
Docket Number: 14-4004
Justia Opinion Summary: Around 2000, at age 44, Levenderis used castor beans and acetone to produce enought ricin to kill 250 people. Levenderis stored it in a can in his freezer until an FBI HAZMAT team removed it in 2011. Levenderis, then…
Date: November 10, 2015
Docket Number: 13-5901
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1982, Matthews was convicted of murder and sentenced to death. His conviction and sentence have been affirmed on direct appeal and in post-conviction proceedings, including in federal court. Having exhausted his…
Date: November 10, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1491
Justia Opinion Summary: Under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, 29 U.S.C. 1001, plan fiduciaries have a duty of prudence that generally requires diversification. To “solve the dual problems of securing capital funds for necessary…
Date: November 10, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3199
Justia Opinion Summary: In September, 2010, Board pleaded guilty to drug trafficking with forfeiture specifications, a felony that carried a mandatory prison term of three-10 years under Ohio law. His plea agreement recommended a seven-year…
Date: November 9, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3817
Justia Opinion Summary: Cincinnati officers, assigned to provide security outside the Black Family Reunion at Sawyer Point, were informed that young African American males were throwing guns over the fence to individuals who were inside. After…
Date: November 6, 2015
Docket Number: 14-5603
Justia Opinion Summary: Butler, age 25, arrived at Hopkins County Detention Center to serve a misdemeanor sentence. A tower operator saw Butler put something in his mouth and swallow, and relayed her observation to deputies, who started booking…
Date: November 6, 2015
Docket Number: 14-5648
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2007, Durand filed an Employee Retirement Income Security Act, 29 U.S.C. 1001–1461 (ERISA) class action against her former employer and the pension plan it sponsors, challenging the projection rate used by the Plan to…
Date: November 5, 2015
Docket Number: 14-4126
Justia Opinion Summary: After discovering hazardous contaminants at Sanford and Orlando coal gasification plants in the 1990s, the EPA concluded that Florida Power and previous owners were liable for costs of removal and remediation. In 1998…
Date: November 5, 2015
Docket Numbers: 15-3032, 14-3990, 14-3953
Justia Opinion Summary: Exel, a shipping broker, sued SRT, an interstate motor carrier, after SRT lost a shipment of pharmaceutical products it had agreed to transport for Exel on behalf of Exel’s client, Sandoz. On summary judgment, the…
Date: November 4, 2015
Docket Number: 13-6126
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1987, Abdur’Rahman was convicted of first-degree murder, assault with intent to commit first-degree murder, and armed robbery. He was sentenced to death. The Tennessee Supreme Court affirmed. Abdur’Rahman…
Date: November 4, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2085
Justia Opinion Summary: Moon and a co-conspirator acquired credit card numbers issued to third parties and used the information to create counterfeit credit cards and gift cards, which they used to purchase merchandise. Moon pled guilty to…
Date: November 4, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2247
Justia Opinion Summary: In the Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Customs and Border Patrol officers stopped Gyamfi while he was traveling to Detroit from Ghana. They found at least one kilogram of heroin packed in the inner lining of Gyamfi’s…
Date: November 4, 2015
Docket Number: 15-1088
Justia Opinion Summary: Seventeen days into his parole for a state drug conviction, James was caught selling drugs while carrying a pistol. Michigan revoked his parole, returning him to prison for five more years. The federal government…
Date: November 3, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3563
Justia Opinion Summary: Allied, founded in 1973 by Ramun, competes with Genesis in the field of industrial dismantling and scrap processing, including the design, development, and manufacture of related specialized equipment. From 1992-2001,…
Date: November 3, 2015
Docket Number: 14-4165
Justia Opinion Summary: Mateen pled guilty to possession of child pornography, 18 U.S.C. 2252. A few years earlier, Mateen had pled guilty to gross sexual imposition, Ohio Code 2907.05, which prohibits sexual contact that is non-consensual by…
Date: November 2, 2015
Docket Number: 14-6198
Justia Opinion Summary: Diageo distills and ages whiskey in Louisville, resulting in tons of ethanol emissions. Ethanol vapor wafts onto nearby property where the ethanol combines with condensation to propagate whiskey fungus. Ethanol emissions…
Date: November 2, 2015
Docket Number: 14-6499
