United States v. Hayes, No. 07-0063-cr (2d Cir. December 24, 2008) (Miner, McLaughlin, Pooler, CJJ) On the morning of September 3, 2002, Derrick Hayes overdosed on cocaine. After he was put in an ambulance, his girlfriend gave local police officers permission to search the house. They found evidence suggesting that Hayes was a large-scale drug … Read more
There were some interesting summary orders this week. In United States v. Romero, No. 06-1199-cr (2d Cir. December 18, 2008), the district court imposed a $10,000 fine, observing that the debt would make the defendant eligible for work in prison. That observation was incorrect, since a fine is not a prerequisite for obtaining prison employment. … Read more
United States v. Elgindy, No. 06-4081-cr (2d Cir. December 17, 2008) (Sack, Katzmann, CJJ, Rakoff, DJ) Defendants Elgindy and Royer were convicted of securities fraud-based racketeering counts, as well as related extortion charges relating to a complex stock manipulation scheme. On appeal they challenged, inter alia, venue and the district court’s jury instructions on the … Read more
United States v. Bullock, No. 07-3059-cr (2d Cir. December 17, 2008) (Jacobs, Minor, Sotomayor, CJJ) Bullock, a previously convicted felon, was convicted, after a jury trial, of possessing ammunition. He was subject to a fifteen-year mandatory minimum under the Armed Career Criminal Act (“ACCA”), and actually received a sentence of 188 months. On appeal, he … Read more
Here is the latest crop of summary orders of interest: In United States v. Adelson, No. 06-2738-cr (2d Cir. December 9, 2008), a government appeal, the court affirmed a 42-month sentence, which was a substantial downward variance from the guidelines, which recommended life. Citing Cavera, the court noted that for “financial offenses” sentences “if adequately … Read more
United States v. Chavez, No. 05-4679-cr (2d Cir. December 8, 2008) (Kearse, Calabresi, Sack, CJJ) Jaime Chavez was convicted after a jury trial of a drug conspiracy and a § 924(c) offense, and faced a 50-year mandatory minimum: due to a prior conviction there was a 20-year minimum on the drug charge; and, because the … Read more
United States v. Cavera, No. 05-4591-cr (2d Cir. December 4, 2008) (en banc) Gerard Cavera pled guilty to participating in a scheme in which guns were purchased in the South then transported to New York City for sale. At sentencing, the district court imposed a sentence six months longer than the top of the Guideline … Read more
United States v. Connolly, No. 06-3139-cr (2d Cir. December 4, 2008) (Straub, Raggi, CJJ, Sessions, DJ) Odell Connolly was born in Panama on April 21, 1968. His mother was a local, but his father was a United States citizen. They were not married. The father had been drafted into the United States Army in 1966 … Read more
United States v. Lee, No. 05-1684-cr (2d Cir. December 3, 2008) (Straub, Hall, CJJ, Haight, DJ) Here, a divided panel found that a Crawford error required a new trial for two defendants convicted in a murder-for-hire conspiracy, although the evidence was legally sufficient. Background Defendant Williams was the head of a crack-cocaine ring operating in … Read more
United States v. Salim, No. 04-2643-cr (2d Cir. December 2, 2008) (Newman, Walker, Sotomayor, CJJ) With the help of a cellmate, defendant Salim, while awaiting trial for the bombing of the United States embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, abducted an MCC guard and stabbed him in the eye with a sharpened comb, nearly killing him. … Read more