Designated for publication per curiam (Wiener, Willett, Douglas) (oral argument on original setting, prior to Supreme Court remand); Federal Tort Claims Act On remand from U.S. Supreme Court, affirming dismissal of plaintiff’s tort claims arising from refusal to deliver mail, modified to be dismissal without prejudice. Lebene Konan alleged that USPS mail carrier Raymond Rojas … More September 3, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication per curiam (Smith, Haynes, Oldham) (no oral argument), criminal, sentencing, guilty plea On remand from U.S. Supreme Court, dismissing appeal of conviction and sentence in light of appeal waiver in plea agreement. Davantae London robbed multiple Wal-Mart stores at gunpoint in the Houston area. As part of his plea agreement, he waived … More August 19-21, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication Wilson, J. (Southwick, Graves, Wilson) (oral argument), default judgment, service of process, damages, Rule 60 Affirming denial of Rule 60(b) relief from default judgment. After a December 2021 multi-vehicle crash on I-20 in Mississippi, Cheryl Roberts and William Chambers sued KJ Win, Inc., a California-incorporated trucking company, alleging its driver negligently parked … More June 24, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication Stewart, J. (Jones, Stewart, Ramirez) (oral argument), criminal, sufficiency of evidence, testimony, jury instruction Affirming conviction of bank fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and making false entries in bank records. A federal jury convicted Ashton J. Ryan, Jr.—former President/CEO of First NBC Bank and Chair of its Board—of conspiracy to commit … More October 17, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Clement, J. (Clement, Engelhardt, Wilson) (oral argument), Title VII, employment discrimination, labor law, jury instructions, pleadings amendment Denying petition for en banc rehearing, but granting petition for panel rehearing and substituting a new opinion in place of the panel’s May 8, 2025, opinion; reversing the denial of Southwest’s motion for judgment as a matter of law … More October 14-15, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication U.S. v. Gomez, 17-20526, appeal from S.D. Tex. per curiam (Smith, Elrod, Oldham), criminal, sentencing On remand from the U.S. Supreme Court, remanding to the district court to reform the judgment to impose sentence under 8 U.S.C. § 1326(b)(1) (applicable to predicate non-aggravated felonies) rather than under 8 U.S.C. § 1326(b)(2) (applicable … More January 17-18, 2022, opinions
Designated for publication Echeverry v. Jazz Casino Co., 20-30038, appeal from E.D. La. Southwick, J. (Jolly, Southwick, Wilson), negligence, damages, sufficiency of evidence On petition for rehearing, withdrawing January 11 panel opinion and replacing with new opinion with same outcome: Affirming district court’s denial of defendant’s motion for judgment as a matter of law and … More Take the Fifth: Feb. 17, 2021 opinions
Designated for publication Ovalles v. Rosen, 17-60438, petition for review of BIA order Jones, J. (Jones, Smith, Elrod), immigration, equitable tolling On remand from the Supreme Court, denying petition for review of BIA order denying motion to reopen and failing to apply equitable tolling. The Court had originally dismissed the petition for review for lack … More Take the Fifth: Jan. 1 – 11, 2021 opinions
U.S. v. Omigie, 19-40526, appeal from E.D. Tex., designated for publication Higginbotham, J. (Higginbotham, Jones, Higginson), criminal, sentencing, guilty plea, forfeiture, supervised release Affirming conviction, remanding for determination of whether supervised release condition is consistent with oral pronouncement of court. Court held there was no plain error in the district court’s informing the defendant of … More Take the Fifth: Oct. 7, 2020 opinions
