Justia U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

In 1998, Chuong Duong Tong was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death in Texas for killing a police officer during a robbery. After exhausting his appeals in state court, Tong filed a federal habeas corpus petition. He argued that his trial counsel provided ineffective assistance by failing to investigate and present mitigating evidence of childhood sexual abuse. He also challenged the trial court's management of the jury selection process.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit concluded that Tong's claims were without merit. The court determined that Tong's claim of ineffective assistance was procedurally defaulted, meaning it was not properly raised in state court and therefore could not be considered in federal court. The court also rejected Tong's argument that the district court should have granted a stay to allow him to return to state court to exhaust this claim. Additionally, the court found that Tong's challenge to the jury selection process was procedurally defaulted and that he had not shown cause to excuse this default.In reaching these conclusions, the court noted that Tong's trial counsel had conducted a thorough investigation, including interviewing Tong and his family members, and had retained experts to assist with the case. The court also considered the fact that Tong had used his peremptory challenges during jury selection and had not identified any biased juror who was seated as a result of the change in procedure.Therefore, the court affirmed the district court's denial of Tong's request for a stay, denied his motion for an additional certificate of appealability on his ineffective assistance claim, and affirmed the denial of his writ of habeas corpus on his jury selection claim. View "Tong v. Lumpkin" on Justia Law

In the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, the case concerned the appeal of Taylor Chiasson against an above-guidelines sentence imposed by the district court. Chiasson was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). He pled guilty to this offense. His Presentence Report (PSR) listed his extensive criminal history, including 14 prior adult convictions and 19 arrests from 2008 to 2020 that were either dismissed or had no recorded disposition. At the sentencing hearing, the district court varied upward by 25 months, sentencing Chiasson to 96 months imprisonment. The justification was that the guidelines did not capture the extent of Chiasson’s past criminal history. Chiasson appealed, arguing that the court erred by considering testimony by two non-victim witnesses and by relying on “bare arrests” in Chiasson’s record.The appellate court affirmed the district court's decision. First, it ruled that the district court did not violate Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 32 by allowing two non-victim witnesses to testify on behalf of the government at sentencing. The court found that Rule 32 does not restrict a district court’s authority under 18 U.S.C. § 3661 to permit testimony relevant to sentencing. Secondly, it held that Chiasson failed to show that the district court relied on any "bare arrest" records in imposing the sentence. The court found that the district court had ample factual support in the PSR for each prior arrest or conviction it referenced when imposing an upward variance. Therefore, the court concluded that the district court did not err by considering Chiasson's arrest history as it was not dealing with a 'bare arrest record.' View "United States v. Chiasson" on Justia Law

This case involves a dispute between American Precision Ammunition, L.L.C. (APA) and the City of Mineral Wells in Texas. APA and the City entered into a Tax Abatement Agreement ("Agreement") where the City promised to gift APA $150,000 and provide APA ten years of tax abatements. However, the City terminated the Agreement, claiming that the $150,000 gift was illegal under the Texas Constitution. APA sued the City for breach of contract, violation of the Texas Open Meetings Act (TOMA), and denial of federal due process and due course of law under the Texas Constitution. The district court dismissed all claims, and APA appealed.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's decision. It held that the Agreement was illegal and unenforceable under Texas law because the City's contractual obligation to "gift" APA $150,000 constitutes a gratuitous payment of public money. The court also dismissed APA's TOMA claim as moot because there was no "agreement" to reinstate given that the Agreement was unenforceable. Furthermore, the court found that APA's due process claims failed because the promise for the $150,000 gift was void and did not constitute a contract, and therefore, APA had no protected property interest in the gift. Even assuming that APA had a property interest in the tax abatements, the court held that APA's due process and due course of law claims still fail because Texas law affords APA sufficient opportunity to pursue that claim in state court. View "American Precision v. Mineral Wells" on Justia Law

