Designated for publication per curiam (en banc); en banc, First Amendment, Establishment Clause, Free Exercise Clause, ripeness, standing, sovereign immunity Granting en banc rehearing of June 20, 2025, panel opinion (Dennis, Haynes, Ramirez; Dennis, J., concurring) affirming district court judgment of facial unconstitutionality and preliminary injunction of state law requiring display of Ten Commandments in … More October 6, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Duncan, J. (Dennis, Graves, Duncan), Dennis, J., dissenting; criminal, pretrial detention, immigration Affirming denial of motion for pretrial detention. The majority affirmed the district court’s denial of Celia Ignacia Esquivel-Bataz’s motion for pretrial release, rejecting her argument that the district court improperly relied on an immigration detainer to find her a flight … More September 16, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Ho, J. (Haynes, Ho, Oldham), criminal, restitution Affirming judgment that defendant’s service-connected payments were not exempt from garnishment to pay restitution order. The Fifth Circuit affirmed a writ of garnishment on $46,084.49 in Christopher Allen-Shinn’s USAA account to satisfy $92,500 in restitution from his child-pornography conviction, holding that 26 U.S.C. § 6334(a)(10)’s … More September 9, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication per curiam (Southwick, Engelhardt, Wilson), criminal, First Step Act On remand from the U.S. Supreme Court, vacating defendants’ sentences that it had previously affirmed, and remanding for resentencing under the First Step Act in light of Hewitt v. United States, 145 S. Ct. 2165 (2025). Wilson, J. (Higginson, Ho, Wilson); Ho, J., … More August 18-19, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Stewart, J. (Stewart, Richman, Higginson), Higginson, J., dissenting in part; First Amendment, mootness Affirming district court’s preliminary injunction allowing plaintiffs access to park for religious ceremonies but declining to enjoin planned tree removal and cormorant rookery management measures. This appeal arose after the Texas Supreme Court answered a certified question, holding that … More August 13, 2025, opinions
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
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
Designated for publication Ramirez, J. (Dennis, Haynes, Ramirez), Dennis, J., concurring; First Amendment, Establishment Clause, Free Exercise Clause, ripeness, standing, sovereign immunity Affirming district court judgment of facial unconstitutionality and preliminary injunction of state law requiring display of Ten Commandments in all public school classrooms. In June 2024, Louisiana enacted H.B. 71, mandating the display … More June 20-21, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Haynes, J. (Stewart, Dennis, Haynes), criminal, Second Amendment Affirming conviction for possession of a firearm by a felon. In 2019, Texas authorities arrested Betancourt after he allegedly brandished a firearm during a domestic dispute and was later found with multiple firearms, ammunition, and body armor in his home. A federal grand jury … More June 4, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Higginson, J. (Elrod, Dennis, Higginson), First Amendment, sovereign immunity Affirming in part and vacating in part preliminary injunction against state entities to enjoin Texas law limiting information provided under managed vision plans, as an impingement on commercial speech, and affirming in part and vacating in part motion to dismiss on sovereign immunity … More May 23, 2025, opinions
