In August 2020, a joint federal task force between the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Cincinnati Police Department (CPD) attempted to arrest Mason Meyer. While fleeing from CPD officers, Meyer crashed into a restaurant, killing Gayle and Raymond Laible and severely injuring Steven and Maribeth Klein. The Laibles’ estate and the Kleins filed a lawsuit alleging that three CPD officers were negligent in their execution of the high-speed car chase. The officers claimed they were federal employees and therefore immune from common-law tort actions due to their participation in the federal task force. The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that CPD Sergeant Donald Scalf was a federal employee acting within the scope of his employment during the chase and therefore immune under the Westfall Act. However, it affirmed the district court's denial of immunity for Sergeant Timothy Lanter and Officer Brett Thomas, as they were not federal employees at the time of the incident. View "Laible v. Lanter" on Justia Law

The case revolves around Leopoldo Alvarado, who sought to terminate his duty to register as a sex offender after having registered for at least ten years, pursuant to Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 7-19-304 of the Wyoming Sex Offender Registration Act. The District Court denied his petition on the grounds that the time he spent on probation did not count toward the ten-year statutory prerequisite.However, the Supreme Court of the State of Wyoming disagreed and reversed the decision of the District Court. The Supreme Court found that the clear and unambiguous language of Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 7-19-304 does not require probation to be completed before the ten-year registration period begins to run. The court ruled that probation is not listed as a tolling event, and the court will not read words into a statute when the legislature has chosen not to include them.The Supreme Court stated that the District Court should have considered whether Mr. Alvarado should be relieved of the duty to continue registration after demonstrating he had maintained a clean record by meeting all four conditions during the ten-year registration period. These conditions included having no conviction of any offense for which imprisonment for more than one year may be imposed, having no conviction of any sex offense, successfully completing any periods of supervised release, probation, and parole, and successfully completing any sex offender treatment previously ordered by the trial court or his probation or parole agent. The case was remanded for further consideration. View "Alvarado v. State" on Justia Law

The Cincinnati Enquirer sought a writ of mandamus to compel Andy Wilson, the director of the Ohio Department of Public Safety, to produce records related to the travel and expenses of Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers and staff who attended the 2022 Super Bowl in Los Angeles, California, with Governor Mike DeWine. The department withheld the requested records, claiming they were "security records" and therefore exempt from disclosure.The Supreme Court of Ohio concluded that the requested records did qualify as "security records" under R.C. 149.433(A)(1), which defines a security record as any record that contains information directly used for protecting or maintaining the security of a public office against attack, interference, or sabotage. The court found that the records contained information that the department used for protecting and maintaining the safety of the governor's office. The department's evidence showed that release of the requested records would pose a substantial risk to the governor’s safety by revealing the security detail’s planning, techniques, and patterns, and by exposing security limitations and vulnerabilities.The court also rejected the Cincinnati Enquirer's argument that the department violated the Public Records Act by failing to produce redacted versions of the requested records. The court explained that under R.C. 149.433(B)(1), a security record is not a public record and is consequently not subject to mandatory release or disclosure.Accordingly, the court denied the writ of mandamus, as well as the Cincinnati Enquirer's requests for statutory damages, court costs, and attorney fees. View "State ex rel. Cincinnati Enquirer v. Wilson" on Justia Law

This case arose from an appeal against the grant of summary judgment by a district court on a claim related to disability benefits. The appellant, Emily Seago, had contended that Nancy Berryhill was unlawfully serving as the acting Social Security Commissioner in July 2018 when she ratified the appointment of the Administrative Law Judge who later denied Seago’s claim.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit rejected Seago's argument and affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment. The court held that Berryhill was lawfully serving as Acting SSA Commissioner under 5 U.S.C. § 3346(a)(2) when she ratified the appointments of all SSA Administrative Law Judges in July 2018.The court noted that 5 U.S.C. § 3346(a) provides for two independent periods of acting service, during the 210-day period following a vacancy, and for the duration of a nomination's pendency in the Senate. The court found that these periods can operate independently, as indicated by the use of the word "or" to separate the two subsections. The court noted that the statutory text does not suggest that service under one subsection excludes someone from also serving under the other.The court also found that this interpretation aligned with the statutory purpose, providing an incentive for the President to submit timely nominations without denying vital public services to the American people due to delays in the Senate confirmation process. View "Seago v. O'Malley" on Justia Law

The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit reversed a lower court's dismissal of a lawsuit brought by the government of Mexico against several U.S. gun manufacturers and a gun distributor. The lawsuit alleges that these companies facilitated illegal gun trafficking into Mexico, causing significant harm to the country. The lower court had dismissed the case based on the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), which generally prohibits lawsuits against gun manufacturers and sellers for harm caused by the criminal misuse of their products. On appeal, the First Circuit held that the PLCAA does apply to lawsuits initiated by foreign governments for harm suffered outside the United States. However, the court also found that Mexico's lawsuit plausibly alleges a type of claim that is statutorily exempt from the PLCAA's general prohibition, specifically, that the defendants knowingly violated federal and state statutes applicable to the sale or marketing of firearms, and that this violation was a proximate cause of the harm Mexico suffered. The case was remanded back to the lower court for further proceedings. View "Estados Unidos Mexicanos v. Smith & Wesson Brands Inc." on Justia Law

