Fourth Amendment

Federal judge refuses to order reinstatement of 96-year-old federal appeals judge, her second loss in a week

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has refused to order reinstatement to new case assignments for a 96-year-old federal appeals judge who claims that the laws governing judicial disability are unconstitutional.

Feb 12, 2024 3:56 PM CST

Qualified immunity shield may depend on size and publication rate of federal appeals court, new report says

Qualified immunity “protects officials too much and our rights too little,” according to a new report by the Institute for Justice based on an analysis of more than 5,500 federal appeals decisions over an 11-year period.

Feb 7, 2024 8:47 AM CST

Arrested citizen journalist wasn’t ‘martyr’ for journalism, 5th Circuit says in tossing her First Amendment suit

Police and prosecutors have qualified immunity that protects them in a lawsuit filed by a citizen journalist arrested for publishing nonpublic information provided by a police source, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

Jan 25, 2024 9:24 AM CST

Judges ‘do not do double duty as sheriffs,’ 4th Circuit says in denying judicial immunity for home search

A West Virginia judge who led a warrantless search of a divorce litigant’s home is not entitled to judicial immunity because she engaged in a nonjudicial act, a federal appeals court ruled Monday.

Oct 31, 2023 1:29 PM CDT

Police shootings of dogs spark Fourth Amendment lawsuits, challenges to qualified immunity

An estimated 10,000 dogs are fatally shot by U.S. law enforcement officers each year, according to the Department of Justice. Some incidents result in lawsuits citing Fourth Amendment violations, including unreasonable search and seizure, and challenge an officer’s immunity. Some generate settlements of more than $1 million.

Oct 24, 2023 1:30 PM CDT

Standing by in case of ‘dystopian problems,’ court allows use of keyword search data to find suspects

The Colorado Supreme Court has refused to toss evidence obtained through a keyword search warrant that found people who had searched online for a specific address before a fatal arson at a home.

Oct 17, 2023 1:16 PM CDT

Louisiana man’s jokes about sheriff’s department are protected free speech, 5th Circuit says

A federal appeals court has ruled in favor of a Louisiana man who was arrested after posting on Facebook that a local sheriff’s department had ordered its deputies to shoot people who were infected with COVID-19.

Aug 28, 2023 11:43 AM CDT

Lawyer’s quest for warrant requirement for border cellphone searches rebuffed by 5th Circuit

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not violate a lawyer’s constitutional rights when it seized his phone as he entered the United States, sent it to a forensics lab to bypass his passcode, and obtained its data after using a “filter team” to protect privileged material, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

Aug 17, 2023 11:07 AM CDT

Lawyer who challenged border cellphone searches isn’t entitled to injunction, 5th Circuit says

A Texas immigration lawyer whose cellphone was searched at least five times when he entered the United States isn’t entitled to a preliminary injunction preventing such searches without a warrant, a federal appeals court has ruled.

Jun 22, 2023 9:18 AM CDT

Weekly Briefs: ‘Zero matrimonial knowledge’ judge gets reprimand; judge adopts AI policy

Judge sanctioned after disclaiming family law knowledge The New Jersey Supreme Court publicly reprimanded Judge Michael J. Kassel of the Camden County Superior Court in New Jersey on Wednesday for telling litigants that he was unfamiliar with their cases and with matrimonial law. In one case, he said he has…

Jun 2, 2023 3:16 PM CDT

Federal judge refuses to order reinstatement of 96-year-old federal appeals judge, her second loss in a week

Qualified immunity shield may depend on size and publication rate of federal appeals court, new report says

Arrested citizen journalist wasn’t ‘martyr’ for journalism, 5th Circuit says in tossing her First Amendment suit

Judges ‘do not do double duty as sheriffs,’ 4th Circuit says in denying judicial immunity for home search

Police shootings of dogs spark Fourth Amendment lawsuits, challenges to qualified immunity

Standing by in case of ‘dystopian problems,’ court allows use of keyword search data to find suspects

Louisiana man’s jokes about sheriff’s department are protected free speech, 5th Circuit says

Lawyer’s quest for warrant requirement for border cellphone searches rebuffed by 5th Circuit

Lawyer who challenged border cellphone searches isn’t entitled to injunction, 5th Circuit says

Weekly Briefs: ‘Zero matrimonial knowledge’ judge gets reprimand; judge adopts AI policy

Confiscation of man’s ‘Cops Ahead’ signs violated First Amendment rights, appeals court says

Passenger had First Amendment right to livestream traffic stop, but officer is protected, 4th Circuit rules

Six-week abortion ban violates right to privacy, South Carolina Supreme Court rules

Federal appeals court considers whether driver has right to livestream traffic stop on Facebook

2 Trump appointees battle as 9th Circuit upholds chalking tires; dissent accused of analysis by ‘hyperbole’

Topics: Career & Practice

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