Justia U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a 240-month prison sentence given to Herbert Holder, a repeat offender convicted on three counts of distributing methamphetamine and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Holder appealed the sentence claiming both procedural and substantive error. He argued the district court failed to consider one of his arguments for leniency, specifically, a recent assault he had suffered in jail, and that it did not adequately weigh his mitigation arguments.The Court of Appeals rejected these arguments. It found that the district court had adequately addressed Holder's assault in jail. The court engaged in a back-and-forth exchange with Holder about the assault and acknowledged it as one of his mitigation arguments when explaining its sentencing decision. The Court of Appeals also noted that the district court had balanced the seriousness of Holder's offenses and his criminal history against his mitigating factors, including his drug addiction, the loss of his mother, the time elapsed since his prior convictions, and his recent assault in jail.The court concluded that Holder had not provided compelling evidence to overcome the "nearly irrebuttable presumption" that his below-guidelines sentence was reasonable. The Court of Appeals thus upheld the lower court's decision, affirming Holder's sentence. View "United States v. Holder" on Justia Law

The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reviewed a case involving David A. Schlemm, an inmate who had filed a First Amendment retaliation claim against Brendan Pizzala, Jay Van Lanen, and Michael Donovan. Schlemm's claim was based on accusations made against him for theft of sage from the chapel of the Green Bay Correctional Institution, which led to a conduct report being issued against him. The report was later dismissed after another correctional officer testified that he had given the sage to Schlemm. Schlemm then filed complaints against the defendants through the Inmate Complaint Review System (ICRS), claiming retaliation.The lower court had dismissed Schlemm's case, ruling it was time-barred due to the six-year statute of limitations. The court noted that Schlemm's lawsuit, filed in 2019, was more than six years after the 2012 search of his cell. On appeal, the defendants conceded that Schlemm had properly exhausted his administrative remedies, but argued his action was time-barred due to the six-day gap between the accrual of his claim and the filing of his administrative complaints.The Appeals Court reviewed the district court's dismissal de novo and concluded that the defendants had waived their specific statute of limitations argument regarding the six-day gap. They had raised this argument for the first time on appeal, having previously argued that Schlemm had not properly exhausted his administrative remedies. The court reversed the dismissal and remanded for further proceedings, noting that it did not need to address the question of whether the gap between claim accrual and grievance filing is included in the tolling period due to the defendants' waiver of their argument. View "Schlemm v. Pizzala" on Justia Law

The case involves Keenan Seymour, a member of the street gang, Latin Dragon Nation, who pled guilty to a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) conspiracy charge. Seymour was sentenced to 180 months' imprisonment, which was below the Sentencing Guidelines' recommendation. He appealed for re-sentencing on three grounds: (1) questioning certain factual findings, (2) challenging his accountability for a murder, and (3) pointing out the court's failure to discuss unwarranted sentencing disparities.The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed the district court's decision. The court emphasized that Seymour was an active participant in the gang and knew about the gang's rules. It found Seymour's arguments against the court's factual findings unpersuasive, stating that the record offered ample support for the findings. The court also rejected Seymour's argument that the district court erred in calculating his offense level by attributing a murder to him, explaining that the murder was foreseeable given Seymour’s gang activities. Lastly, it dismissed Seymour's argument about unwarranted sentencing disparities, stating that the district court had adequately addressed this concern during sentencing.The court held that Seymour's 180-month sentence, which was below the Guidelines, was substantively reasonable and thus affirmed the judgment of the district court. View "USA v. Seymour" on Justia Law

In this case heard by the United States Court of Appeals For the Seventh Circuit, plaintiffs Terri and Louis LoBianco appealed a district court's summary judgment in favor of Bonefish Grill, LLC. Terri LoBianco had slipped and fallen at a Bonefish Grill restaurant in Skokie, Illinois, dislocating her hip and requiring four surgeries. She claimed she slipped on a pool of liquid that the restaurant had negligently failed to clean. Louis LoBianco claimed loss of consortium due to his wife's injuries. The district court granted summary judgment for Bonefish Grill, concluding that Terri LoBianco failed to identify the proximate cause of her fall and injury.The appellate court, however, held a different view. After a careful review of the facts and applying Illinois tort law, the court concluded that Terri LoBianco had consistently identified a liquid as the cause of her fall and had done so with certainty. This, coupled with supporting testimony from third parties, was enough to create a disputed issue of fact. The court found that this was not mere speculation but was based on Terri's sensory perception and consistent testimony.As a result, the appellate court reversed the district court's summary judgment on Terri's negligence claim and Louis's loss of consortium claim. The case was remanded for trial, as the court held that there was sufficient evidence to create a jury issue about whether liquid on Bonefish Grill’s floor caused Terri to slip and injure herself. View "LoBianco v. Bonefish Grill, LLC" on Justia Law

