Year: 2019

The First Circuit affirmed the sentence imposed by the district court in connection with Defendant’s plea of guilty to a single count charging him with drug distribution in violation of 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1), holding that the sentence was supportable when viewed as an upward variance. Relying on a finding that a death resulted from the offense of conviction in this case, the district court imposed an above-the-range term of imprisonment. The court justified the sentence both as an upward departure and an upward variance. On appeal, Defendant challenged his sixty-month…

The First Circuit affirmed the district court’s order dismissing Plaintiff’s disability discrimination and failure to accommodate claims on summary judgment, holding that the district court did not abuse its discretion in partially striking Plaintiff’s affidavit submitted in support of his opposition to Defendant’s motion for summary judgment and that Plaintiff failed to establish a prima facie case of disability discrimination or a claim for failure to accommodate. Specifically, the Court held (1) the district court did not clearly abuse its discretion in striking Plaintiff’s inconsistent statements in his affidavit; and…

In this case alleging negligent design, the First Circuit affirmed the judgment of the district court in favor of Defendants on the ground that Plaintiff failed to establish the applicable standard of care, a breach of duty, and that the accident giving rise to this action was foreseeable to Defendants, holding that judgment was properly granted for Defendants. When a vehicle was driven into another vehicle parked outside a building, the parked vehicle crashed into the building’s open terrace, injuring several individuals sitting within the terrace, including Plaintiff, Plaintiff sued…