In U.S. v. Kopp, the defendant registered as a sex offender in the Northern District of Georgia, and then moved to Daytona Beach, Florida, where he failed to update his registration. A grand jury then indicted Kopp in the Northern District of Georgia for failure to register as sex offender.…
In U.S. v Watkins, the defendant appealed the court’s denial of his motion to suppress evidence in violation of the Fourth Amendment obtained by the government as a result of a warrantless search of his computers and its denial of his motion for reconsideration and to reopen the evidentiary hearing.…
In U.S. v. Vandergrift, the defendant was placed on three years of supervised release after serving a 97-month sentence for the federal crime of possession and distribution of child pornography. Before the expiration of a three year supervised release, Vandergrift’s probation officer filed a petition seeking revocation of his supervised…
After a brief hiatus, please find this Miami’s defense attorney’s latest entry, summarizing a recent opinion from the 11th Judicial Circuit. The opinion touches on topics and practice areas relevant to the Swartz Law Firm’s scope of expertise, including sex offenses and internet crimes. In U.S. v. Slaughter the defendant…
In U.S. v. Laist, FBI agents traced child pornography images to a computer used by Laist, a University of Georgia student. They paid a visit to the student’s residence to ask him for consent to view his computer. Laist then provided the agents with consent to look at the computer…
In U.S. v. Smith, the 11th Circuit found no Fourth Amendment search and seizure violation. Smith was charged with receiving and distributing child pornography in violation of 18 U.S.C. 2252(a)(2) and (b)(1) following the discovery of child pornography on a computer found in his home. Smith moved to suppress the…
In U.S. v. Daniels the 11th Circuit took up the issue of whether a conviction under 18 U.S.C. 2422(b) requires the government to prove that the defendant knew the victim was a minor. The statute makes it a crime for someone to use any interstate of foreign commerce to knowingly…
In U.S. v Woods the defendant was charged with violating federal child pornography laws. In his defense he raised Constitutional challenges under the Fifth Amendment and Sixth Amendments for failure to advise him pursuant to Miranda v. Arizona and he challenged the law the under the Due Process Clause for…
Again the 11th Circuit addressed a common sentencing issue facing Miami federal criminal courts as well as federal courts nationwide: whether a prior offense is considered a crime of violence under the sentencing guidelines. Defining a crime as a crime of violence will determine whether a defendant will receive an…
In this illegal reentry case the 11th Circuit once again faced the question of whether a prior conviction for a crime of violence triggered the steep sentencing enhancement imposed by the sentencing guidelines. The prior conviction in question here was a Florida conviction for false imprisonment. In U.S. v. Rosales-Bruno…