After being involved in a car accident, Kenan Watkins filed a diminished value claim with his insurer, Allstate Property and Casualty Insurance Company ("Allstate"), which was denied. Watkins then filed an action in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, alleging that the denial of his claim violated Mississippi law. However, the district court ruled in favor of Allstate, holding that Allstate's policy did not violate Mississippi law and that Watkins failed to state a plausible claim, which led to Watkins' appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.In the background of the case, Watkins had an insurance policy with Allstate for his 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe. After the accident, Watkins' vehicle sustained substantial damages, and Watkins alleged that his car sustained an additional diminished value. Allstate denied Watkins' diminished value claim, relying upon a provision in its policy that excludes any decrease in the property's value resulting from the loss and/or repair or replacement. Watkins did not dispute this policy exclusion, but argued that Allstate's exclusion provision violates the Mississippi Uninsured Motorist Statute. Allstate moved to dismiss the case under Rule 12(b)(6), arguing that Watkins did not plausibly allege that the other driver's vehicle was an "uninsured motor vehicle" under Mississippi law, and that even if it was, Allstate's provision excluding diminished value is valid under Mississippi law.Upon review, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's decision. The court held that Watkins failed to make a plausible claim for relief under Rule 12(b)(6) due to insufficient factual content in the complaint. The court also held that Allstate’s diminished value exclusion is valid under Mississippi law and does not violate public policy. The court reasoned that Watkins had not pointed to any legislative or judicial pronouncement requiring that diminished value be a part of all automobile insurance policies. Therefore, in this instance, the plain meaning of Allstate’s policy controlled, and Allstate’s diminished value exclusion was upheld as valid under Mississippi law. View "Watkins v. Allstate Property & Casualty Insurance Co." on Justia Law

In this case before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, the central issue was whether a contract for the inspection and repair of lifeboats on an oil platform, located on the Outer Continental Shelf, could be considered a maritime contract. The relevance of this classification was that it would determine whether indemnity might be owed by one corporate defendant, Palfinger Marine USA, Inc., to another, Shell Oil Company, for payments to third parties. The lower district court had ruled that the contract was not maritime. However, the Court of Appeals disagreed, finding that the contract was indeed a maritime one. The case was related to a tragic accident in 2019 when a lifeboat detached from an oil platform, resulting in the deaths of two workers and injury to another. The platform was owned and operated by Shell Oil Company and its affiliates. The lifeboats were serviced by Palfinger Marine USA, Inc. under a contract which included indemnity provisions. After the accident, lawsuits were filed against both companies by the injured worker and the families of the deceased workers. These claims were settled separately, but Palfinger's claim for indemnity from Shell under the contract was preserved for appeal. The decision of the district court to classify the contract as non-maritime was reversed and remanded for further proceedings. The court held that the contract was maritime, as it was related to the repair and maintenance of lifeboats facilitating offshore drilling and production of oil and gas, which constituted maritime commerce. The lifeboats were found to play a substantial role in the contract, making it a traditionally maritime contract. View "Palfinger Marine U S A v. Shell Oil" on Justia Law

In a dispute over the classification of two Texas counties under the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) established by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld the EPA's decision to designate the counties as "nonattainment" for sulfur dioxide emissions. The dispute arose when the EPA initially designated Rusk and Panola counties as nonattainment based on data submitted by the Sierra Club. The EPA later proposed to change the designation to "unclassifiable" after it found the initial data to be potentially erroneous. However, in June 2021, the EPA withdrew the proposal and upheld the initial nonattainment designation. The State of Texas and Luminant Generation Company, companies adversely affected by the nonattainment designation, petitioned for a review of the EPA's decision. The court held that the EPA's decision was not arbitrary, capricious, or unlawful, but rather a valid exercise of the agency's discretion based on its technical expertise and review of complex scientific data. The court also found that the EPA did not misconceive its legal authority or fail to treat like cases alike in its decision-making process. View "State of Texas v. Environmental Protection Agency" on Justia Law

