Summary of Recent Federal Court Decisions

Enjoy the latest version Short circuita weekly feature written by people from the Justice Institute.

NEW CASE! Last year, authorities in Macon-Bibb County, Georgia, demolished the home of IJ client Eric Arnold without any notice or court proceedings of any kind. It was one of 800 homes demolished in the county over the past three years as part of a secret law enforcement program that lacked even the most basic due process safeguards. Eric had been renovating the home with the intention of giving it to a family member. Although there was still work to be done, the yard was neat and tidy, the exterior was clean, and the home was in much better condition than when he purchased it. click here For more information, please click here.

NEW CASE! In 2022, police officers in Broward County, Florida arrested IJ’s client, Jennifer Heath Box, on an arrest warrant for a woman who shared a similar name but was completely different in many ways, including her age, address, Social Security number, and driver’s license number. (It was later discovered that a Texas police officer had mistakenly included Jennifer’s driver’s license photo on the arrest warrant.) She spent three days in jail in horrible conditions, including strip searches, freezing temperatures, and male inmates repeatedly trying to enter her cell when she was alone.”[The officer] “He had plenty of evidence that he misjudged Jennifer, but he either ignored that evidence or knowingly misled other Broward County officials,” said IJ attorney Jared McClain. “When government officials overlook clear evidence and arrest the wrong person, we must be able to hold them accountable.” click here For more information, please click here.

1. The Ecuadorian national is challenging his conviction for illegally re-entering the United States on the grounds that his original deportation was unlawful and that the re-entry ban was enacted for racially motivated reasons. Second CircuitHis first dismissal was legal, and the legislative history of the act contains a shocking comment. One congressman wrote, 1952“I’m not a Hitler follower, but there’s something there” – this view is not shared by everyone in parliament.
2. “Ghislaine’s Are you in prison? Second Circuit: And she will stay there.
3. Fifth Circuit: Judicial estoppel means that if you argue that the trust agreement is a contract for purposes of a motion to dismiss, summary judgment cannot defeat that argument. Dissent: Speaking of binding people on what they say, the district court has said nothing about judicial estoppel, so why should we?
4. After news broke that NFL Hall of Famer and once-crazy idiot Brett Favre was in hot water for allegedly misusing public funds, he was extremely upset by some phrases uttered by fellow Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe on his radio show. One of them was, “What I take issue with in this situation is that you have to be a pathetic person to steal from the worst of people.” Pathetic or not, Favre sued Sharpe for defamation. The district court said, “It’s all just rhetorical hyperbole,” and the suit was dismissed. Fifth Circuit: Perhaps, but Sharp was expressing an opinion or simply relying on “publicly known facts,” so I affirm.
5. A University of Tennessee pharmacy student posted comments on social media under an account that did not identify her as a student at the school, but someone at the school found out and took offense, calling them “sexual,” “vulgar,” and “profanity.” She was reprimanded twice, and on the second occasion was recommended for expulsion by the school’s board of governors (though she successfully appealed). Did school officials unconstitutionally retaliate against her based on what she said? Sixth CircuitShe has asserted sufficient claims at this stage to avoid qualified immunity.
6. School officials in Springfield, Missouri, are forced to attend “equity training” and take online quizzes that repeat the district’s positions, even if they disagree. When officials express positions such as “Kyle Rittenhouse acted in self-defense,” they are told they’re “wrong” and “confused.” Several officials filed a lawsuit alleging their First Amendment rights were violated. District court: This is not only wrong, but so frivolous that the school district must pay attorney’s fees. 8th Circuit: That’s wrong, but it’s not true. that You’re wrong.
7. The temperamental senator from Oregon was ordered to give 12 hours’ notice before entering the state Capitol after making threatening comments in 2019. He filed a lawsuit seeking retaliation under the First Amendment after his successful visit to the Senate. 9th Circuit (2022), he wins in district court. 9th Circuit (2024, unpublished): No one knows if he is right or wrong, but the principles of qualified immunity and standing render this firebrand’s arguments moot.
8. Police officers at a George Floyd protest in Salem, Oregon Suspected fire A rubber bullet was fired into the crowd, hitting a protester in the eye (ending her promising college athlete career). Officer: I did not fire into the crowd. She must have been injured by other protesters. Juror: Don’t believe that, give her $1 million. District Judge: Qualified immunity! 9th Circuit (Unpublished): No QI. I’ll pay.
9. For those looking for a Title VII case dealing with “sex-plus” (also known as “intersectional”) claims or mixed-motive theories of liability, there is a lot going on in this case. 11th Circuit The lawsuit was unsuccessful, even though the older women lost their lawsuits for discrimination and retaliation.
10. Allegations: Georgia state police stopped a truck driver, detained him for 91 minutes, questioned him extensively about his religion, and searched his truck without his consent — all because the driver was on the FBI’s no-fly list, despite an FBI notice instructing officers not to detain anyone for being on the list. 11th Circuit: This notice asserts facts that should be obvious: that there was no reasonable suspicion (much less probable cause) to take such action. There is no qualified immunity.
11. A pastor was fired and removed from a volunteer missions program at Polk County Jail in Georgia after a dispute with prison officials over baptism. The pastor sued two prison officials, alleging that his removal from the program was retaliatory, based on the officials’ unlimited discretion, and violated his free speech rights. 11th Circuit (In part to dissent): The Minister engaged in protected speech, and the officials’ unlimited discretion to deny program participation violates the First Amendment. The officials have no QI on either claim. Reverse and remand.
12. Are city council meetings in Homestead, Florida a traditional public forum, a limited public forum, a closed forum, or something else? 11th Circuit (En banc) While our precedent departs significantly from Supreme Court precedent, we now confirm that it is a limited public forum, and therefore any future removal of Plaintiff (a self-described “civic activist” who has previously been kicked out for giving the middle finger, grabbing crotch, and yelling abuse) must be viewpoint-neutral and reasonably tailored.
13. among them 11th CircuitJudge Newsom expressed well-founded “suspicions.”[n] The Court’s contrived abstention rule, in substance if not in form, deprives the Federal courts of jurisdiction expressly recognized by the Constitution and expressly granted by Congress.” Unfortunately, that’s the dissent.
14. And in the Supreme Court news: 9th Circuit No second thoughts The decision The Suquamish Tribal Court ruled that it had subject matter jurisdiction over the tribe’s lawsuit for breach of contract regarding insurance claims for business losses, tax revenues and other expenses incurred by the shutdown of business activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixteen justices issued statements defending the dismissal, and six dissented. Somewhere along the line, Neil Gorsuch began drooling.

Victory! Friends, if you’ve been reading this little newsletter for a while, you’ll remember the three lawsuits the IJ filed against the FBI for raiding a safe deposit box company in Beverly Hills, California, lying to a judge, and seizing hundreds of millions of dollars from safe deposit box owners who hadn’t been charged with any crime. Earlier this year, Case #1the 9th Circuit Court ruled that the raid violated the Fourth Amendment. And this week, Case 3The federal government, after its incompetent asset management practices (described by one FBI evidence technician as “fraud”) came to light, decided to cave in, meaning IJ client Don Melane will be compensated for 63 unsecured gold coins that went missing. (A judge also ordered the government to pay $21,000 for obstructing discovery.) click here Please see below for details. Case #2is pending in the DC circuit.