7th Circuit upholds enhanced firearm sentence under ACCA
A firearm-related sentence that was enhanced by prior felonies has been affirmed, despite subsequent developments in the law that the defendant argued made his sentence inappropriate.
7th Circuit Court of Appeals
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7th Circuit remands one drug sentence enhancement, lets another stand
One of two men convicted as conspirators in an Indiana meth ring will be resentenced as a result of his appeal while the other man convicted in the scheme will serve his full 25-year sentence, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals held Wednesday.
Judge calls Notre Dame’s third try at avoiding contraceptive mandate ‘absurd’
At times describing the defendants’ argument as bordering “on the absurd” and noting the policies are already causing injury, the Northern District of Indiana has blocked another attempt by the University of Notre Dame and federal agencies to limit women students’ access to contraceptives.
7th Circuit reverses Indiana prison mailbox untimeliness ruling
A federal prisoner who struggled to file an administrative complaint through the prison mail system and was denied his complaint due to untimeliness has won a reversal from the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. The 7th Circuit concluded that the complaint was filed the moment it was placed in the prison’s mail and not upon its receipt.
7th Circuit: Birth certificates should list both mothers in same-sex marriages
Nearly three years after oral arguments, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has issued a ruling in Indiana’s same-sex birth certificate case by following what the U.S. Supreme Court said to do — find in favor of the mothers.
7th Circuit affirms denial of disability for obese woman
A woman seeking disability insurance benefits was again denied her request when a unanimous 7th Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that a sit/stand limitation in her residual functioning capacity assessment was not vague.
7th Circuit affirms $35 million verdict for Hoosier woman in pelvic implant lawsuit
Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Ethicon Inc. did not persuade the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse a multi-million-dollar verdict for a northern Indiana woman who was injured by a transvaginal mesh implant produced by the company.
Reversal: Indianapolis police immune in teen’s death linked to handcuffing
Despite multiple 7th Circuit decisions finding police at fault for injuring individuals by excessive handcuffing, a panel from the Chicago court has granted qualified immunity to two Indianapolis police officers in the death of a teenager because none of the previous cases specifically give arrestees the right to not be handcuffed after complaining about difficulty breathing.
PACER user group ready to begin work in February
Twelve individuals with backgrounds in the law, media, government and academia have been selected for the new PACER User Group, which will offer input and advice for improving the federal courts’ electronic docket system as well as other electronic public access services provided by the judicial branch.
Ex-Chicago cop wins resentencing appeal
An ex-Chicago cop serving time for drug-related convictions linked to his connection with the Latin Kings street gang will have an opportunity to have his request for a reduced sentence considered, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.
7th Circuit orders $1,000 sanction against Crawfordsville attorney accused of altering evidence
A Crawfordsville attorney accused of altering photos submitted as evidence in a slip-and-fall case must pay a $1,000 sanction to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. The attorney has also self-reported the underlying incident to the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission.
7th Circuit finds Indiana man’s debt collection claims ‘meritless’
A man who unsuccessfully sued a collection agency alleging the information provided in a letter violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act lost his appeal Monday, with a federal appeals panel finding his claims “meritless.”
Indiana asks SCOTUS for ‘urgently needed clarity’ in parental-notice abortion case
Calling on the nation’s highest court to provide “urgently needed clarity” to caselaw governing abortion laws related to minors, the Office of the Indiana Attorney General is asking the Supreme Court to grant certiorari to a case challenging Indiana’s “mature minors” parental notice law.
Civil forfeiture amendments don’t defeat prior forfeiture action, COA says
Legislative amendments to Indiana’s much-debated civil forfeiture scheme did not defeat a pre-existing forfeiture action in state court, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Friday, finding the amendments did not constitute an ex post facto law.
Year in Review: Baer death penalty reversal most-read IL story of 2019
A federal appeals court’s reversal of Madison County killer Fredrick Baer’s death sentence was the most-read story on the Indiana Lawyer’s digital edition, www.theindianalawyer.com. Indiana Lawyer readers clicked on stories on our website more than 2.6 million times between Jan. 1 and Dec. 10, 2019, according to Google Analytics. Here are the 50 most-viewed story headlines during that time.
7th Circuit largely affirms for law enforcement in Carmel ‘pill mill’ case
Law enforcement who charged physicians and staff in an Indiana pill mill investigation will not face a suit from the cleared defendants, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled, with the exception of an employee who worked as a parking lot attendant.
7th Circuit: Officer who broke resisting arrestee’s leg entitled to qualified immunity
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed an Indianapolis police officer is entitled to qualified immunity in a federal civil-rights lawsuit filed after he took down a handcuffed man, fracturing the suspect’s leg in the process.
7th Circuit order would have allowed federal execution
Though a Supreme Court order ultimately prevented the government from executing an Indiana inmate on Monday, an earlier 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling would have allowed the execution to proceed as scheduled.
Lawsuits hatch from egg contract that spoiled
Less than a month after an Indiana jury delivered a $1.46 million verdict against Evansville-based Rexing Quality Eggs, the contract dispute was still going, with the parties arguing at the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals over the return of plastic egg packing materials.
Willful wrong? SCOTUS to resolve circuit split on profits
Among the circuit courts of appeal, there is an even split between the 1st, 2nd, 8th, 9th, 10th and Washington, D.C., circuits and the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th and 11th over whether the Lanham Act requires “willful” infringement before a plaintiff can recover profits. The United States Supreme Court is set to bring clarity to the circuit split when it hears arguments in Romag Fasteners Inc. v. Fossil Inc., 18-1233, next month.