Justia U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of a habeas corpus petition challenging petitioner's first degree murder conviction and death sentence. The panel concluded that the California Supreme Court's conclusion that the Double Jeopardy Clause did not bar further prosecution of petitioner was not an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law or an unreasonable determination of the facts within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. 2254(d).The panel also concluded that the state court's conclusion that petitioner's rights to due process and a reliable penalty determination were not violated by the admission at trial of a videotaped conditional examination of the victim's boyfriend was not an unreasonable determination of facts within the meaning of section 2254(d)(2). The panel further concluded that the state court's conclusion that petitioner's constitutional rights were not violated by testimony at trial regarding certain out-of-court statements was not an unreasonable determination of the facts or an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law; the state court's conclusion that petitioner's constitutional rights were not violated by the trial court's exclusion of his videotaped confession at the penalty phase does not warrant relief under section 2254(d); the state court's conclusion that petitioner was not denied his constitutional right to a fundamentally fair sentencing hearing was not contrary to, or an unreasonable application of Supreme Court precedent; the state court concluded that petitioner's rights to due process, a fair penalty trial, and a reliable sentence were not violated by the admission of evidence concerning his prior incidents of violence; the state court's rejection of petitioner's challenge to the instructions given to the jury in his case was not contrary to or an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law; the state court's rejection of petitioner's ineffective assistance of counsel claim based on his attorney's concession that petitioner intentionally killed the victim was not contrary to or an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law; and the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying petitioner's request for evidentiary development, discovery, and an evidentiary hearing. View "Jurado v. Davis" on Justia Law

The Ninth Circuit vacated the district court's judgment denying petitioner's 28 U.S.C. 2254 habeas corpus petition seeking relief from his first degree murder conviction and death sentence. In light of the Supreme Court's recent decision in Flowers v. Mississippi, 139 S. Ct. 2228 (2019), which summarized the factors courts should consider when evaluating a challenge under Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986), the panel remanded so the district court can apply in the first instance the Supreme Court's guidance in Flowers. The panel resolved remaining issues in a concurrently filed memorandum disposition. View "Ervin v. Davis" on Justia Law

The Ninth Circuit granted a petition for review of the BIA's decision affirming the IJ's order of removal. The panel addressed the same issue that arose in Martinez-Cedillo v. Sessions, 896 F.3d 979 (9th Cir. 2018), and held that California Penal Code 273a(a) does not qualify as a crime of child abuse, child neglect, or child abandonment.The panel concluded that the text of 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(E)(i) unambiguously forecloses the BIA's interpretation of "a crime of child abuse, child neglect, or child abandonment" as encompassing negligent child endangerment offenses. The panel noted that, while several of its sister circuits have deferred to the BIA's decision in Matter of Soram, 25 I. & N. Dec. 378 (BIA 2010), the panel found those decision both distinguishable and unpersuasive. The panel explained that, because section 273a(a) criminalizes conduct that falls outside the generic federal definition, it is not a categorical match for "a crime of child abuse, child neglect, or child abandonment." View "Diaz-Rodriguez v. Garland" on Justia Law

The Ninth Circuit reversed the district court's order denying Comcast's motion to compel arbitration under the Federal Arbitration Act of the claims asserted against it by a former cable subscriber. Plaintiff filed a putative class action challenging certain of Comcast's privacy and data-collection practices and seeking a variety of monetary and equitable remedies. The district court ultimately concluded that provisions of plaintiff's subscriber agreements were unenforceable under the McGill rule.The panel concluded that the district court misconstrued what counts as "public injunctive relief" for purposes of the McGill rule and that it therefore erred in concluding that the complaint here sought such relief. The panel explained that public injunctive relief within the meaning of McGill is limited to forward-looking injunctions that seek to prevent future violations of law for the benefit of the general public as a whole, as opposed to a particular class of persons, and that do so without the need to consider the individual claims of any non-party. Furthermore, such an injunction attempts to stop future violations of law that are aimed at the general public, and imposing or administering such an injunction does not require effectively fashioning individualized relief for nonparties. Because plaintiff's complaint did not seek such relief, the McGill rule is not implicated, and the arbitration agreement should have been enforced. View "Hodges v. Comcast Cable Communications, LLC" on Justia Law

The Ninth Circuit wrote to clarify the role that de minimis copying plays in statutory copyright. The de minimis concept is properly used to analyze whether so little of a copyrighted work has been copied that the allegedly infringing work is not substantially similar to the copyrighted work and is thus non-infringing. However, once infringement is established, that is, ownership and violation of one of the exclusive rights in copyright under 17 U.S.C. 106, de minimis use of the infringing work is not a defense to an infringement action.The panel reversed the district court's grant of summary judgment for defendants based on a putative de minimis use defense in a copyright case involving plaintiff's photograph of the Indianapolis skyline. The panel applied the Perfect 10 server test, concluding that Wilmott's server was continuously transmitting the image to those who used the specific pinpoint address or were conducting reverse image searches using the same or similar photo. Therefore, Wilmott transmitted and displayed the photo without plaintiff's permission. Furthermore, Wilmott's display was public by virtue of the way it operated its servers and its website. The panel also concluded that the "degree of copying" was total because the infringing work was an identical copy of the copyrighted Indianapolis photo. Accordingly, there is no place for an inquiry as to whether there was de minimis copying. On remand, the district court must consider Wilmott's remaining defenses, and it can address the questions surrounding plaintiff's ownership of the Indianapolis photo, in addition to the other defenses raised by Wilmott. View "Bell v. Wilmott Storage Services, LLC" on Justia Law