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs allege that, beginning in 2008, they have had a persistent film of dust over their properties, coming from Cane Run power plant, which is owned and operated by LGE. Louisville’s Air Pollution Control District,…
Date: October 30, 2015
Docket Number: 13-6530
Justia Opinion Summary: Christian was part of a truck theft ring, working with Dubose, Davis, and Lanton. The theft ring first struck in May 2011. In August 2011 and June 2012, they stole three semis containing tires. A sting operation caught…
Date: October 30, 2015
Docket Number: 15-1265
Justia Opinion Summary: Alexander filed a suit, claiming that nine individuals—all of whom had some connection to child support proceedings related to Alexander’s son—conspired against him and violated his civil rights by imposing child support…
Date: October 28, 2015
Docket Number: 13-1635
Justia Opinion Summary: Dearborn hosted Arab International Festival, 1995-2012, attracting 250,000 people with entertainment and food. The 2012 Festival had 85 vendors and information tables, including several affiliated with Christian and…
Date: October 27, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1459
Justia Opinion Summary: Coleman was convicted of armed robbery, as a felon-in-possession of a firearm, and of possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony and was sentenced to 22-32 years in prison. Coleman filed an unsuccessful pro se…
Date: October 26, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1094
Justia Opinion Summary: Mokdad, a naturalized U.S. citizen, alleges that he has been denied boarding on commercial airline flights between the U.S. and his native country, Lebanon because he was on the No Fly List. Mokdad applied for redress…
Date: October 26, 2015
Docket Number: 15-5256
Justia Opinion Summary: Slusher, an orthopedic surgeon and military reservist, worked at Heritage, a small hospital in Shelbyville, Tennessee, through a staffing service, on 30-day assignments beginning on July 20, 2010. Slusher was offered,…
Date: October 23, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3996
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs received internet and cable services from TWC in Chardon, Ohio. The Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), conducting an online investigation to identify individuals possessing and sharing child pornography,…
Date: October 23, 2015
Docket Number: 15-5163
Justia Opinion Summary: The Tennessee Valley Authority, a federal agency, operates power plants that provide electricity to nine million Americans in the Southeastern United States, 16 U.S.C. 831n-4(h). Like private power companies, TVA must…
Date: October 22, 2015
Docket Number: 13-3381
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2005, Trimble shot and killed his girlfriend and her seven-year-old son with an assault rifle. Later that night, he broke into the apartment of a female college student, held her hostage, and eventually killed her…
Date: October 22, 2015
Docket Number: 15-1323
Justia Opinion Summary: Brown owed student loan debt, which he alleges Van Ru Credit was retained to collect. A Van Ru employee left a voicemail at Brown’s business that stated the caller’s and Van Ru’s names, a return number, and a reference…
Date: October 20, 2015
Docket Number: 14-5256
Justia Opinion Summary: Hodge’s 15-year-old stepdaughter found a micro video recording device that had recorded her exiting the shower naked and wrapping a towel around herself. She also saw that Hodge had setting up a camera on one of her…
Date: October 16, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2045
Justia Opinion Summary: From 2006 to 2008, Andrews asked friends and colleagues to loan him money, roughly two million dollars in total, explaining that he needed money to purchase property in Indianapolis or to improve property that he owned…
Date: October 9, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2381
Justia Opinion Summary: Herr bought waterfront property on Crooked Lake in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and planned to use their gas-powered motorboat on it. The U.S. Forest Service threatened to enforce a regulation (36 C.F.R. 293.6) that…
Date: October 9, 2015
Docket Numbers: 15-3799, 15-3822, 15-3853, 15-3887
Justia Opinion Summary: The Judicial Panel on Multi-District Litigation consolidated challenges, by 18 states, to the 2015 Clean Water Rule adopted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency, which clarifies the…
Date: October 8, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2272
Date: October 8, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2317
Date: October 8, 2015
Docket Number: 15-5220
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2005, the Harrises bought tens of thousands of shares in Bancorp through a TD Ameritrade account. Six years later, the Harrises sought to hold some of their Bancorp stock in another form, registered in their name and…