The case involves Suzy Martin, the owner and president of Smart Elevators Co., a certified minority- and woman-owned elevator service and repair company. The company, which historically did most of its business with the State of Illinois and the City of Chicago, saw its customer base change after a whistleblower complaint alleged that Martin and her company engaged in a bribery and kickback scheme with a University of Illinois Chicago employee. This led to an investigation by the Office of the Executive Inspector General for the Agencies of the Illinois Governor (OEIG), which concluded that Martin, Smart Elevators, and the University employee had engaged in a kickback scheme that violated Illinois ethics law and University policy and recommended that the University sever ties with Martin and her company.As a result of the report, the State and City ceased doing business with Martin and Smart Elevators, causing the company to lose millions in preexisting and potential contracts. Martin sued several State and City entities and officials under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, bringing “stigma-plus” procedural due process claims under the Fourteenth Amendment. The district court dismissed her amended complaint with prejudice.Upon appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed the district court's decision. The court concluded that Martin's occupation was operating an elevator service and repair business, not just providing those services specifically to the State or City. The court also found that despite the loss of State and City contracts, Martin had not been denied her liberty to pursue her occupation as she remained the owner and operator of Smart Elevators, which continued to operate and even managed to secure a contract with the Department of Justice in 2021. As such, the court found no violation of Martin's occupational liberty rights. View "Martin v. Haling" on Justia Law

Police officers executing a warrant at Jamic Johnson's home discovered firearms and baggies of substances that turned out to be methamphetamine, leading to Johnson's conviction for federal firearms and methamphetamine-related drug-trafficking offenses. To determine the sentencing guideline range for the drug-trafficking offense, the district court calculated the amount of methamphetamine Johnson was responsible for dealing. However, the court did not differentiate between pure methamphetamine and a mixture containing methamphetamine, as required by the Sentencing Guidelines. This error would have resulted in a lower guideline range for Johnson. The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit vacated the judgment and remanded the case for resentencing so that the district court could accurately determine the quantity of methamphetamine attributable to Johnson. The appeal court found that the district court's error in not distinguishing between pure methamphetamine and a mixture containing methamphetamine affected Johnson's substantial rights and the fairness or integrity of the judicial proceeding. View "USA v. Johnson" on Justia Law

The case involves an appeal by Marianne Wayland against her former employer, OSF Healthcare System. Wayland alleged that OSF violated her rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) by failing to adjust performance expectations to reflect her reduced hours while she was on approved medical leave, and subsequently firing her. The U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois granted summary judgment in favor of OSF, concluding that it fired Wayland for justifiable reasons based on her performance.Wayland appealed this decision arguing that there was a genuine dispute of material fact over the amount of approved leave she took. The Circuit Court agreed, finding that if Wayland's testimony about the amount of leave she took is believed, a jury could find that OSF unlawfully failed to adjust its performance expectations by properly accounting for her leave when evaluating her.The Circuit Court also noted that a jury could potentially find that OSF interfered with or retaliated against Wayland's use of leave by holding her to the same standards as when she worked full time, and then firing her for falling short. It found that there was sufficient evidence to raise a genuine question about whether OSF's reasons for firing Wayland were pretextual, highlighting that OSF did not tell Wayland that poor performance would lead to discharge and set goals that were potentially impossible to meet.The Circuit Court vacated the district court's judgment and remanded the case for further proceedings. View "Wayland v. OSF Healthcare System" on Justia Law

