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Recent Articles from Geri Dreiling
Criminal Law: Domestic Abuse- Prior Conviction- Firearm
Where a defendant was charged under three subsections of South Dakota’s “simple assault domestic violence” law and only two of the three subsections qualified as a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence which would allow the defendant to be charged in federal court with unlawful possession of a firearm by a person convicted of misdemeanor domestic […]
Criminal Law: Domestic Abuse- Prior Convictions- Tribal Court
Where a defendant in a domestic assault case challenged the admission of the victim’s testimony about the facts underlying his prior convictions as well as evidence of his tribal court convictions, the testimony was relevant to prove that the convictions had occurred and that she was a spouse or intimate partner, which were required elements, […]
Criminal Law: Conspiracy- Evidence
Where the defendant conspired with two other men to steal commercial trucks, trailers and the cargo, the mere fact that the defendant rented a storage unit and had a key to the unit where stolen goods were kept was not sufficient evidence to convict him of aiding and abetting stolen vehicles and goods when he […]
Criminal Law: Arrest Reasonable Suspicion- Totality of Circumstances
Where the defendant was discovered sleeping in a van that was parked in a neighborhood commonly used by thieves to sell stolen metal, and it was parked in a backyard where two weeks earlier the police had arrested a man dismantling a stolen car, and after confirming that the van was not stolen, the police […]
Contracts: Non-Compete Agreement- Personal Services Contract- Assignment
Where employees who signed non-compete agreements and were sued by the employer, which had purchased their former employer as an asset purchase, summary judgment in favor of the employees is reversed and remanded because the non-compete and confidentiality agreements were not personal services contracts, so they could be assigned without the consent of the employees. […]
Civil Rights: Unreasonable Force- Prior Bad Act
Where an officer who was convicted of willfully depriving of another of the right to be free from unreasonable force challenged the admission of a prior incident, the prior bad act evidence was relevant to show that the officer acted willfully since he testified that he did not intend to hurt the victim, and the […]
Civil Rights: Section 1983- Exculpatory Evidence
Where a sheriff admitted that the murder victim contacted him several times about her estranged husband but failed to state it was five to 15 times and the defense attorney knew before his client’s trial that the murder victim had been physically abused by her estranged husband, that the murder victim had a restraining order […]
Civil Rights: Inmate Action- Deliberate Indifference- Dental Pain
Where a plaintiff who was arrested while recovering from dental surgery brought an action alleging deliberate indifference to his serious medical needs based on the officers’ refusal to provide him with any pain medications, the two days’ delay of pain treatment could be the basis of a constitutional claim, and the plaintiff stated a claim […]
Civil Rights: Due Process- Parole Request- File Photos
Where a defendant who was convicted of second-degree murder argued that the inclusions of photographs of her child victim violated her right to have her request for parole heard by an unbiased and impartial board, the due process claim failed because the defendant does not have a federal due process right to parole, and her […]
Civil Practice: Settlement Agreement- Res Judicata- Legal Malpractice
Where plaintiffs who claimed that their attorney negligently advised them regarding their bankruptcy leading to a settlement agreement and the loss of their property ownership, the plaintiffs could have argued a negligence claim in their first malpractice action, so claim and issue preclusion barred the claims, and the district court properly granted the motion to […]
Bankruptcy: Time-Barred Claim- FDCPA
Even though a creditor filed a proof of claim in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy on a time-barred debt, the proof of claim was not false, deceptive or misleading under the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act. Eleventh Circuit The debtor “urges this court to follow the Eleventh Circuit and extend to bankruptcy claims the rule against […]
Administrative: Failure To Exhaust- IDEA- Student Rape
Where the district court dismissed an action against defendants including a school district and its officials for premises liability and negligent supervision brought by plaintiff on behalf of an intellectually disabled minor student who was raped by another student during the school day, the dismissal for failure to exhaust administrative remedies under the Individuals with […]
Latest Opinion Digests
- Immigration: Asylum-Withholding of Removal-Appellate Jurisdiction
- Criminal Law: Child Pornography-Bottom-of-Guidelines Sentence-Substantive Reasonableness of Sentence
- Criminal Law: Child Abuse-Sufficiency Of Evidence-Closing Argument
- Civil Rights: Religious Freedom-RLUIPA-Res Judicata
- Civil Practice: Res Judicata-Stop Work Order
- Immigration: Drug Conviction-Removability-Overbreadth of State Offense
- Civil Practice: Asset Forfeiture-Sanctions
- Civil Rights: Due Process-Failure to State Claim
- Probate : Revocable Trust – Amendment – Reformation
- Employer – Employee : Unpaid Commissions – At-Will Status
- Criminal Law : Post-Conviction Relief – Effectiveness Of Counsel – Conflict Of Interest
- Appellate Practice : Jurisdiction – Final Judgment
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- 8th Circuit tosses suit claiming false sale prices
- Attorney general releases report on Kim Gardner investigation
- Legal Limelight: Jason C. Smith, Office Managing Partner, Spencer Fane