Date: October 6, 2015
Docket Number: 14-5879
Justia Opinion Summary: Sunrise operates group homes, places children in foster care, and provides related services for the State of Kentucky, which provides 65% of Sunrise’s revenue. Sunrise describes its mission as “to extend the grace and…
Date: October 6, 2015
Docket Number: 14-8013
Justia Opinion Summary: MERV, an LLC formed to purchase and operate an antique mall, encountered difficulties paying its mortgage loan and entered into a forbearance agreement with the Bank. MERV later defaulted and filed a Chapter 11 …
Date: October 6, 2015
Docket Number: 15-2048
Justia Opinion Summary: Kitchen filed a pro se lawsuit against 22 Michigan Corrections Officers, alleging constitutional violations at two different prisons. Because Civil Rule 20(a)(2) does not allow such joinder, the district court dismissed…
Date: October 2, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1479
Justia Opinion Summary: Waskiewicsz suffers from type-1 diabetes, major depression, and gender identity disorder She worked as a product design engineer for Ford from 1990 until October, 2010, when she suffered “a debilitating emotional…
Date: October 2, 2015
Docket Number: 15-5175
Justia Opinion Summary: Silver Bait operates, on 750 acres in Tennessee, housing, growing, and packaging bait worms for sale to retailers. Silver Bait imports baby worms from Europe and feeds and grows them in seven concrete structures, 540…
Date: October 1, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3146
Justia Opinion Summary: During the course of their marriage, Caroline, a citizen of Canada, made more than $75,000 in loans to Kimberly, of Ohio, which were never repaid. A federal district court dismissed Caroline’s contract and tort lawsuit.…
Date: September 30, 2015
Docket Number: 15-1076
Justia Opinion Summary: Twice in 2007, Johnson was charged in Florida with crimes involving robbery with a deadly weapon, and entered no-contest pleas. After his release and while on probation in Florida, Johnson moved, in violation of his…
Date: September 25, 2015
Docket Number: 14-4193
Justia Opinion Summary: Giorgio was the Chief Financial Officer of Suarez, a direct-marketing company. He and his boss asked employees to donate $5,000 each to political candidates, promising that the company would reimburse the donations. …
Date: September 23, 2015
Docket Numbers: 11-6323, 11-6322
Justia Opinion Summary: During a 1994 attack on his neighbors, Morris shot and killed the husband, beat and stabbed a teen-aged cousin and raped the wife, who survived. The gun was found underneath Morris’s dresser drawer. After waiving his…
Date: September 23, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2159
Justia Opinion Summary: Detroit police received complaints about drug activity at a residence and used a confidential informant to make a controlled buy. They observed as the CI went to the front door, but were unable to see the person with…
Date: September 22, 2015
Docket Number: 13-6174
Justia Opinion Summary: Olive founded National Foundation of America (NFOA) in 2006 and applied to the IRS for recognition of its Section 501(c)(3) status. That application was eventually denied He learned the “business model” as a development…
Date: September 21, 2015
Docket Number: 13-2489
Justia Opinion Summary: A Chapter 7 petition was filed against Connolly in 2001. Shapiro, then the bankruptcy trustee, initiated an adversary proceeding. In 2007, the bankruptcy court concluded that Shapiro and his attorney had breached their…
Date: September 21, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2115
Justia Opinion Summary: Max Trucking transports freight throughout the United States, maintaining a staff of six dispatchers at its Michigan headquarters. The dispatchers find jobs on websites and contact one of 76 truck drivers, including…
Date: September 21, 2015
Docket Number: 15-3614
Justia Opinion Summary: Colleen O’Toole is currently a judge and announced her intention to run for election in 2016 to one of the three contested seats on the Supreme Court of Ohio. O’Toole and her judicial campaign committee challenged the…
Date: September 17, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1848
Justia Opinion Summary: Fans of the musical group Insane Clown Posse, who call themselves “Juggalos,” frequently display, on person or property, insignia representative of the band. In 2011, the National Gang Intelligence Center—an…
Date: September 17, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3352
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2004, Akron administered promotional examinations for firefighters for the ranks of Lieutenant and Captain. Akron firefighters who took the examinations, but were not promoted, filed suit, alleging that the…
Date: September 17, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3989
