9th Circuit Court of Appeals

Opinions Filed in November 2015

Nozzi v. Hacla

Section 8 beneficiaries of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 have a due process property interest in their benefits.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Administrative Law

Transbay Auto Service v. Chevron USA

When a party is vaguely aware of the contents of a writing, the party can adopt the writing as the party’s own statement under Federal Rule of Evidence 801(d)(2)(B), and is therefore not hearsay.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Evidence

United States v. Bare

Under United States Sentencing Guidelines § 2K2.1(b)(6)(B), a 4-level enhancement is appropriate when the defendant used or possessed any firearm or ammunition in connection with another felony offense.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Sentencing

Ramirez v. Cty. of San Bernardino

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 15 does not require that the matter of course amendment be exhausted before an amendment may be made pursuant to 15(a)(2).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Civil Procedure

Shirley v. Yates

Where a prosecutor cannot remember the reason why he struck certain venirememebers, if he/she testifies both to his/her general jury selection approach and that he/she is confident that a race-neutral preference was the actual reason for the strike, it is sufficient circumstantial evidence to satisfy Batson Step Two.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Habeas Corpus

Bringas-Rodriguez v. Lynch

Courts will uphold the Board of Immigration Appeals’ decisions regarding asylum, withholding of removal, and Convention Against Torture protection when substantial evidence for reversal is lacking.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Immigration

United State v. Garcia-Jimenez

Where a state statute’s required mens rea is more broad than a federal statute, the crime will not constitute a crime of violence; a crime-of-violence sentencing enhancement will therefore be improper.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

I.R. v. Los Angeles USD

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, school districts are required to initiate a due process hearing when the school district and parent disagree over the appropriate education program for a child who falls under the Act if the school district finds that the proposed special education program is necessary to the overall education needs of the child.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Disability Law

NLRB v. Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Mkt.

A party must file a petition to revoke a subpoena if it wants to make a claim that the subpoena has a defect, and therefore, is insufficient.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Administrative Law

Jones v. Davis

Federal courts may not consider novel constitutional theories on habeas review, without considering all parties’ arguments regarding exhaustion.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Habeas Corpus

Public Integrity Alliance, Inc. v. City of Tucson

Primary and general elections are “two parts of a ‘unitary’ process.” Thus, where a citizen is denied the right to vote in the primary election, that citizen’s right to vote in the general election is pointless.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Civil Rights § 1983

United States v. Falcon

The repeal of the statute of limitations for federally guaranteed student loan collection does not violate a student loan debtor’s due process rights.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Constitutional Law

Zapien v. Martel

A criminal conviction will not be overturned unless a state appellate court is objectively unreasonable in finding that a trial court's determination of trustworthiness was supported by the evidence and a defendant's Confrontation Rights are not violated when a trial court admits statements made by a witness at a preliminary hearing, who refuses to testify at trial, because preliminary hearing testimony is sufficiently reliable.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Habeas Corpus

Tohono O’odham Nation v. State of Arizona

Obstacle preemption analysis calls for an examination of the federal statute as a whole and an identification of the purpose and intended effects of the statute to determine if a challenged state statute creates an obstacle to the accomplishment and execution of the objectives of Congress.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Indian Law

United States v. Dreyer

The Posse Comitatus Act’s prohibitions against the use of the military to directly assist civil law enforcement activities applies to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and its civilian agents.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

United States v. Galan

When calculating the amount of restitution charged to a defendant who was convicted of distribution or possession of child pornography, the losses caused by the original abuse of the victim should be disaggregated from the losses caused by the ongoing distribution and possession of images of that original abuse.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

United States v. Kowalczyk

Amicus counsel that provides meaningful adversarial testing of the prosecution’s case satisfies a defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to counsel.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

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