In this case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit dismissed an appeal by police officer Rudy Guillen, who was seeking qualified immunity in a lawsuit brought against him by Akeem Bagley. Bagley had sued Guillen under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging excessive force, unlawful arrest, and illegal detention in violation of the Fourth Amendment. The lawsuit stemmed from an incident in which Guillen had pulled Bagley over for a minor traffic violation and subsequently tased him. The district court had granted Guillen qualified immunity as to Bagley’s unlawful arrest and illegal detention claims, but denied it as to Bagley’s excessive force claim.On appeal, the court held that at the time of the conduct in question, it was clearly established that an officer may not use force on a suspect who is complying with his commands. Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to Bagley, the court found that Bagley had presented sufficient evidence of excessive force to defeat qualified immunity at the summary judgment stage. Accordingly, the appeal was dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. View "Bagley v. Guillen" on Justia Law

In this case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reviewed an appeal by Carolyn Johnson, an African-American female who worked at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center (LSUHSC) as an Administrative Coordinator. Johnson alleged that she experienced sexual and racial harassment as well as retaliation from her former employer, LSUHSC. The harassment claims were based on a specific incident involving a colleague, Dr. Jeffrey Schumacher, slapping her on the buttocks, as well as several other instances of inappropriate behavior by Schumacher in the months preceding this incident. After reporting the conduct to her supervisor and Human Resources, Johnson was temporarily relocated to a different workspace while an investigation was conducted. Johnson claimed this relocation was in retaliation for her reporting the harassment.The court affirmed the district court's summary judgment in favor of LSUHSC on all counts. Regarding the harassment claims, the court found that while Johnson had sufficiently demonstrated that she was the victim of uninvited sexual and racial harassment, she failed to show that LSUHSC knew or should have known of the harassment and failed to take prompt remedial action. The court determined that LSUHSC took action to separate Johnson and Schumacher in response to Johnson's complaint and began an investigation into the matter, which was ultimately substantiated.In terms of the retaliation claim, the court found that Johnson failed to demonstrate that LSUHSC's decision to relocate her was a pretext for retaliation. The court noted that LSUHSC provided a legitimate, non-retaliatory reason for her relocation, which was to separate Johnson and Schumacher during the investigation. Johnson did not present evidence to suggest that this reason was pretextual. Therefore, the court affirmed summary judgment on Johnson’s retaliation claim. View "Johnson v. Board of Suprs of LSU" on Justia Law

In 2022, the Department of Energy (DOE) repealed regulations, known as the 2020 Rules, that had created new classes of dishwashers and laundry machines with shorter cycle times, arguing the 2020 rules were illegal. Several states, led by Louisiana, petitioned for the review of the repeal. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled in favor of the states, finding that the DOE's repeal was arbitrary and capricious for failing to consider the performance characteristics of the appliances, the substitution effects, and the evidence showing that the Department’s conservation standards were leading Americans to use more energy and water. The court also noted that the DOE failed to consider other remedies short of repealing the 2020 rules entirely. The court did not reach a conclusion on whether the DOE had the statutory authority to regulate water use in dishwashers and clothes washers. The court granted the petition and remanded the case back to the DOE for further proceedings consistent with its opinion. View "Louisiana v. DOE" on Justia Law

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reversed and vacated parts of a judgment against EOX Holdings, L.L.C., and Andrew Gizienski ("Defendants") in a case initiated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC"). The CFTC had accused the defendants of violating a rule that prevents commodities traders from "taking the other side of orders" without clients' consent. The court ruled that the defendants lacked fair notice of the CFTC's interpretation of this rule. The case revolved around Gizienski's actions while working as a broker for EOX, where he had discretion to make specific trades on behalf of one of his clients, Jason Vaccaro. The CFTC argued that Gizienski's actions violated the rule because he was making decisions to trade opposite the orders of other clients without their knowledge or consent. The court, however, ruled that the CFTC's interpretation of the rule was overly broad, as it did not provide sufficient notice that such conduct would be considered taking the other side of an order. The court reversed the penalty judgment against the defendants, vacated part of the injunction against them, and remanded the case for further proceedings. View "Commodity Futures v. EOX Holdings" on Justia Law