Justia Opinion Summary: Cruz-Gomez was admitted to the United States in 2006 on a temporary work visa. He remained in the U.S. after his visa expired, and DHS initiated removal proceedings. Cruz-Gomez appeared with counsel, conceded that he was…
Date: September 11, 2015
Docket Number: 13-1761
Justia Opinion Summary: Cooperating witness, “DEA1,” provided information concerning Middleton’s heroin trafficking, including phone numbers DEA1 used to contact Middleton. DEA1 identified Middleton’s residence as the drug distribution point.…
Date: September 11, 2015
Docket Number: 13-2643
Justia Opinion Summary: Approximately 60 Grand Traverse County officers converged on Carlson’s house after calls from family members indicated that Carlson, who was armed, was alone in his house, threatening suicide. Hours after their last…
Date: September 10, 2015
Docket Number: 12-3825
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1991 Charlene filed a paternity suit naming McCarley as the father of her younger son. McCarley stated that he would kill Charlene before paying support. In January 1992 a neighbor found Charlene dead, with a strap…
Date: September 10, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1014
Justia Opinion Summary: Jones committed armed robberies in Michigan. Glenn was his appointed attorney. By letter, Jones asked the court to appoint a different attorney, but never requested to represent himself. On the first morning of trial,…
Date: September 10, 2015
Docket Number: 14-5720
Justia Opinion Summary: Churn, the owner of a Tennessee construction company, was convicted of seven counts of bank fraud stemming from two schemes in which he received bank loans ostensibly to construct houses, but performed little to no…
Date: September 8, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1894
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1993, the Patereks, owners of PME, an injection molding company, relocated the business from Macomb County to the Village Armada, after purchasing a former high school auto shop. The Planning Commission issued the…
Date: September 8, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2591
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1998, Eggersten's law office, an S corporation, established an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP), a retirement plan that primarily owns securities of the sponsoring employer. Eggertsen transferred his ownership to…
Date: September 8, 2015
Docket Numbers: 14-3771, 14-3772
Justia Opinion Summary: S.E., a developmentally-disabled woman, was forced out of her home at age 18. She and her daughter, B. age three, were often homeless and moved in with Defendants, who forced S.E. to clean, do yard-work, care for dogs,…
Date: September 4, 2015
Docket Number: 13-2439
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2001, a jury convicted Garcia-Dorantes of murder in the second degree and assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than the crime of murder. Before his trial started, Garcia-Dorantes failed to raise a Sixth…
Date: September 4, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1780
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2001, a jury of an unknown racial composition convicted Ambrose of armed robbery, carjacking, and felony-firearm possession. At jury selection, Ambrose did not object to the racial composition of the venire. In 2002,…
Date: September 2, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1373
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2007, a jury convicted Etherton of possession with intent to deliver cocaine. After exhausting both direct and collateral appellate review procedures in Michigan, Etherton timely filed a federal petition for habeas…
Date: September 2, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3997
Justia Opinion Summary: The Iron Workers negotiated a contract that required JD Steel to make contributions, on behalf of its employees, to the pension funds for local unions in which the employees performed work, amounting $10.00 for every…
Date: September 2, 2015
Docket Number: 14-5565
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2006, Shelton pleaded guilty as a felon in possession of a firearm. His conviction became final in 2009, and four years later he moved to vacate his sentence, 28 U.S.C. 2255, alleging that the 2013 Supreme Court…
Date: September 1, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3335
Date: September 1, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3387
Date: September 1, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3641
Justia Opinion Summary: An FBI agent downloaded multiple files depicting children engaged in sexually explicit conduct from Cover’s computer. Cover led guilty to distributing child pornography over the Internet, 18 U.S.C. 2252(a)(2). The court…
Date: September 1, 2015
Docket Number: 14-4023
