Tag: compassionate release

August 11, 2025, opinions

August 12, 2025

Designated for publication per curiam (Dennis, Haynes, Engelhardt), Engelhardt, J., dissenting; Title VII Affirming summary judgment dismissal of plaintiff’s Title VII claim of religious discrimination after defendant granted plaintiff employee a religious accommodation for flu vaccination requirement. Tisha Palms, a radiographer at Texas Children’s Hospital (TCH), sued the hospital for failure to accommodate her religious … More August 11, 2025, opinions

August 4, 2025, opinions

August 7, 2025

Designated for publication Ho, J. (Higginbotham, Willett, Ho), election law Reversing district court judgment that Texas election law requiring an ID number on the mail-in ballot application and on the mail-in ballot violated federal law, and rendering judgment for Texas official defendants. The Fifth Circuit upheld Texas’s Election Protection and Integrity Act of 2021, which … More August 4, 2025, opinions

July 28-29, 2025, opinions

July 30, 2025

Designated for publication Elrod, C.J. (Elrod, Engelhardt, Guidry, by designation), First Amendment, standing, qualified immunity Reversing dismissal of plaintiff’s First Amendment pre-enforcement challenge to Texas Election Code for lack of standing; affirming dismissal of claims against defendants in individual capacities as barred by qualified immunity; and remanding for further proceedings. The Institute for Free Speech … More July 28-29, 2025, opinions

July 21, 2025, opinions

July 22, 2025

Richman, J. (Richman, Willett, Douglas), Americans with Disabilities Act, sec. 1983, expert witness Affirming district court’s exclusion of plaintiff’s expert witness and grant of Rule 50 motion dismissing plaintiff’s ADA claim. William Carter, a paraplegic man, was jailed for eight days in the Shreveport City Jail for unauthorized use of 911. Prior to his incarceration, … More July 21, 2025, opinions

July 14, 2025, opinions

July 15, 2025

Designated for publication per curiam (Southwick, Oldham, Ramirez), criminal, sentencing, Second Amendment Affirming conviction and sentence for possession of a firearm by a felon. Joseph Terrell Goody, a known gang member with a lengthy criminal record, was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm after police discovered a loaded rifle hidden in … More July 14, 2025, opinions

July 11, 2025, opinions

July 14, 2025

Designated for publication Smith, J. (Smith, Graves, Duncan), Equal Protection Clause, Title VI, mootness Affirming dismissal of challenge to University of Texas’s pre-Harvard policy as moot, reversing mootness dismissal of challenge to post-Harvard policy, and remanding for further proceedings. The Fifth Circuit considered whether UT’s revised admissions practices complied with the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling … More July 11, 2025, opinions

June 23, 2025, opinions

June 24, 2025

Designated for publication Elrod, C.J. (Elrod, Higginbotham, Southwick), prisoner suit Affirming partial summary judgment that inmate’s sec. 1983 claim was Heck-barred, and affirming denial of motion for leave to amend. Torriana Clark, an inmate at Rayburn Correctional Center in Louisiana, filed a § 1983 lawsuit alleging that Lt. Lance Wallace used excessive force against him … More June 23, 2025, opinions

May 13, 2025, opinions

May 15, 2025

Designated for publication Graves, J. (Graves, Engelhardt, Oldham), breach of fiduciary duty Affirming dismissal of breach of fiduciary duty claims brought in a shareholder derivative suit by company’s shareholders against company’s directors. The Court held that shareholders must either make a litigation demand to the board or show demand futility by demonstrating that at least … More May 13, 2025, opinions

May 7, 2025, opinions

May 8, 2025

Unpublished opinions per curiam (King, Southwick, Engelhardt), criminal, sentencing Affirming 20-month sentence on revocation of supervised release. per curiam (King, Southwick, Engelhardt), criminal, sentencing Affirming conviction and 52-month sentence for conspiracy to possess heroin with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, maintaining a drug-involved premises, possession of methamphetamine … More May 7, 2025, opinions

May 2, 2025, opinions

May 5, 2025

Designated for publication per curiam (Higginbotham, Jones, Oldham), criminal, sentencing Denying motion to vacate sentence on conviction for illegal reentry. Luis Sanchez-Zurita was sentenced to 240 months for illegal reentry, with an upward variance based on his serious criminal history, including child molestation, failure to register as a sex offender, DUI with a child, and … More May 2, 2025, opinions