In U.S. v. Garza-Mendez, the defendant pleaded guilty to the federal crime of reentry after deportation by an aggravated felon in violation of 8 U.S.C. §1326(a). His deportation resulted from a prior conviction under a Georgia-family-violence-battery statute for striking his girlfriend. In that case, he was sentenced to confinement to…
In U.S. v. Elliot, the defendant was convicted of the federal crime of robbery and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. The district court in Alabama imposed a life sentence after determining that two of his prior felony convictions qualified him for a career…
The defendant in U.S. v. Rodriguez was convicted and sentenced to 120 months for conspiracy to commit the crime of federal wire fraud. He raised two issues on appeal. First he argued the evidence was not sufficient to support the conviction. The evidence at trial showed that from 2003 through…
Dwight Donawa, a citizen of Antigua, entered the United States in 1985 and became a permanent resident. In 2009 he was convicted in Florida state court of possession of cannabis with intent to sell or deliver in violation of § 893.13(1)(a)(2). After his conviction Department of Homeland Security began removal…
In the first U.S. v. Castro decision the Eleventh Circuit initially held that the defendant in this South Florida criminal case could withdraw his federal criminal plea because the district court violated Rule 11(c)(1) by advising Castro about the penal consequences of rejecting his federal criminal plea agreement. In that…
In U.S. v. Lang the defendant was indicted on 85 counts of violating 18 U.S.C. § 5324 which makes it a crime to structure cash transactions for the purpose of evading the requirement that a financial institution file a report with the Department of Treasury of a cash transaction by…
In U.S. v. Williams, the defendant was convicted in federal court of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in violation of 18 U.S.C.§ 922(g), possession of crack cocaine, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. On appeal he challenged the introduction of evidence…
In U.S. v. Edwards, the defendant was convicted of wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering arising out of an investment scheme in which Edwards promised investors astronomical returns of 75% to 800 %. Edwards claimed to own the First National bank of Georgia and he pitched his investment scheme…
In U.S. v. Madden the defendant was indicted and charged with a drug conspiracy. One of the counts charged the defendant with knowingly using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence and with knowingly possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.…
The defendant in U.S. v. McQueen was a corrections officer at the South Florida Reception Center in Doral, Florida who was convicted of conspiracy to deprive several inmates of their constitutional rights in violation of 18 U.S.C. §241, specifically their right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. McQueen…