Justia Opinion Summary: Most Medicare recipients must pay monthly premiums in addition to various co-payments and deductibles, 42 U.S.C. 1395. States that receive federal Medicaid funds must assist certain low-income Medicare beneficiaries with…
Date: September 1, 2015
Docket Number: 14-5703
Justia Opinion Summary: Federal law generally bars both state-convicted and federally-convicted felons from possessing firearms, unless their civil rights have been “restored” under the law of the convicting jurisdiction. Congress has rendered…
Date: August 28, 2015
Docket Numbers: 14-6286, 14-6285, 14-6287, 14-6288
Justia Opinion Summary: The 1976 Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act prohibits states from imposing taxes that “discriminat[e] against a rail carrier,” 49 U.S.C. 11501(b)(4)A, including: Assessing rail transportation property at a…
Date: August 28, 2015
Docket Number: 14-6287
Date: August 26, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2526
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2000 and 2002 the FDA issued warnings to Caraco, a Michigan pharmaceutical manufacturer, stating that failure to correct violations promptly could result in enforcement action without further notice. After follow-ups…
Date: August 26, 2015
Docket Numbers: 15-3776, 15-3775
Justia Opinion Summary: Ohio state inmate Jackson continually violated the terms of his parole. Facing up to 26 years behind bars, he filed an unsuccessful federal habeas petition in 2013. Jackson filed two more habeas petitions in 2015, but…
Date: August 25, 2015
Docket Numbers: 14-1558, 14-1553, 14-1554, 14-1555, 14-1556, 14-1557
Justia Opinion Summary: While Holland was in custody for a parole violation, detectives interviewed Holland about criminal sexual assaults that had occurred in the area. Holland asserted his right to an attorney and the interview ceased. Six…
Date: August 25, 2015
Docket Number: 14-4048
Justia Opinion Summary: The NEI Board administers a self-funded, multi-employer health plan covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. 1001. A Trust Agreement, executed by the participating companies and the…
Date: August 25, 2015
Docket Number: 14-6048
Justia Opinion Summary: Hayden acted as a confidential informant in a Martin, Tennessee investigation into felons in possession of firearms. Hayden contacted her acquaintance, Taylor; Hayden testified that he told her that he had stolen pistols…
Date: August 24, 2015
Docket Numbers: 13-6617, 12-6263, 12-6512
Justia Opinion Summary: Collins, Wilburn, Brosky, (Defendants) and others, were charged. Several entered plea agreements and agreed to cooperate. Defendants were convicted of conspiring to manufacture a mixture or substance containing…
Date: August 24, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2235
Justia Opinion Summary: Police received a report of a passenger repeatedly striking a female driver on 1-94, with a license plate number. Officers initiated a traffic stop, handcuffed passenger Baynes, and placed him in the patrol vehicle,…
Date: August 24, 2015
Docket Number: 14-6087
Justia Opinion Summary: Bradley purchased ratchet straps to use exclusively on a hunting treestand. In 2008, Bradley used the straps to secure his treestand, exposed to the elements, from early September to mid-October. Bradley then stored the…
Date: August 21, 2015
Docket Number: 13-2723
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, Catholic Church-affiliated entities, have religious objections to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, 42 U.S.C. 300gg-13, requirement that their employer-based health insurance plans cover all…
Date: August 21, 2015
Docket Number: 13-6640
Date: August 21, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2075
Justia Opinion Summary: Officer Lapham responded to a call for backup; another officer had stopped a car with expired tags when a passenger—16-year-old Robert—ran from the car, broke into an abandoned house, and hid. Lapham arrived as an…
Date: August 21, 2015
Docket Numbers: 14-3134, 14-3136, 14-3137
Justia Opinion Summary: His family was told that Benton, a pretrial detainee, died of natural causes in the Lucas County jail in 2004. In 2008, after an FBI investigation, family members discovered that jail employees had disconnected medical…
Date: August 21, 2015
Docket Number: 14-4168
Justia Opinion Summary: The Telephone Consumer Protection Act prohibits companies from making automated calls to a person’s cellphone without that person’s prior express consent, 47 U.S.C. 227(b)(1)(A)(iii). Hill claims he received more than…
Date: August 20, 2015
Docket Number: 14-4088
Justia Opinion Summary: The named plaintiffs purchased Align, Procter & Gamble’s probiotic nutritional supplement, and found that the product did not work as advertised—that it did not promote their digestive health. Plaintiffs filed suit,…
Date: August 20, 2015
Docket Number: 14-6205
