February 28, 2025, opinions

Posted on by tadbartlett

Designated for publication

  • U.S. v. Bell, 23-50755, appeal from W.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (voting against en banc rehearing: Elrod, Richman, Stewart, Southwick, Haynes, Graves, Higginson, Willett, Ho, Wilson, Douglas, Ramirez, JJ.; voting for en banc rehearing: Jones, Smith, Duncan, Engelhardt, Oldham, JJ.); Ho, J., concurring in denial of rehearing; criminal, sentencing, en banc
    • Denying en banc rehearing of panel opinion (Elrod, Dennis, Higginson) affirming conviction of being a felon in possession of a firearm, but vacating sentence on district court’s failure to apply an acceptance of responsibility adjustment to the defendant’s sentencing level.
    • Judge Ho concurred in the denial of en banc rehearing, highlighting the propriety of members of the Court requesting an en banc poll even when neither party does–“to applaud my colleagues for reaffirming that judges may call for en banc whether the parties ask for it or not. They’re right to do so, because en banc exists, not to benefit the parties, but to further the rule of law. En banc exists, not because judges are perfect, but because we’re flawed. We all make mistakes. So there should be nothing untoward about reconsidering a previous decision of our circuit.” (Internal quotation marks and citation omitted).
  • Kerns v. First State Bank of Ben Wheeler, 24-40368, appeal from E.D. Tex.
    • Higginson, J. (Graves, Higginson, Wilson), bankruptcy, recusal
    • Affirming bankruptcy court’s and district court’s dismissal of debtor’s adversary action against bank that alleged violation of the automatic stay when the bank notified a ranger with the cattle raiser’s association that the debtor had sold cattle that had been used as collateral to secure a loan, holding that the bank’s notification of the ranger fell within the safe harbor provision of the Annuzio-Wylie Money Laundering Act.
    • The Court also held that the debtor had forfeited a colorable argument for recusal of the bankruptcy judge raised for the first time on appeal, where the debtor had known of the recusal circumstances since 2021.

Unpublished

  • U.S. v. Bazile, 23-10386, appeal from N.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Jolly, Jones, Willett), criminal
    • Affirming conviction of possession of a firearm by a felon.
  • U.S. v. Gonzales, 24-10452, appeal from N.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Smith, Stewart, Duncan), criminal
    • Granting Anders motion to withdraw, and dismissing appeal.
  • AIG Specialty Insurance Co. v. Agee, 24-30245, appeal from E.D. La.
    • per curiam (Elrod, Higginbotham, Southwick), insurance
    • Affirming declaratory judgment in favor of insurer on coverage dispute.
  • U.S. v. Alexander, 24-30303, appeal from E.D. La.
    • per curiam (Jolly, Jones, Willett), Freedom of Information Act, criminal, jurisdiction
    • Vacating denial of motion under FOIA for grand jury records, and dismissing appeal for lack of jurisdiction.
  • Reeder v. Hospira, Inc., 23-30684, appeal from E.D. La.
    • per curiam (Jones, Dennis, Southwick), product liability
    • Affirming dismissal of product liability claims for failure to prosecute.
  • Evans v. U.S., 24-40300, appeal from E.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Richman, Willett, Douglas), Federal Tort Claims Act, Bivens claim
    • Affirming dismissal of FTCA and Bivens claims by nursing assistant arising from adverse employment actions.
  • U.S. v. Silva, 24-40320, appeal from S.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Barksdale, Stewart, Ramirez), criminal, sentencing
    • Affirming 87-month sentence on conviction of conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens unlawfully present in the United States and harboring illegal aliens unlawfully present in the United States for financial gain.
  • Tinoco v. City of Hidalgo, 23-40543, appeal from S.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Higginbotham, Stewart, Haynes), § 1983
    • Affirming dismissal of § 1983 claims arising from arrest and investigation on witness-tampering charges.
  • U.S. v. Cantu-Ramirez, 24-40545, appeal from E.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Stewart, Haynes, Higginson), criminal, sentence reduction
    • Dismissing as frivolous appeal from denial of motion for sentence reduction.
  • U.S. v. Garcia, 23-40705, appeal from S.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Jolly, Jones, Willett), criminal
    • Affirming conviction of possession of a firearm by a felon.
  • Dodson v. ExamWorks, L.L.C., 24-50248, appeal from W.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Elrod, Jones, Stewart), standing
    • Affirming dismissal of chiropractor’s suit against medical billing provider for overcharging her patients, for lack of Article III standing.
  • U.S. v. Fulton, 24-50409, appeal from W.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Haynes, Higginson, Douglas), criminal, sentencing
    • Affirming sentence on conviction of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and for possession of a firearm by a felon.
  • Long v. City of Llano, 24-50663, appeal from W.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Jolly, Jones, Willett), Age Discrimination in Employment Act
    • Affirming summary judgment dismissal of ADEA claims.
  • U.S. v. Nanez-Lopez, 24-50766, appeal from W.D. Tex.
    • per curiam (Jones, Dennis, Southwick), criminal, sentencing
    • Affirming conviction and sentence for illegal reentry.
  • U.S. v. Hidalgo, 24-60409, appeal from S.D. Miss.
    • per curiam (Barksdale, Stewart, Ramirez), criminal, sentencing
    • Affirming 24-month sentence on third revocation of supervised release.