In a case involving the Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. and others (appellants) against the City of Los Angeles and others (respondents), the Court of Appeal of the State of California, Fourth Appellate District, Division One, reversed and remanded a lower court's decision for further proceedings. The case revolved around the preparation of a supplemental environmental impact report (SEIR) under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for the continued operation of the China Shipping Container Terminal located in the Port of Los Angeles. The appellants alleged that the SEIR violated CEQA in multiple ways, including the failure to ensure that mitigation measures were enforceable and the failure to adequately analyze the emissions impacts of the project. The trial court agreed with some of the appellants' claims and ordered the Port to set aside the certification of the 2019 SEIR and prepare a revised SEIR that complies with CEQA. However, the court did not impose further remedies, such as the cessation of Port activities or the required implementation of certain mitigation measures. The court's decision was appealed by the appellants, who argued that the trial court erred in its determination of the remedy and that certain other mitigation measures in the SEIR were not supported by substantial evidence. The appellate court agreed with some of these claims and reversed the trial court's decision. It remanded the case back to the trial court for further proceedings, including the consideration of its authority to fashion an appropriate remedy in light of the CEQA violations. View "Natural Resources Defense Council v. City of Los Angeles" on Justia Law

In a consolidated action before the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, several parties, including PJM Power Providers Group, Electric Power Supply Association, and Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, challenged a tariff filed by PJM Interconnection, L.L.C., concerning energy resources subject to price mitigation in interstate capacity auctions. The revised tariff, which took effect by operation of law in 2021, was the outcome of a deadlock between the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) commissioners. The court found that the deadlock was to be treated as an affirmative order by the FERC, allowing for judicial review under Section 205(g) of the Federal Power Act (FPA). The court held that it was required to review the FERC order under the same deferential standards set forth in the FPA and the Administrative Procedure Act. The court’s review included the entire record, including the deadlock commissioners' written statements explaining their reasoning. Upon review, the court denied all three petitions, holding that FERC’s acceptance of PJM’s tariff was neither arbitrary nor capricious and was supported by substantial evidence in the record. View "Electric Power Supply Associat v. FERC" on Justia Law

In this consolidated action, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit reviewed a case concerning the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) acceptance of a tariff filed by PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. (PJM), which took effect by operation of law in 2021. The tariff was at the center of a dispute over whether state-subsidized energy resources should be subject to price mitigation in interstate capacity auctions. Petitioners – the PJM Power Providers Group (P3), the Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA), and the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (State Entities) – sought review under Section 205(g) of the Federal Power Act (FPA), a provision allowing for review of FERC's action by inaction. The court held that its review of FERC action, whether actual or constructive, proceeds under the same deferential standards set forth in the FPA and Administrative Procedure Act. The court further held that its review properly encompasses the Commissioners’ statements setting forth their reasons for approving or denying the tariff filing. After reviewing the petitions, the court denied all three, finding FERC’s acceptance of PJM’s tariff was neither arbitrary nor capricious and was supported by substantial evidence in the record. View "Pennsylvania Public Utility Co v. FERC" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court of the State of Colorado reviewed a case involving a dispute over the methodology for implementing Tax Increment Financing (TIF) under Colorado's Urban Renewal Law (URL). The respondents, collectively known as AURA, argued that the methodology applied by the Colorado State Property Tax Administrator and the Arapahoe County Assessor was in violation of the URL because it differentiated between direct and indirect benefits when adjusting the base and increment values of blighted property in urban renewal areas. They contended that this methodology deprived urban renewal authorities of property tax revenues they should receive due to enhanced market perceptions of properties located in a TIF plan. The court of appeals agreed with AURA and reversed the district court's summary judgment favoring the Assessor. However, the Supreme Court held that the Administrator's methodology does not violate the URL. The URL does not prescribe a specific methodology but gives the Administrator broad authority to determine how to calculate and proportionately adjust the base and increment values. The court concluded that the Administrator's differentiation between direct and indirect benefits does not conflict with the URL, and therefore, reversed the portion of the division’s judgment concerning the Administrator’s methodology and affirmed that the district court correctly entered summary judgment. View "Kaiser v. Aurora Urban Renewal Authority" on Justia Law

In this case, the plaintiff, Jason Lambro, worked as a studio technician for the Voice of America (VOA), a federal agency, under a series of contracts. Lambro alleged that he should have been classified as an employee under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and thus entitled to benefits such as overtime pay. The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that the FLSA itself, through its definitional provisions, provides the applicable standard for recognizing an employment relationship for FLSA purposes. Therefore, the court had to evaluate whether Lambro was employed by VOA under the FLSA's own standard for being employed. The court rejected the lower court's conclusion that the FLSA does not cover a person asserting coverage as a federal government employee unless a congressional authorization outside the FLSA creates the asserted employment relationship with the federal government. The court vacated the lower court’s dismissal and remanded the case for further proceedings. View "Lambro v. United States" on Justia Law