D.C. Circuit Court

Absent federal worker who said he was busy at CIA is charged with $900K salary theft

For years, it appears that no one checked when a high-level staffer at the Environmental Protection Agency explained his absences at work by saying that he was busy with projects including top-secret assignments for the CIA. Now John C. Beale, 64, is facing criminal charges, accused of bilking the EPA…

Sep 5, 2013 10:20 PM CDT

Jesse Jackson and his wife tearfully apologize for misusing $750K in campaign funds, both get time

Updated: Disgraced former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. and his wife, who until recently was a member of Chicago’s governing body, tearfully apologized on Wednesday for misusing $750,000 in campaign funds to pay for luxury items and cover other personal expenses. The 48-year-old ex-Congressman from Illinois asked a federal judge…

Aug 14, 2013 5:25 PM CDT

Jailhouse lawyer who wrote winning US Supreme Court cert petition will soon clerk for DC Circuit

A decade ago, Shon Hopwood was a convicted bank robber serving time. Hitting the books in the prison library, he honed his legal skills and wrote, on behalf of a fellow inmate, a rare winning certiorari petition to the U.S. Supreme Court that a former U.S. solicitor general who later…

Aug 7, 2013 7:44 PM CDT

Judicial confirmation battle looms, despite deal on executive branch nominees

The Senate avoided a change to its filibuster rules in a deal this week that paved the way for the confirmation of three executive branch nominees. But the issue may surface again as President Obama presses for confirmation of his three nominees to the federal appeals court in Washington, D.C.…

Jul 19, 2013 4:19 PM CDT

Are lengthy concurrences boosting SCOTUS prospects for federal appeals judge?

Judge Brett Kavanaugh of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit is known for writing lengthy concurrences, and he stayed true to form in a decision on Tuesday for Comcast in a dispute over its handling of the Tennis Channel. Kavanaugh was on a three-judge panel that reversed…

May 30, 2013 11:10 AM CDT

Reports: AG Eric Holder vetted search of Fox News reporter’s personal email

The decision to issue a federal search warrant for a Fox News reporter’s personal email account was made by a magistrate judge. However, the Department of Justice said it was vetted at the highest levels, including by Attorney General Eric Holder, leading Republicans in Congress to object Sunday to having…

May 28, 2013 4:46 PM CDT

A filibuster dare? Obama reportedly plans three simultaneous nominations to DC Circuit

President Obama is reportedly planning a bold move after winning approval for Srikanth “Sri” Srinivasan for a spot on the influential U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. In a “more aggressive” strategy, Obama plans to nominate three people simultaneously to the federal appeals court, the New…

May 28, 2013 2:04 PM CDT

Is newly appointed DC Circuit judge destined for SCOTUS?

Washington litigator Srikanth “Sri” Srinivasan’s unanimous Senate confirmation this week to the nation’s second-highest court has some predicting a possible future as one of “The Nine.” Srinivasan’s appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is another shining moment in a stellar legal career that…

May 23, 2013 10:06 PM CDT

Feds secretly got warrant for Fox reporter’s email, claimed news-gathering was likely a crime

News that federal authorities had apparently looked at the personal email of the chief Washington correspondent for Fox News under a search warrant secretly obtained in a criminal investigation of his 2009 news-gathering activities elicited outrage Monday from media organizations and others. The warrant, which was both issued and unsealed…

May 21, 2013 11:50 AM CDT

AP complains of ‘massive and unprecedented intrusion’ by DOJ into reporters’ phone records

In a letter Monday to Attorney General Eric Holder, the Associated Press complains of a “massive and unprecedented intrusion” by the Department of Justice into its reporters’ newsgathering activities, contending that the feds secretly obtained two months of phone records on 20 lines used by AP journalists, including home and…

May 13, 2013 10:05 PM CDT

Poster rule requiring notice of union rights is struck down by DC Circuit

A federal appeals court has struck down a rule requiring employers to post a notice advising workers of their rights, including the right to form or join a union. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit struck down the rule in an opinion (PDF) issued on…

May 8, 2013 4:30 PM CDT

A ‘terrific’ DC Circuit nominee? Hatch backs Srinivasan, subject of Supreme Court speculation

Sri Srinivasan, President Obama’s nominee to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, encountered no opposition before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah was among the Republicans on the committee who appeared to support Srinivasan, report Reuters, the Associated Press…

Apr 11, 2013 12:05 PM CDT

Will Srinivasan be Obama’s next Supreme Court nominee? Hearings this week could be ‘dress researsal’

The Obama administration’s principal deputy solicitor general Sri Srinivasan appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee this week as he seeks confirmation to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. But much more could be at risk, according to the New Yorker’s Daily Comment blog. “The stakes…

Apr 9, 2013 6:39 PM CDT

Judge OKs pro se prisoner’s libel suit over legal publication’s recap of his case

Sentenced to a life prison term in 1983 after being convicted of second-degree murder in the slayings of two U.S. marshals, Yorie Von Kahl has apparently honed his litigation skills in the meantime. Unhappy with a summary of a judge’s sentencing ruling published by a Bureau of National Affairs Inc.…

Apr 3, 2013 5:14 PM CDT

Attorney General Eric Holder reports for jury duty in cellphone robbery case

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder fulfilled his civic obligation Tuesday and reported for jury duty in a Washington, D.C., courthouse at which he formerly served as a judge. His three FBI bodyguards waited in a hallway as the nation’s top law enforcement officer waited to see whether he would be…

Mar 20, 2013 3:00 PM CDT