Appeals Case Law

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…

The First Circuit affirmed Defendant’s conviction and sentence without prejudice to his right to raise his claim of ineffective assistance of counsel in a collateral proceeding brought pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 2255, holding that Defendant’s ineffective assistance of counsel claim ought not to be aired for the first time on direct appeal. Defendant pleaded guilty to violating the Mann Act, 18 U.S.C. 2423(a) and was sentenced to a 327-month term of immurement. On appeal, Defendant argued for the first time that he received ineffective assistance of counsel. The First Circuit…

The First Circuit affirmed the district court’s dismissal of Appellant’s federal petition for writ of habeas corpus filed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 2254, holding that the district court did not err in dismissing the petition. In his petition, Appellant challenged his convictions under Massachusetts law for murder and other offenses, arguing that he received ineffective assistance of counsel, in violation of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The district court denied relief. Because Appellant’s case was adjudicated on the merits in state court, the Antiterrorism and Effective Death…

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant’s 109-month sentence for possession of child pornography, holding that the government did not violate the plea agreement in this case and that the district court did not err in applying an enhancement for knowingly distributing child pornography. Defendant entered a guilty plea to the charge of possession of child pornography. The district court sentenced Defendant to a 109-month term of immurement. On appeal, Defendant argued that the government breached the terms of the plea agreement by failing to advocate for the bargained-for sentence and that…

The First Circuit affirmed Defendant’s convictions and sentence for conspiring to defraud the United States and stealing government property in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371, 641, holding that there was sufficient evidence to support Defendant’s convictions and that the sentence was procedurally reasonable. Specifically, the First Circuit held (1) there was ample evidence from which a jury could have reasonably determined that Defendant was a knowing and willing participant in a fraudulent scheme of claiming eligibility for Social Security benefits and receiving nearly $100,000 in disability insurance disbursements to which…

The First Circuit affirmed Defendant’s conviction of being a felon in possession of a firearm an ammunition and sentence to time served plus three weeks of imprisonment and three years of supervised release, holding that any error was harmless. Specifically, the Court found (1) the district court did not err in denying Defendant’s motion to suppress evidence of the firearm; (2) the district court did not err in granting the government’s motion in limine to preclude Defendant from asserting a necessity defense; and (3) the district court committed a significant…