United States v. Marshall Ayers, Docket No. 04-0103 (2d Cir. July 21, 2005) (Sack, Raggi, Hall) (per curiam): Some of us cynically speak of the “Rule of Severity” occasionally applied in criminal cases, especially when ugly facts are involved. The Rule is simple: Where a statute or rule can reasonably be interpreted in one of … Read more

United States v. Germaine Robinson, Docket No. 04-6664 (2d Cir. July 20, 2005) (Jacobs, Pooler, and Hurd, D.J.) (Op. by Jacobs): This opinion contains some interesting discussion about several issues arising in the context of revocation of supervised release. First, it discusses the type of notice that a defendant (a “supervised releas-ee”?) must be provided … Read more

United States v. Daniel Rodriguez, Docket No. 04-4157-cr (2d Cir. July 20, 2005) (Straub, Wesley, and Sessions, D.J.) (Op. by Straub): Ladies and gentlemen, we have a circuit split. In this decision, the Circuit rules that the crime of attempted reentry into the United States following deportation, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326(a), is … Read more

United States v. Avtar Singh, Docket No. 04-3324-cr (2d Cir. July 19, 2005) (Walker, Cardamone, Jacobs) (Op. by Cardamone): This opinion breaks no new ground. It simply applies a well-established rule — that vehicle stops by roving patrols near an international border must be justified under the familiar “reasonable suspicion” standard, see, e.g., United States … Read more

United States v. Rivera, Docket No. 04-5480-cr (2d Cir. July 18, 2005) (Walker, Jacobs, Leval) (Op. by Walker): File this one under the category of “Gee, I sure hope the defendant didn’t go to trial just to preserve this issue for appeal.” In this short opinion, the Circuit concludes that an inoperable gun (specifically, one … Read more

Green v. Travis, Docket No. 04-0426-pr (2d Cir. July 7, 2005) (Jacobs, Sotomayor, Hall) (Op. by Sotomayor): This case recognizes for the first time in this circuit that minority groups can be combined to form a “cognizable racial group” under Batson v. Kentucky. 476 U.S. 79, 86 (1986). Affirming the decision below, the Circuit found … Read more

United States v. Luis Agudelo, Docket No. 04-2223-cr (2d Cir. July 13, 2005) (Pooler, Parker, and Castel, D.J.) (Op. by Parker): Defense lawyers are generally well aware of the tactical advantages of filing a less detailed affidavit, rather than a more detailed one, from a client in support of his or her suppression motion. After … Read more

United States v. Perez, Docket No. 03-1445(L) (2d Cir. July 11, 2005) (Calabresi, Katzmann, Parker) (per curiam): In this very short per curiam opinion, the Circuit rules that even wholly intra-state phone calls (here, phone calls from one location in Connecticut to another) are sufficient to trigger federal jurisdiction under the federal “murder-for-hire” statute, 18 … Read more

United States v. Rowe, Docket No. 04-1142-cr (2d Cir. July 5, 2005) (Walker, Feinberg, Wesley) (Op. by Feinberg): This case primarily holds, in an issue of first impression in the Circuit, that in a prosecution for the crime of advertising to receive, exchange, or distribute child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2251(d) (formerly … Read more

Hernandez v. Greiner, Docket No. 04-1517-pr (2d Cir. July 1, 2005) (Newman, Leval, Cabranes) (Op. by Newman): This case presents the very narrow question of whether a defendant has a Sixth Amendment right to counsel at a discretionary second-tier appeal (specifically, an appeal to the New York Court of Appeals) after leave-to-appeal has been granted. … Read more