Designated for publication Smith, J. (Smith, Clement, Higginson) (no oral argument), criminal, guilty plea, sentencing On remand from U.S. Supreme Court, dismissing appeal under appeal-waiver of plea agreement. Devin Chaney pleaded guilty to Hobbs Act Robbery (18 U.S.C. § 1951(a)) and Armed Bank Robbery (18 U.S.C. § 2113(a) and (d)), and in his plea agreement … More September 18-21, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication Oldham, J. (Wiener, Engelhardt, Oldham) (oral argument), First Amendment, standing, mootness Affirming permanent injunction against restriction on film projection, reversing dismissal on standing grounds of plaintiff’s facial overbreadth challenge, and remanding for further proceedings. University of Mississippi film professor John Rash sought to host PROJECT(ion), a free nighttime public art event projecting … More September 17, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication per curiam (en banc) (no oral argument at panel stage), criminal, Second Amendment, en banc Vacating May 20, 2026, panel opinion (per curiam — Haynes, Ho, Oldham; Ho, J. and Oldham, J., each separately concurring), and granting petition for rehearing en banc. Panel opinion had affirmed conviction of possession of a firearm … More September 14, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication Higginbotham, J. (Higginbotham, Willett, Ho) (oral argument prior to certification to state supreme court), statutory immunity, personal tort Upon receiving state supreme court opinion after June 25, 2025, certification of question regarding statutory immunity, reversing district court’s ruling that defendant had immunity and remanding for further proceedings. The Breauxs and the Blanchards … More September 9, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication Willett, J. (Stewart, Clement, Willett) (oral argument heard on initial review); criminal, guilty plea, Second Amendment, Commerce Clause Upon remand from U.S. Supreme Court, affirming conviction of firearm-possession-by-controlled-substance-user on guilty plea, rejecting challenge to appeal-waiver. Kenleone Joe Nyandoro was charged with possessing a firearm as an unlawful user of a controlled substance … More September 4, 2026, opinions
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 Higginson, J. (King, Higginson, Duncan) (oral argument), Duncan, J., dissenting; criminal, sentencing Vacating 46-month sentence on conviction of illegal reentry, and remanding for resentencing. Alexander Palencia-Berrum pled guilty to illegal reentry under 8 U.S.C. § 1326. His criminal history included three DWI convictions, an obstruction/minor-in-possession conviction, a domestic battery guilty plea, a … More August 26, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication Engelhardt, J. (Willett, Engelhardt, Douglas) (oral argument), Willett, J., concurring; criminal, Second Amendment, forfeiting argument Originally released a day before as an unpublished per curiam (though still with Judge Willett’s separate concurrence, re-released as a published disposition with the majority opinion attributed to Judge Engelhardt. Affirming dismissal of indictment of felon-in-possession on … More August 25, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication per curiam (Elrod, Richman, Willett), Willett, J., dissenting (no oral argument); qualified immunity, municipal liability Affirming the district court’s dismissal of all claims—both the individual-capacity claims on qualified immunity grounds and the Monell claim for failure to plausibly allege an official policy or custom. On August 29, 2020, Tara Fogleman-Laxey staged a … More August 24, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication Higginson, J. (Richman, Higginson, Douglas) (oral argument), criminal, sufficiency of evidence, witness testimony, evidence, sentencing, Second Amendment, Commerce Clause Affirming conviction and sentence on drug and firearms charges. Travis Enclade and Terence Wilson, relatives suspected of narcotics trafficking in New Orleans, were the subjects of a two-month DEA surveillance operation using pole … More August 17-18, 2026, opinions