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2000, Davis was engaged to Jennifer, who had an eight-month old son, Caine. Davis was not Caine’s father. On January 27, Davis was at Jennifer’s apartment. Caine was fussy. Davis grew frustrated and pushed Caine…
Date: August 19, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1274
Justia Opinion Summary: Keys was convicted in 2005 of second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit unarmed robbery, and assault with the intent to rob while armed. Due in part to his “habitual offender” status, the Michigan state court sentenced…
Date: August 19, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3932
Justia Opinion Summary: Powell pleaded guilty to drug and weapons charges, preserving the right to appeal his sentence. The court classified Powell as a career offender and sentenced him to 155 months’ imprisonment, near the low end of the…
Date: August 19, 2015
Docket Number: 14-5237
Justia Opinion Summary: Varsity manufactures cheerleading and athletic apparel. Its designers sketch concepts: “original combinations, positionings, and arrangements of elements which include V’s (chevrons), lines, curves, stripes, angles,…
Date: August 19, 2015
Docket Number: 14-5963
Justia Opinion Summary: The facts are based on video footage and Officer Byrd’s deposition. Byrd was on bicycle patrol in Elsmere, Kentucky, at 1:00 a.m. A Finish Line Bar employee approached, concerned about a man (Godawa) in the parking lot.…
Date: August 18, 2015
Docket Numbers: 11-3153, 11-3131
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1993, Muslim inmates seized control of cellblock “L” at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility, took guards hostage and locked inmates considered “snitches” into cells in the L–6 section. The Muslim inmates…
Date: August 18, 2015
Docket Number: 13-2234
Justia Opinion Summary: Kindl’s breathalyzer test revealed a blood alcohol level of .053. She was arrested for violating a condition of probation that she refrain from alcohol use. The video recording of her booking shows Kindl stating that she…
Date: August 17, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3437
Date: August 14, 2015
Docket Numbers: 11-3039, 11-3024
Justia Opinion Summary: Three-month-old Jiyen was killed when 11 shots were fired into his home in a drive-by shooting. Prosecution witnesses testified to overhearing Drummond discussing a retribution for the death of a fellow gang member,…
Date: August 14, 2015
Docket Number: 12-3212
Justia Opinion Summary: Volkman, a University of Chicago M.D. and Ph.D. (pharmacology), board-certified in emergency medicine, was in financial distress after lawsuits. Hired by Tri-State, a cash-only clinic, he was paid $5,000 to $5,500 per…
Date: August 14, 2015
Docket Number: 13-6273
Justia Opinion Summary: Simmons and 20 others were indicted for conspiracy to sell cocaine, 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1) and 846. During Simmons’s trial, the government moved to exclude three of Simmons’s co-defendants from the courtroom during the…
Date: August 14, 2015
Docket Numbers: 14-1120, 14-2500
Justia Opinion Summary: The six-month trial of former Detroit mayor Kilpatrick and Detroit contractor Ferguson, included almost 100 government witnesses and over 700 exhibits. The government’s main theory was that Kilpatrick and Ferguson…
Date: August 14, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1887
Justia Opinion Summary: On September 22, 2009, Henry and an unknown accomplice robbed a bank in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Their faces were covered, and they wore gloves. Clutching a BB gun, Henry jumped over the counter and demanded cash while his…
Date: August 14, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3754
Justia Opinion Summary: Anderson’s daughter, C.A., suffers from disabilities that affect her ability to walk and balance independently. A miniature horse enables her to play and get exercise in her backyard without adult assistance. Anderson…
Date: August 14, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3788
Date: August 14, 2015
Docket Number: 14-6344
Justia Opinion Summary: A group of men stole cash and marijuana from the home of an acquaintance whom they knew to be a drug dealer. Friends of the drug dealer, including Defendant, discovered that the first group was responsible and sought…
Date: August 13, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2216
Date: August 13, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2351
Justia Opinion Summary: Clay, diagnosed with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, spoke on the phone with his caseworker, who called Hazel Park Police to report that Clay told her he planned to commit suicide and that Clay had attempted suicide…
Date: August 12, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1670
