Justia U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

The First Circuit affirmed the judgment of the district court imposing two four-level enhancements and sentencing Defendant to sixty months' imprisonment, holding that there was no error in the specific components in Defendant's sentence and that the sentence was neither procedurally nor substantively unreasonable.Defendant entered a straight plea to possessing or transferring a machine-gun, dealing in firearms without a license, and possessing a firearm without a serial number. The district court imposed two four-level enhancements - one for trafficking and one for possessing a firearm in connection with another felony - and sentenced Defendant to sixty months' imprisonment. The First Circuit affirmed, holding (1) there was no error in the application of either enhancement; and (2) the sentence was not unreasonable. View "United States v. Bishoff" on Justia Law

The First Circuit dismissed these consolidated appeals involving the Defendant's request for retention of a seal of judicial records up until the expiration of his sentence, holding that the appeals were moot.Appellant pleaded guilty to crimes and was sentenced to a brief term of incarceration, during which the district court sealed portions of the record pertaining to Appellant's cooperation with the government. In accordance with local practice, the court ordered that the seal be lifted once Appellant's imprisonment ended. Appellant objected, requesting that the seal remain in place until the expiration of his term of supervised release. The district court overruled the objection but left the seal in place during Appellant's appeal. During the pendency of that appeal, Appellant violated the terms of his supervised release and was sentenced to a new prison term and supervised release term. When he was released yet again on supervision, a second appeal concerning the sealing order was pending, and the two appeals were consolidated. Before adjudication, Appellant violated the conditions of his supervised release for a second time and was sentenced to a term of imprisonment with no supervised release to follow. The First Circuit dismissed the appeals, holding that they were moot. View "United States v. Rydle" on Justia Law

The First Circuit affirmed the judgment of the district court convicting Defendant of conspiracy to commit export violations, visa fraud, making false statements to federal agents, money laundering, and smuggling, holding that the search of Defendant's laptop and cellular phone was a constitutional search.Defendant, a Chinese national, was stopped by Customs and Border Patrol agents upon his arrival to the United States after a trip to China. Agents seized Defendant's electronic devices for a further search. Defendant was indicted based on evidence during the warrantless search of his devices. The First Circuit affirmed, holding that neither probable cause nor a warrant was required for the search in this case to be lawful. View "United States v. Qin" on Justia Law

The First Circuit affirmed Defendant's sentence imposed in connection with his plea of guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine base and possession of a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon, holding that there was no procedural or substantive error.As to Defendant's drug conviction, the district court imposed an eighty-seven-month term of immurement, to be followed by a sixty-month term of immurement on the firearm conviction. The First Circuit affirmed, holding (1) the district court did not commit plain error in applying a stash-house enhancement; (2) any error in awarding one criminal history point for a prior offense that was dismissed under a diversionary program was patently harmless; and (3) Defendant's sentence was substantively reasonable. View "Unites States v. Melendez-Rosado" on Justia Law

The First Circuit affirmed Defendant's conviction of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with the intent to distribute fentanyl, holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on his allegations of error brought on appeal.After a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with the intent to distribute fentanyl. The district court sentenced Defendant to the mandatory minimum of 120 months' imprisonment. The First Circuit affirmed, holding that the district court (1) did not clearly err when it found that Defendant failed to establish an improper government motive; and (2) did not clearly err when it rejected Defendant's sentencing factor manipulation claim. View "United States v. Benito Lara" on Justia Law

The First Circuit affirmed Defendant's conviction of aiding and abetting (1) a carjacking resulting in death, (2) kidnapping resulting in death, and (3) the use of a gun during a crime of violence resulting in murder (count three), holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on his claims of error.Specifically, the First Circuit held (1) the evidence was sufficient to support the convictions; (2) the district court did not err when it did not provide a jury instruction on duress; (3) the inclusion of a potentially invalid predicate offense in the jury's finding that Defendant was guilty on count three was not a plain or obvious error, and even if it was error, it was harmless without any effect on Defendant's substantial rights; and (4) as to Defendant's sentence, the district court did not err when it failed to impose a downward departure based on duress and when it applied an enhancement for obstruction of justice. View "United States v. Rodriguez-Santos" on Justia Law

The First Circuit affirmed the judgment of the district court denying Defendant's motion to suppress the fentanyl discovered in his waistband during a pat-frisk conducted after an anonymous tip alerted the police department of two men passed out in a vehicle, holding that there was no error.In denying Defendant's motion to suppress, the district court concluded that the investigatory stop did not violate Defendant's Fourth Amendment rights and that the officers had reasonable suspicion that Defendant could have been armed with a weapon to justify a Terry frisk. The First Circuit affirmed, holding that there was no Fourth Amendment violation because the arresting officer had reasonable suspicion for the initial encounter, for extending the stop, and to believe Defendant was armed and dangerous. View "United States v. Harrington" on Justia Law

The First Circuit affirmed the judgment of the district court denying Defendant's motion to suppress evidence collected during the investigation that led to his arrest, holding that the district court did not err in denying Defendant's motion to suppress.Defendant pled guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of a minor. Defendant appealed, arguing that the district court erred in denying his motion to suppress evidence discovered after agents executed a warrant to search his residence. The First Circuit affirmed, holding (1) the warrant's affidavit established a sufficient nexus between the criminal activity and the places to be searched; (2) the district court reasonably found that no search of Defendant's person occurred; and (3) the district court did not err in denying Defendant's statements to law enforcement agents. View "United States v. Corleto" on Justia Law

The First Circuit affirmed Defendant's conviction and sentence for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and of possessing cocaine and cocaine base with intent to distribute, holding that there was no error or abuse of discretion.After Defendant was found guilty by a jury, the district court imposed a sentence of 168 months, thirty-one months above the range provided by the United States Sentencing Guidelines. The First Circuit affirmed, holding that (1) the exclusion of Defendant's mother as a witness was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt; (2) the district court's error in giving a flawed jury instruction on the felon-in-possession charge was not prejudicial; and (3) Defendant's challenges to his sentence were unavailing. View "United States v. Fletcher" on Justia Law

The affirmed the decision of the district court to allow the government to rescind a plea agreement previously entered into with Defendant and proceed to sentence Defendant to a 162-month term of immurement, holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on his arguments on appeal.Defendant pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing fentanyl. Thereafter, Defendant entered into a plea cooperation agreement with the government, which merged into and supplemented his plea agreement. Defendant, however, refused to perform under the agreement. Consequently, the district court rejected the supplemented plea agreement and sentenced Defendant to a 162-month term of immurement. The First Circuit affirmed, holding (1) the district court did not err in refusing to enforce Defendant's supplemented plea agreement; and (2) there was no error in the sentence imposed. View "United States v. Mejia" on Justia Law