On April 16, 2019, the Fifth Circuit issued its opinion in Bourne v. Gunnels. Two issues addressed by the court were (i) whether Bourne’s excessive force claim was barred by the Heck v. Humphrey doctrine and (ii) whether the defendants were entitled to qualified immunity. We previously wrote about Heck here. In summary, Heck bars [..]
We previously wrote here about the defense of qualified immunity to a Section 1983 claim for violation of civil rights. On April 16, 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued its opinion in Ramirez v. Escajeda. In that opinion, the court addressed the question of whether and to what extent [..]
When a Complaint is served on a defendant, it is accompanied by a Summons that instructs the defendant to file an answer within a certain amount of time. Service of a summons is, in most cases, governed by Rule 4 of the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure. Rule 4 provides for service in several different [..]
Restoration of voting rights This article is about restoration of voting rights. Previously we discussed gun rights here. This is about your right to vote after you have been convicted of a crime. Without going into a history lesson, the United States Constitution did not originally guarantee a right to vote. Although amendments and Court [..]
Restoration of Rights – how do I go about it? Previously on this blog, we discussed expunging a criminal record here. There are many convictions that cannot be expunged, mostly felonies. However, you would like to defend yourself and your family. You would also like to hunt, or teach your children to hunt. In Mississippi, [..]
DUI First Offense First, always talk to an attorney about defenses to accusations of drunk driving. That is all they are – accusations. You may have a great legal defense, which will take you hiring an attorney who can work on your case. The case may require a trial, and even an appeal. There is [..]
When a plaintiff sues a law enforcement officer for a violation of constitutional rights, the officer will almost always raise a defense called qualified immunity. On March 8, 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit handed down its decision in Moon v. Meachum. In its opinion, the court addressed the qualified [..]
Mississippi Civil Asset Forfeiture – The United States Supreme Court’s Recent Opinion Mississippi is one of four states that does not recognize that the excessive fines clause of the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution applies to the states. As the result of a new decision by the United States Constitution, that will change. [..]
On March 11, 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued its opinion in Ulrich v. City of Shreveport, et al., involving a claim for false arrest. The facts of the case A detective in the Shreveport Police Department swore out an affidavit stating that Ulrich had committed battery. After investigation, [..]
On February 18, 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit handed down its decision in Winzer v. Kaufman County, et al. One of the issues the Court addressed is the sham affidavit rule. How are affidavits used in federal court? Affidavits can be used in any number of circumstances. They are [..]
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