Tag Archives: Court: 8th Circuit

AP: A federal appeals court on Friday upheld a Missouri law banning protests within 300 feet of funerals but struck down a broader law that could have kept protesters even further away. | Phelps-Roper v. Kester

Blog of the Legal Times: The Senate confirmed Jane Kelly to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit on Wednesday, faster than any other circuit court nominee during the Obama administration. How in less than three months did she navigate a process that has come to represent partisan bickering and Senate gridlock?

The Gazette: The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee approved Assistant Federal Public Defender Jane Kelly’s nomination to the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals Friday.

Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing a former Planned Parenthood facility director in Iowa filed notice in district court Wednesday that they are appealing her fraud case to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit.

How Appealing reports on the ruling in U.S. v. Fast . . .

Blog of the Legal Times: Jane Kelly got an extra friendly reception from the Senate Judiciary Committee at her confirmation hearing Wednesday for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, soaking up a stream of compliments and fielding questions about why diversity in the courts is important.

WorldNetDaily: Attorney Harold J. Cassidy called the decision of the full 8th Circuit Court of Appeals “a fabulous victory for the women of the state of South Dakota.” . . . Commenting on the decision, Steven H. Aden of the Alliance Defending Freedom said “a woman’s right to make a fully informed choice is more important than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line.” “If Planned Parenthood truly cared about the well-being of women, it would not try to prevent them from being informed of the well-documented risk of suicide that accompanies abortion,” he said. “The 8th Circuit has done the right thing in upholding a reasonable law that protects the well-being of women by making sure that the truth is not hidden from them.” [more]

Fed Soc: Today, President Obama nominated Jane Kelly and Gregory Alan Phillips to the United States Court of Appeals.

Des Moines Register: U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Ia., has nominated two Iowa women to replace retiring Judge Michael J. Melloy on the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The names submitted to President Barack Obama are . . .

How Appealing summarizes and links to the ruling.

Kinder v. Geitner, No. 11-1973

A group of seven plaintiffs, including Samantha Hill and Missouri Lieutenant Governor Peter Kinder (acting in his personal capacity), brought this action to challenge various provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“the Act”). Pub. L. No. 111-148, 124 Stat. 119 (2010). The district court dismissed the suit for lack of standing. Hill and Kinder appeal, and we affirm.

Religion Clause Blog: As previously reported, in June the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals vacated 19 criminal contempt citations issued by a Minnesota federal district court against a Somali Muslim defendant who, for religious reasons, refused to stand when the court convened and recessed.

In a smashing victory for free speech, the full Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals today preliminarily enjoined Minnesota law imposing political-committee-like burdens.

Liberty Counsel: A federal appeals court ruled today that the Minneapolis Special School District No. 1 engaged in viewpoint discrimination when it removed Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF) from the after-school program. Overturning a lower court decision, in a 3-0 decision the court of appeals stated, “When the government targets a particular viewpoint taken by speakers on a general subject, the First Amendment is violated.” Liberty Counsel represented CEF in this case.

Religion Clause Blog: In United States v. Ali, (8th Cir., June 4, 2012), the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals vacated 19 criminal contempt citations issued by a Minnesota federal district court against a Muslim defendant who, for religious reasons, refused to stand when the court convened and recessed.

Religion Clause Blog: In Red River Freethinkers v. City of Fargo, (8th Cir., May 25, 2012), the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals held that a organization dedicated to promoting atheist and agnostic views has standing on behalf of its members to challenge a Ten Commandments monument that has stood for 50 years outdoors on city property in Fargo, North Dakota.

Sisney v. Reisch, No. 10-3003 (8th Cir. March 19, 2012) Charles E. Sisney is incarcerated in the South Dakota State Penitentiary (“SDSP”), where he practices the Jewish faith. In 2003, Sisney filed suit claiming certain SDSP Officials violated his First …

One News Now: “A woman’s right to make a fully informed choice is more important than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,” the attorney argues. “If Planned Parenthood truly cared about the well-being of women, it wouldn’t try to prevent them from being informed of the well-documented risks of depression and suicide that accompany abortion.”

LifeNews.com: “A woman’s right to make a fully informed choice is more important than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,” said ADF attorney Steve Aden. “If Planned Parenthood truly cared about the well-being of women, it would not try to prevent them from being informed of the well-documented risk of suicide that accompanies abortion.” “A child’s life is worth more than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,” Aden said.” [more]

JournalStar.com: federal appeals court on Wednesday agreed to review its decision in a Missouri case that could decide the constitutionality of Nebraska’s funeral picketing law.

WorldNetDaily: “A woman’s right to make a fully informed choice is more important than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,” said Steven H. Aden, a senior counsel for the ADF. “If Planned Parenthood truly cared about the well-being of women, it would not try to prevent them from being informed of the well-documented risk of suicide that accompanies abortion.”

The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit Monday agreed to review the only remaining provision of South Dakota’s informed consent law that the court has not already upheld in a failing lawsuit filed by Planned Parenthood. The provision requires women to be informed of abortion’s documented risk of suicide.

The Argus Leader | argusleader.com: A federal court said Monday it will hear arguments next month concerning a 2005 South Dakota law that requires a doctor to tell a woman seeking an abortion that she would face a higher risk of suicide by going through with the procedure. The hearing will be Jan. 9 . . .

EENEWS.net: A lawyer President Obama nominated to serve on the appeals court that handles most of the legal challenges to environmental regulations faces a make-or-break procedural vote in the Senate today. The nomination of Caitlin Halligan . . .

Shirley and Megan Phelps-Roper brought this First Amendment challenge to a Manchester, Missouri ordinance that regulates protests near funerals.