The case in question originated in the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. The dispute arose after the dissolution of a business partnership between Gregory Kleynerman and Scott Smith, which resulted in Smith obtaining a state court judgment of $499,000 against Kleynerman. This judgment was secured by Kleynerman's membership interest in Red Flag Cargo Security Systems LLC. Following this, Kleynerman filed for bankruptcy and valued his interest in Red Flag at $0. Smith argued in the bankruptcy court that the state court's judgment was a result of Kleynerman's fraud and thus could not be discharged. However, the bankruptcy court rejected this argument.After the bankruptcy case was closed, Kleynerman asked the state court to deem the $499,000 judgment discharged. Smith contended that under Wisconsin law, only debts secured by real property can be avoided. The state court agreed with Smith, which led Kleynerman to request the bankruptcy court to reopen the case and clearly state that both the $499,000 debt and the lien on Kleynerman’s interest in Red Flag no longer existed.The bankruptcy court reopened the case and the district court affirmed the decision. The appellate court agreed with the lower courts, stating that the bankruptcy judge had authority to reopen the case, and that Kleynerman had cause for reopening.Furthermore, the court held that the value of Kleynerman’s interest in Red Flag was a matter for the bankruptcy judge to decide before the discharge. Smith had an opportunity to object to Kleynerman's valuation of his interest in Red Flag but failed to do so until after the bankruptcy court had entered its discharge order. The court concluded that Smith's post-discharge subpoenas seeking information about the value of Kleynerman’s interest in Red Flag were a fishing expedition and an exercise in harassment, which was properly rejected by the bankruptcy judge. Therefore, the court affirmed the decision of the lower courts. View "Smith v. Kleynerman" on Justia Law

In this case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit was asked to review a decision by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) concerning F.J.A.P., a petitioner from El Salvador. F.J.A.P. had previously been removed from the U.S. but returned due to threats from the MS-13 gang. After his return to the U.S., his original removal order was reinstated. F.J.A.P. then applied for withholding-only relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT), which an immigration judge granted. However, the BIA reversed this decision. F.J.A.P. petitioned the Seventh Circuit for review.The court first addressed whether it had jurisdiction to review F.J.A.P.'s claim. The court concluded that a reinstated order of removal was not final for purposes of judicial review under 8 U.S.C. § 1252 until the agency had completed withholding proceedings. Therefore, F.J.A.P.'s petition was timely because it was filed within 30 days of the completion of his CAT proceedings.On the merits of the case, the court found that the BIA had not applied the correct standard of review to the immigration judge's decision. The BIA was required to review the immigration judge's factual findings for clear error, not de novo. However, the BIA had failed to address the immigration judge's key factual findings, had given more weight to certain facts in the record than others, and had not explained how the immigration judge's alleged errors displayed a lack of logic, plausibility, or support in the record. As a result, the court granted F.J.A.P.'s petition and remanded the case to the BIA for reconsideration of the immigration judge's decision under the correct standard of review. View "F. J. A. P. v. Garland" on Justia Law

In the case at hand, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reviewed an employment discrimination case. The plaintiff, LuzMaria Arroyo, a military reservist, brought a lawsuit against her employer, Volvo Group North America, LLC, alleging discrimination based on her military status and her post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). After a jury ruled in Arroyo's favor and awarded her $7,800,000 in damages, the district court granted judgment as a matter of law to Volvo on Arroyo’s Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) claim, and ordered a new trial on the remaining Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) claim, where the jury found for Volvo. Arroyo appealed this decision.The Court of Appeals affirmed the district court's decision. The court found that Arroyo was not a "qualified individual" under the ADA as she failed to comply with Volvo's attendance policy, an essential job function. Arroyo's positive job performance reviews did not negate her violation of the attendance policy. The court also found no conflict with its previous decision in Arroyo I, which had reversed the district court's grant of summary judgment to Volvo on the ADA and USERRA claims.Further, the court upheld the district court's decision for a new trial on the USERRA claim. The court agreed that the jury’s verdict as to the ADA claim was influenced by passion and prejudice that also tainted the jury’s determination of USERRA liability. Finally, the court found no abuse of discretion in the district court's decision to exclude evidence of Arroyo’s PTSD in the new trial, as PTSD alone was not sufficient to raise a cognizable discrimination claim under USERRA. View "Arroyo v. Volvo Group North America, LLC" on Justia Law