Puerto Rico Case Commentaries

Harmless Drug-Quantity Disputes and Sufficient Explanation for Rejecting Methamphetamine “Ice” Policy Variances in Within-Guidelines Sentencing

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Harmless Drug-Quantity Disputes and Sufficient Explanation for Rejecting Methamphetamine “Ice” Policy Variances in Within-Guidelines Sentencing I. Introduction In United States v. Jason Demyers (6th...

Force-to-Handcuff After a Prolonged Chase: “Active Resistance” and Full-Context Reasonableness Defeat Excessive-Force Claims (and Experts Cannot Opine on Constitutionality)

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Force-to-Handcuff After a Prolonged Chase: “Active Resistance” and Full-Context Reasonableness Defeat Excessive-Force Claims (and Experts Cannot Opine on Constitutionality) Case: Jared Kennedy v....

Article III Standing Bars Mandamus/APA Suits Seeking to Compel HHS Enforcement of the ACA Provider Nondiscrimination Provision Absent Non-Speculative Causation and Redressability

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Article III Standing Bars Mandamus/APA Suits Seeking to Compel HHS Enforcement of the ACA Provider Nondiscrimination Provision Absent Non-Speculative Causation and Redressability Introduction In Am....

Warrantless Entry Authority of Game Commission Officers: Unconstitutional as Applied to Posted Open Fields, Not Facially Invalid, and Severable Under 1 Pa.C.S. § 1925

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Warrantless Entry Authority of Game Commission Officers: Unconstitutional as Applied to Posted Open Fields, Not Facially Invalid, and Severable Under 1 Pa.C.S. § 1925 1. Introduction Punxsutawney...

Confirmed Plan Bars Post-Effective-Date Revocation of Expedited Distribution Elections

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Confirmed Plan Bars Post-Effective-Date Revocation of Expedited Distribution Elections 1. Introduction This Third Circuit decision arises out of the Boy Scouts of America and Delaware BSA, LLC...

Tenth Circuit: No Sua Sponte Competency Exam Absent Reason to Doubt; No Ineffective-Assistance Claim Against Standby Counsel Where Defendant Controls Defense

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Tenth Circuit: No Sua Sponte Competency Exam Absent Reason to Doubt; No Ineffective-Assistance Claim Against Standby Counsel Where Defendant Controls Defense 1. Introduction In United States v. Egli...

Disbarment for Social-Media Intimidation and Doxing of Judges and Justice Officials in Connected Proceedings

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Disbarment for Social-Media Intimidation and Doxing of Judges and Justice Officials in Connected Proceedings 1. Introduction Connie Reguli v. Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court...

Whistleblower Causation at Summary Relief: “Some Evidence” of a Contributory Link Suffices; Alternative Motives Are a Defense-Stage Question

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Whistleblower Causation at Summary Relief: “Some Evidence” of a Contributory Link Suffices; Alternative Motives Are a Defense-Stage Question Case: Adams, A., Aplt. v. AG (Albert Adams, Jr. v....

Objective, Committee-Based Justification Suffices for ADA Fitness-for-Duty Exams in Patient-Safety Roles

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Objective, Committee-Based Justification Suffices for ADA Fitness-for-Duty Exams in Patient-Safety Roles I. Introduction In Joseph Christophe Isaac Robitaille v. Trinity Health Grand Rapids, the...

Markatos v. Zoning Board of Appeals — Commentary

Date: Jul 22, 2026

“Material Change” Means a Significant Change in Character and “Intensification” Means a Meaningful Increase in Degree Under Special Permit Conditions (Not the Nonconforming-Use Test) Introduction In...

R.C. 2953.73(D) “Reasons” Requirement Satisfied by Stating a Statutory Ground for Accepting or Rejecting Postconviction DNA Testing

Date: Jul 22, 2026

R.C. 2953.73(D) “Reasons” Requirement Satisfied by Stating a Statutory Ground for Accepting or Rejecting Postconviction DNA Testing 1. Introduction In State v. Lash, Slip Opinion No. 2026-Ohio-2746,...

AEDPA Deference to State Brady/Strickland No-Prejudice Findings When Suppressed Evidence Is Cumulative of Disclosed Materials

Date: Jul 22, 2026

AEDPA Deference to State Brady/Strickland No-Prejudice Findings When Suppressed Evidence Is Cumulative of Disclosed Materials I. Introduction Jeffrey Hineman v. Daisy Chase is a federal habeas case...

Concealed Self-Payment from Investor Funds Is a Material Misrepresentation Supporting Wire-Fraud Liability (Narrowing Weimert)

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Concealed Self-Payment from Investor Funds Is a Material Misrepresentation Supporting Wire-Fraud Liability (Narrowing Weimert) 1. Introduction In United States v. Giulio Palma (7th Cir. July 20,...

July 21, 2026 Supreme Court of Ohio Case Announcements: Procedural Dispositions, Sua Sponte Dismissals, and Record-Completion Enforcement

Date: Jul 22, 2026

July 21, 2026 Supreme Court of Ohio Case Announcements: Procedural Dispositions, Sua Sponte Dismissals, and Record-Completion Enforcement 1. Introduction The Supreme Court of Ohio’s July 21, 2026...

Federal Guidance–Driven Compliance Moots Free-Exercise Challenge to SSN-Based CLP Denial; Reasonable Regulatory Enforcement Supports Qualified Immunity

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Federal Guidance–Driven Compliance Moots Free-Exercise Challenge to SSN-Based CLP Denial; Reasonable Regulatory Enforcement Supports Qualified Immunity 1. Introduction Case: Lindsay Dyda v. Michigan...

Eminent Domain in New Jersey: Condemned Land Cannot Serve as “Currency” for a Public-Benefit Land Swap

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Eminent Domain in New Jersey: Condemned Land Cannot Serve as “Currency” for a Public-Benefit Land Swap I. Introduction Case: Township of Jackson v. Getzel Bee, LLC; Township of Jackson v. Bellevue...

Exclusive State Forester Review: Municipal Assessors Lack Power to Terminate Erroneous Forest Land Classifications

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Exclusive State Forester Review: Municipal Assessors Lack Power to Terminate Erroneous Forest Land Classifications 1. Introduction In Campelli v. Mansfield (Supreme Court of Connecticut, officially...

Ordinance-Authorized Municipal Revenue Pledges Are Consensual (Not Statutory) Liens; Pennsylvania Gaming “Local Share” Payments Are Fees (Not Special Excise Taxes) in Chapter 9

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Ordinance-Authorized Municipal Revenue Pledges Are Consensual (Not Statutory) Liens; Pennsylvania Gaming “Local Share” Payments Are Fees (Not Special Excise Taxes) in Chapter 9 I. Introduction Case:...

Plain-Error Relief Denied When Permissible Factors Independently Support a Vulnerable-Victim Enhancement

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Plain-Error Relief Denied When Permissible Factors Independently Support a Vulnerable-Victim Enhancement 1. Introduction United States v. Moss (10th Cir. July 20, 2026) addresses how appellate courts...

8 U.S.C. § 1252(b)(9) Channels Speech-Based “Retaliatory Removal/Detention” Habeas Claims to the Petition-for-Review Process (and Merits Panels May Revisit Motions-Panel Jurisdiction Views)

Date: Jul 22, 2026

8 U.S.C. § 1252(b)(9) Channels Speech-Based “Retaliatory Removal/Detention” Habeas Claims to the Petition-for-Review Process (and Merits Panels May Revisit Motions-Panel Jurisdiction Views) Case:...