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1996 (Free Press I), the Sixth Circuit held that the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552, requires government agencies to honor requests for the booking photographs of criminal defendants who have appeared in…
Date: August 11, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1617
Justia Opinion Summary: The American Civil Liberties Union Fund of Michigan sent letters enclosed in sealed envelopes to 25 inmates at the Livingston County Jail that were marked “Legal Mail,” included the name and bar number of a Michigan…
Date: August 10, 2015
Docket Number: 14-8026
Justia Opinion Summary: The Debtors’ chapter 13 plan provided for cure of any defaults and maintenance of regular monthly mortgage payments on real property, pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 1322(b)(5). The Bank failed to file a proof of claim and did not…
Date: August 7, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3507
Justia Opinion Summary: Yousif, a citizen of Iraq and a Chaldean Christian, entered the U.S. and applied for asylum and withholding of removal in 2007. The immigration judge adjudicated the claims four years later. By that time, the attorney…
Date: August 6, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1476
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2008, plaintiffs obtained a loan from Quicken and granted a mortgage on their property to Quicken’s nominee, Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, “MERS.” The note and mortgage ultimately were conveyed to Bank of…
Date: August 6, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3803
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner, a citizen of Mexico, arrived illegally in the U.S. in 1988. He has four times been convicted of driving under the influence, most recently in 2010. In 1995, he pled guilty to property theft. The maximum…
Date: August 6, 2015
Docket Numbers: 14-3971, 14-3970
Justia Opinion Summary: DiLuzio, owned Yorkville buildings that burned under suspicious circumstances. Fire Chief Klubert led the firefighting and coordinated with Mayor DiFilippo on a decision to demolish part of a building immediately,…
Date: August 5, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3347
Justia Opinion Summary: Best designs and markets exit signs and emergency lighting. Pace manufactured products to Best’s specifications. Best’s founder taught Pace how to manufacture the necessary tooling. There was no contract prohibiting Pace…
Date: August 5, 2015
Docket Number: 14-6439
Justia Opinion Summary: Ozier pleaded guilty to bank robbery, 18 U.S.C. 2113(a). The district court sentenced him to 168 months’ imprisonment, finding that he was a “career offender” on account of having at least two prior felony convictions…
Date: August 4, 2015
Docket Numbers: 14-5741, 14-5742
Justia Opinion Summary: Anderson was the girlfriend of Shakir, the violent leader of a Los Angeles drug conspiracy that operated in Tennessee and other states, 1992-1997. Anderson was active in the conspiracy until her 1997 arrest. Anderson was…
Date: August 4, 2015
Docket Number: 14-6296
Date: August 3, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3527
Justia Opinion Summary: Based on allegations of felonious assault on an officer, Cleveland police arrested plaintiffs at home in the early morning when plaintiffs were wearing only boxer shorts. Police refused to retrieve additional clothing,…
Date: August 3, 2015
Docket Number: 15-8004
Justia Opinion Summary: Henry filed a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Petition, without counsel. The Trustee objected to confirmation of his plan, arguing that the repayment period exceeded five years and was too speculative; there was no evidence Henry…
Date: July 31, 2015
Docket Number: 14-1722
Justia Opinion Summary: After obtaining terrorism convictions, then-Assistant U.S. Attorney Convertino came under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR). An unidentified DOJ source…
Date: July 30, 2015
Docket Number: 14-3978
Justia Opinion Summary: The Section 8 low-income housing assistance voucher program, 42 U.S.C. 1437f(o), is administered by public housing agencies such as Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA). Program regulations define “rent to…
Date: July 29, 2015
Docket Number: 13-2535
Justia Opinion Summary: Howell, Michigan undertook to refurbish and landscape its streets and removed a tree planted in the curb strip by Shoemaker. Shoemaker claims that when he protested, city workers told him “that’s not your property, you…
Date: July 29, 2015
Docket Number: 14-2224
Justia Opinion Summary: Shaw, a 39-year-old male Michigan Bell customer service representative, stopped working because of chronic neck pain. Shaw was covered under the AT&T Midwest Disability Benefits Program, under which short-term disability…
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