A Roundup of Recent Federal Court Decisions

Please enjoy the latest edition of Short Circuit, a weekly feature written by a team at the Institute for Justice.

Peter and Annica Quakenbush seek to use their 20-acre property in rural Brooks Township, Mich., as a green cemetery and nature preserve. However, township officials banned all cemeteries to prevent them. This week, a state trial court emphasized that officials cannot prohibit legitimate land uses, ruling from the bench that the county is violating the state constitution. A victory for rational basis at the motion-to-dismiss stage? Eureka! Click here to find out more.

1. An EPA economist with severe allergies requests to be moved from a cubicle to an office with a door after a nearby coworker’s cologne causes reactions. The EPA refuses but offers the option to work from home. The economist prefers interacting with colleagues (minus the cologne). The district court deems the EPA’s actions sufficient. D.C. Circuit: Numerous facts warrant further discussion with a jury. Dissent: Working from home sounds like a good solution.
2. Allegations suggest that Fresh Line chickens and turkeys, raised strictly indoors, have product labels depicting birds freely roaming outside a barn. Does a member of the Animal Legal Defense Fund have standing to sue the Department of Agriculture over this misleading labeling? D.C. Circuit: The member’s knowledge of the label’s misleading nature undermines her claim of injury. Case dismissed.
3. Decades ago, zoning laws were used to target racial minorities. In present-day Cromwell, Conn., zoning laws are used to target individuals with mental-health disabilities. Second Circuit: Unlawful under the Fair Housing Act. However, the excessive punitive damages violate the Due Process Clause, reducing punitive damages to $2 million.
4. A driver pulls over to fix his malfunctioning GPS. A police officer discovers a legal pistol in the driver’s car and detains him for over half an hour. Second Circuit: Police cannot arrest an individual for possessing a lawful gun without sufficient cause. No qualified immunity.
5. One man is convicted of murder based on the reading of another man’s criminal information without the latter testifying. Third Circuit: A violation of the Confrontation Clause. Habeas granted.
6. In challenges to sex-offender registration laws, sex offenders generally lose. Fourth Circuit: Consistent with legal precedent, the sex offenders lose.
7. A Circuit split emerges over the legality of “geofence” warrants. The Fourth Circuit upholds such warrants, while the Fifth Circuit deems them unconstitutional. The issue may require Supreme Court intervention.
8. The Sixth Circuit opinion addresses the Social Security Administration’s org chart and the Appointments Clause’s impact on federal agencies’ actions.
9. A wrongly imprisoned man in Cleveland, Ohio sues the detectives’ estates and the city. Sixth Circuit: Claims against the detectives’ estates are time-barred, but claims against the city should proceed to determine if evidence was withheld unconstitutionally.
10. Crypto folks challenge a federal law regarding disclosures on digital assets. Sixth Circuit: Claims related to enumerated powers, Fourth Amendment, and First Amendment can proceed, while other claims are not ripe.
11. A security guard fired for a Facebook post sues for First Amendment retaliation. Sixth Circuit: The post addressed a matter of public concern and did not disrupt the workplace, resulting in a victory for the guard.
12. An officer’s use of force during an arrest leads to a lawsuit for excessive force. Seventh Circuit: Disputed facts require further examination by a jury.
13. Twenty-five states challenge an ATF rule reclassifying pistols equipped with stabilizing braces. Eighth Circuit: Preliminary injunction granted due to arbitrary and capricious rulemaking.
14. Iowa’s law restricting school libraries is challenged. Eighth Circuit: The law may have been enjoined hastily, prompting a reevaluation.
15. Minnesota’s agreement to protect the Canadian lynx is contested by pro-trapping organizations. Eighth Circuit: Consent decree found reasonable and fair.
16. Los Angeles police face lawsuits over excessive force during a high-risk stop. Ninth Circuit: Claims against individual officers can proceed, while verdict for the city affirmed.
17. Police intrusion into a driveway leads to convictions being challenged on Fourth Amendment grounds. Ninth Circuit: Protection of curtilage is a fundamental right deeply rooted in history.
18. A nonprofit’s claims against a social media platform are dismissed. Ninth Circuit: Social media platforms are not government entities, and the claims fail.
19. An interrogation in a Mexican prison leads to a habeas grant. Ninth Circuit: Ineffective assistance of counsel cited.
20. A collateral challenge to an illegal reentry charge results in an invalid waiver. Ninth Circuit: Dispute over the validity of the waiver.
21. A habeas grant is issued based on a jailhouse informant’s false testimony. Ninth Circuit: False testimony warrants habeas relief.
22. IJ files an amicus brief arguing civil rights plaintiffs are prevailing parties when they win preliminary injunctions. The Fourth Circuit’s ruling supports this position.
23. The Eleventh Circuit will reconsider a decision regarding health insurance coverage for sex changes.

New case alert! Indiana’s practice of seizing parcels en route for forfeiture has sparked a class-action lawsuit by IJ and a California jewelry company. Read more here.

New case alert! IJ challenges Florida’s ban on cultivated meat in partnership with UPSIDE Foods. Learn more here.