by Sapone & Petrillo, LLP | Nov 29, 2019 | Ed Sapone’s Decisions of the Week
In an otherwise quiet holiday-shortened week, the Circuit held, in an interesting summary order in Rosario, that the defendant’s guilty plea to possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-distribution conspiracy in violation of § 924(c)(1)(A) was not factually...
by Sapone & Petrillo, LLP | Nov 22, 2019 | Ed Sapone’s Decisions of the Week
Despite a handful of decisions from the Circuit this week, not much news. In its only precedential opinion in Albarran, CA2 affirmed the denial of what appears to have been a garden variety plea-withdrawal motion. The state appellate courts were busy, with reversals...
by Sapone & Petrillo, LLP | Nov 15, 2019 | Ed Sapone’s Decisions of the Week
A couple of interesting Second Circuit decisions this week, including Balde and Van Der End. In Balde, on rehearing, CA2 granted vacatur of a guilty plea based on an issue that apparently was not even raised in defendant’s initial appeal. Van Der End, one of the “boat...
by Sapone & Petrillo, LLP | Oct 18, 2019 | Ed Sapone’s Decisions of the Week
Factually inconsistent verdicts are almost never a successful basis for challenging a conviction on appeal. In United States v. Kendrick, the Circuit reminded us why the “almost” qualifier is necessary, finding that inconsistent indications on a verdict sheet relating...
by Sapone & Petrillo, LLP | Oct 11, 2019 | Ed Sapone’s Decisions of the Week
An uneventful week in the Circuit, with no precedential decisions, and only two summary orders in criminal cases, with neither offering defendants any relief or breaking new ground. In the state courts, the Court of Appeals released its first decision from its Fall...
by Sapone & Petrillo, LLP | Oct 4, 2019 | Ed Sapone’s Decisions of the Week
A few of the Second Circuit’s decisions this week returned to the frequent topic of what constitutes a crime of violence in its many incarnations in federal criminal law, including its opinion in Watkins, which dealt with the issue in the context of the Bail...
by Sapone & Petrillo, LLP | Sep 19, 2019 | Ed Sapone’s Decisions of the Week
In a week of routine summary affirmances, the Second Circuit showed surprising empathy for a WDNY defendant in Feldman. The Circuit went out of its way to fault the district court for summarily dismissing defendant’s challenges to the unfairness of the government’s...
by Sapone & Petrillo, LLP | Sep 12, 2019 | Ed Sapone’s Decisions of the Week
The Second Circuit returned to its mid-season pace, but this week’s opinions and summary orders offered no relief for criminal defendants, minus one exception. The Doe decision, an interesting one, recognizes and explains the right of a defendant to appeal the denial...
by Sapone & Petrillo, LLP | Sep 5, 2019 | Ed Sapone’s Decisions of the Week
This week the Second Circuit was constrained to vacate the convictions it had affirmed in Barrett. It also affirmed a suppression ruling despite a prolonged traffic stop in Wallace. Judge Pooler authored a rare dissent. The New York State appellate courts released...
by Sapone & Petrillo, LLP | Aug 29, 2019 | Ed Sapone’s Decisions of the Week
There were two interesting sentencing remands in the Second Circuit this week, and four reversals in the Second Department, including two from Queens Supreme Court for Miranda violations. Clearly, there are a lot more reversals by the NY State appellate courts than by...