4th Circuit Court

4th Circuit judge rescinds plan to take senior status

A federal judge who announced in August that he would step down from active service has changed his plans.

Nov 29, 2021 9:34 AM CST

Senate confirms first openly LGBTQ woman to a federal appeals court

The U.S. Senate confirmed Vermont Supreme Court Justice Beth Robinson to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at New York on Monday, making her the first openly LGBTQ woman to serve on a federal appeals court.

Nov 2, 2021 11:31 AM CDT

DOJ agrees to pay $88M to settle suit over flawed gun check before South Carolina church shooting

The U.S. Department of Justice announced Thursday that it has reached an agreement to pay $88 million to settle litigation stemming from a 2015 mass shooting at a historic Black church in Charleston, South Carolina.

Oct 28, 2021 2:18 PM CDT

Weekly Briefs: Skirts-only dress code gets rehearing; ex-judge reprimanded for ‘sexual innuendo’

En banc 4th Circuit will rehear school dress-code case The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Richmond, Virginia, has granted an en banc rehearing to consider a challenge to a skirts-and-dresses-only dress code for girls. A 4th Circuit panel ruled in August that the girls attending the Charter Day…

Oct 22, 2021 4:07 PM CDT

4th Circuit vacates decision striking down age limit for handgun sales; is opinion still a ‘persuasive source’?

A federal appeals court has vacated its July decision finding that youths ages 18, 19 and 20 have a Second Amendment right to own handguns.

Sep 23, 2021 11:10 AM CDT

DOJ relies on ruling against Eugene Debs in seeking to block Texas abortion law

The U.S. Department of Justice is relying on an 1894 U.S. Supreme Court ruling involving American Railway Union leader Eugene Debs in its lawsuit seeking to block a restrictive Texas abortion law.

Sep 14, 2021 9:34 AM CDT

Law school clinic wins reversal of 1993 conviction based on prosecutor’s remarks about ‘trickster lovers’

A prosecutor’s closing argument about sadomasochistic “trickster lovers” made a 1993 sexual assault trial so fundamentally unfair that the conviction should be reversed, a federal appeals court has ruled.

Sep 10, 2021 10:04 AM CDT

Ineffective counsel at two levels entitles death row inmate to new sentencing, 4th Circuit says

A federal appeals court has ruled that a death row inmate in South Carolina is entitled to a new sentencing hearing because of failures by his trial counsel and appellate counsel.

Aug 24, 2021 11:55 AM CDT

School dress codes mandating skirts for girls may violate Title IX, 4th Circuit rules

Sex-specific school dress codes may violate federal education law, a federal appeals court has ruled in a challenge to a charter school’s skirts-only dress code for girls.

Aug 10, 2021 12:04 PM CDT

Ban on topless women doesn’t violate equal protection clause, 4th Circuit says; concurrence questions precedent

A ban on women going topless in public in Ocean City, Maryland, doesn’t violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Richmond, Virginia, has ruled.

Aug 5, 2021 9:37 AM CDT

4th Circuit dismisses Baltimore attorney’s suit against SPLC over ties to white supremacist group

Southern Poverty Law Center articles that publicized a Baltimore attorney’s connection to a white supremacist group are protected under the First Amendment, a federal appeals court ruled Monday.

Jul 13, 2021 1:45 PM CDT

Texas AG agrees to stop blocking Twitter users for ‘First Amendment-protected viewpoints’

The Texas attorney general has agreed to stop blocking critics on social media after a group of them alleged in court he was violating their free-speech rights.

Jul 13, 2021 9:55 AM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: 2 appeals nominees in latest judicial picks; axed dean will remain as law prof

Biden announces new round of judicial picks President Joe Biden’s fifth round of judicial picks includes nominees to two federal appeals courts. Virginia Solicitor General Toby Heytens is nominated to the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Richmond, Virginia. A former clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader…

Jul 1, 2021 4:37 PM CDT

SCOTUS lets stand victory by transgender man Gavin Grimm, former student who sued over bathroom policy

The U.S. Supreme Court has let stand a ruling that a Virginia school board violated the constitutional rights of Gavin Grimm, a transgender man and a former high school student, when it barred him from using the bathroom that matched his gender identity.

Jun 28, 2021 10:46 AM CDT

Spy plane surveillance violates Fourth Amendment, en banc appeals court rules

An en banc federal appeals court ruled 8-7 on Thursday that a warrantless aerial surveillance program run by the Baltimore Police Department violated the Fourth Amendment.

Jun 24, 2021 3:08 PM CDT