Petitioner sought review of the BIA's decision dismissing his due process claims, the denial of his motion to terminate, and the denial of his application for withholding or deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). In this case, the IJ determined that petitioner was not competent to represent himself in removal proceedings; appointed a qualified representative; denied petitioner's motion to terminate; and found petitioner removeable for an aggravated felony.The Ninth Circuit dismissed petitioner's due process claims and denied his petition for review. The panel concluded that, given the record in this case, the IJ's safeguards sufficed to provide petitioner with due process such that termination of the proceedings was not required. The panel also concluded that amicus counsel's fact-based disagreements with the IJ's discretionary "particularly serious crime" determination are unexhausted and unreviewable. Finally, the panel concluded that the evidence does not compel reversal of the BIA's denial of deferral or removal under CAT. View "Benedicto v. Garland" on Justia Law

The Ninth Circuit granted a petition for review of the BIA's decision denying petitioner's motion to reopen based on changed country conditions. Petitioner fears persecution if he is deported to Iran based on his Christian faith.The panel concluded that, because the law-of-the-case doctrine applies to legal issues, and because the prior panel decided a facts-predominant mixed question of law and fact, the law-of-the-case doctrine likely does not apply here at all. Furthermore, even if it does, the first exception to the law-of-the-case doctrine applies to petitioner's case. After reviewing the record, the panel concluded that the prior panel's decision, which was unsupported by substantial evidence, was clearly erroneous and enforcing it against petitioner would be unjust. In this case, the prior panel ignored the IJ's factual and legal errors; the prior panel accepted the IJ's incorrect application of the falsus maxim; and the prior panel accepted the IJ's violation of Kamalthas v. INS, 251 F.3d 902 (7th Cir. 2000). The panel also concluded that petitioner had not waived any challenge to the Board's interpretation of 8 U.S.C. 1003.2(c)(1), and determined on de novo review that petitioner was not required to include a new application for relief when he had previously submitted an application for relief based on his religious persecution claim. Finally, the panel concluded that the Board abused its discretion in determining that plaintiff failed to establish changed country conditions or prima facie eligibility for CAT relief. Accordingly, the panel remanded for further proceedings. View "Etemadi v. Garland" on Justia Law

The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's imposition of a condition of supervised release that defendant may not "patronize any place" where sexually explicit "materials or entertainment are the primary material or entertainment available." The panel held that the condition barred defendant from visiting a free pornography website. The panel explained that, interpreting this language, as defendant argues, to require that an individual directly purchase goods or services from a physical location, ignores the common understanding of these terms as they are used in today's digital age, particularly in light of the oral instructions given by the district court to defendant here.In the alternative, the panel held that the record supports the conclusion that defendant searched for and viewed materials depicting sexually explicit conduct, which constituted an independent violation of the special condition at issue. The panel rejected defendant's remaining arguments in a contemporaneously filed memorandum disposition. View "United States v. Green" on Justia Law

The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's dismissal of plaintiff's 42 U.S.C. 1983 action alleging that his constitutional rights were violated when, as a condition of his supervised release and while his appeal of his conviction was pending, he was required to complete a sex offender treatment program, and then was discharged from the program and given a limited jail sanction for refusing to admit to the conduct underlying his conviction, a required part of his treatment.The panel held that it was bound by the rule adopted by six justices in Chavez v. Martinez, 538 U.S. 760, 770 (2003) (plurality opinion), as enunciated in this court's precedent, and consistent with the rule adopted by sister circuits—that the Fifth Amendment is not violated unless and until allegedly coerced statements are used against a suspect in a criminal case. The panel concluded that because plaintiff did not make a statement that was used in a criminal proceeding, he may not bring a civil action against the government under section 1983 for a violation of his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. Accordingly, the panel affirmed the district court's dismissal of this claim. The panel also affirmed the dismissal of plaintiff's claims alleging that the government officials involved in this incident violated plaintiff's Sixth Amendment right to counsel and his First Amendment right to bring a civil lawsuit against the government. View "Chavez v. Robinson" on Justia Law

On rehearing en banc, the court held that the single factor rule conflicts with the REAL ID Act of 2005, Pub. L. No. 109-13, 119 Stat. 231 (2005), and overruled the court's prior precedent establishing and applying it. The single factor rule required the court to sustain an adverse credibility determination from the BIA, so long as one of the agency's identified grounds was supported by substantial evidence. The panel remanded to the three-judge panel to re-examine the petition for review in light of the court's clarification of the standard for reviewing the BIA’s adverse credibility determinations. View "Alam v. Garland" on Justia Law