October 4, 2024, opinions

Posted on by tadbartlett

Designated for publication

  • Dilley v. Domingue, 23-30914, appeal from M.D. La.
    • Oldham, J. (Ho, Duncan, Oldham), qualified immunity
    • Previously released as an unpublished per curiam opinion on October 1, 2024, this is now a published opinion attributed to Judge Oldham, affirming the denial of a qualified immunity summary judgment moved for by the defendant state trooper who shot the plaintiff at point-blank range in the back and paralyzed him from the waist-down. The defendant had provided statements during the investigation of the incident that were contradicted by video evidence from a nearby security camera (she had not activated her body-worn camera and her vehicle did not have a dash-cam).
    • Judge Oldham summarized the various fact disputes that prevented a qualified immunity summary judgment: “Here, there are numerous disputes of material fact that require us to affirm the district court’s denial of qualified immunity. Many of them come from Domingue’s own lies about what happened. She said she used a taser, when in fact she shot Dilley with a 9mm pistol. She said she fired from a defensive posture when she instead shot Dilley from point-blank range in the back. Domingue says she warned Dilley to stop before shooting him, but over the course of the State Police investigation, Dilley gave numerous conflicting statements about what she might have said or not said. And her various statements to state investigators about her subjective intentions and state of mind were also wildly inconsistent over time. Other fact disputes come from the summary judgment evidence. Dilley was unarmed when Domingue shot him, but she said she saw a black object in his hand; the video does nothing to clear up that dispute. Cf. Scott, 550 U.S. at 380–81. And Domingue says she felt threatened because Dilley charged her; the video undermines that assertion and shows Dilley running away before Domingue shot him in the back.”

Unpublished

  • U.S. v. Johnson, 23-10240, appeal from N.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Davis, Stewart, Southwick), criminal
    • Affirming conviction for possession of a firearm by a felon.
  • U.S. v. Brown, 24-40066, appeal from E.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Wiener, Ho, Ramirez), criminal
    • Granting Anders motion to withdraw, and dismissing appeal.
  • U.S. v. Johnson, 24-40188, appeal from E.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Wiener, Ho, Ramirez), criminal, sentencing
    • Affirming sentence on conviction of knowingly and fraudulently concealing assets during a bankruptcy proceeding.
  • U.S. v. Guzman-Hernandez, 24-40329, appeal from E.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (King, Southwick, Engelhardt), criminal
    • Granting Anders motion to withdraw, and dismissing appeal.
  • Texas v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 24-40571, appeal from E.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Smith, Clement, Higginson), intervention
    • Affirming denial of permissive intervention by immigrant and immigrant-rights groups to intervene in suit by various states against federal government arising from immigration-related actions.
  • U.S. v. Roberson, 24-50411, appeal from W.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Graves, Willett, Wilson), criminal, sentence reduction
    • Granting government’s unopposed motion to vacate denial of defendant’s motion for sentence reduction and to remand for reconsideration under § 404 of the First Step Act.
  • Denham v. Watkins, 24-60201, appeal from S.D. Miss.
    • Wiener, J. (Wiener, Ho, Ramirez), Americans with Disabilities Act
    • Affirming denial of ADA and No FEAR Act claims arising from Naval recruiters’ denial of plaintiff’s attempts to reenlist.