Baptist Press: “Planned Parenthood and other proponents of death work diligently to restrict the information mothers have about abortion and the life within them,” said Steven Aden, senior counsel of the Alliance Defense Fund, which filed a friend-of-the-court brief backing the state law. “It was incredible for the lower court to have determined that the law cannot acknowledge that a ‘pregnant woman has an existing relationship with that unborn human being’ because some human beings are somehow not ‘persons.’”

The New American: Steven H. Aden of the Alliance Defense Fund, which had filed a brief in the case on behalf of a number of pro-life groups, noted that a “child’s life is worth more than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line. Planned Parenthood and other proponents of death work diligently to restrict the information mothers have about abortion and the life within them.” He added that it was “incredible for the lower court to have determined that the law cannot acknowledge that a ‘pregnant woman has an existing relationship with that unborn human being’ because some human beings are somehow not ‘persons.’ The 8th Circuit rightly determined that it’s perfectly constitutional to inform women of an undisputed biological fact.”

WorldNetDaily: “A child’s life is worth more than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,” said Steve H. Aden, senior counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund, which filed an amicus brief on behalf of the Family Research Council, CareNet, Heartbeat International and the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates. The key attorney on the case was Harold Cassidy, one of more than 2,000 lawyers in the ADF organization. “Planned Parenthood and other proponents of death work diligently to restrict the information mothers have about abortion and the life within them. It was incredible for the lower court to have determined that the law cannot acknowledge that a ‘pregnant woman has an existing relationship with that unborn human being’ because some human beings are somehow not ‘persons.’ The 8th Circuit rightly determined that it’s perfectly constitutional to inform women of an undisputed biological fact,” Aden said.

Read more: Abortionists ordered to follow disputed ‘informed consent’ law http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=340785#ixzz1XBbIehIW

For these reasons we reverse the judgment of the district court striking down the relationship advisories; affirm its ruling upholding the human being advisory approved in Rounds; and affirm its rulings upholding the general risk advisory and striking down the suicide advisory.

The Social Security Act authorizes the payment of benefits to the dependent children of deceased workers. This case requires us to determine whether a child conceived through artificial insemination more than a year after her father’s death qualifies for benefits under the Act.

Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life is an association of citizens that wants to support candidates who agree with the pro-life position. And The Taxpayers League of Minnesota is an association of citizens that wants to support candidates that favor limited taxes. Both groups want to make general-fund contributions to their chosen candidates.

The Volokh Conspiracy : The case is today’s Neighborhood Enterprises, Inc. v. City of St. Louis, litigated by the Institute for Justice.

Yesterday the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated its decision upholding Minnesota’s ban on corporate independent expenditures and contributions to candidates and ordered a new hearing to determine the constitutionality of the laws.

Election Law Blog: In Minnesota Citizens Converned for Life, Inc. v. Swanson, the Eighth Circuit unanimously upheld a district court’s decision not to preliminarily enjoin Minnesota’s ban on direct corporate contributions

Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the jury verdict, we conclude that the Government offered sufficient evidence such that a reasonable jury could (and did) find that Johnson attempted to use the minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of that conduct.

Religion Clause Blog: In Harrell v. Donahue, (8th Cir., March 31, 2011), the 8th Circuit held that the U.S. Postal Service was not required to accommodate a Seventh Day Adventist letter carrier’s request to have every Saturday off.

Minneapolis Star-Tribune: “A federal appeals court ruled Thursday that Minnesota’s restrictions on fundraising and endorsements by judicial candidates violated their free speech rights, overturning parts of the state code of judicial conduct. A sharp dissent warned that the change could threaten public trust in impartial courts.” | See How Appealing for more information

Associated Press: “A convicted sex offender can possess material depicting nudity upon his release from prison after the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld part of an appeal of his sentence.” | U.S. v. Simons, No. 09-2142 (8th Cir. July 21, 2010) | View opinion in Google Viewer

“This case concerns the crime of neonaticide, which is the killing of a newborn child on the first day of life. This crime is practically unknown in the federal courts. Neonaticide is a crime relating to family and domestic concerns and, thus, federal courts do not generally deal with these crimes.”

Religion Clause Blog: In Heartland Academy Community Church v. Waddle, (8th Cir., Feb. 8, 2010), the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of appeals refused to dismiss on qualified immunity grounds a civil rights action for damages against various Missouri officials who conspired in 2001 to remove 115 students from a Christian faith-based boarding school for children with behavioral and substance abuse problems . . . ”

WorldNetDaily: “The friend-of-the-court brief has been filed by Alliance Defense Fund in a case in which Planned Parenthood originally challenged a newly adopted South Dakota law requiring disclosure of accurate information to mothers-to-be seeking abortions . . . ‘A child’s life is worth more than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,’ said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Steven H. Aden.”

The Church Report: “Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund filed a friend-of-the-court brief Friday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit asking the court to reject Planned Parenthood’s attempt to block portions of South Dakota’s informed consent law . . . ‘A child’s life is worth more than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,’ said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Steven H. Aden.”

LifeNews: “A pro-life legal group filed a friend-of-the-court brief Friday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit asking the court to reject Planned Parenthood’s attempt to block a South Dakota law. The informed consent law is designed to help persuade women to consider positive alternatives to abortion . . . ‘A child’s life is worth more than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,’ said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Steven H. Aden. He continued . . . ‘”

Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund filed a friend-of-the-court brief Friday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit asking the court to reject Planned Parenthood’s attempt to block portions of South Dakota’s informed consent law.

PRNewswire: “Today, Americans United for Life (AUL) filed an amicus brief in the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, detailing the links between abortion and the increased risk of depression and suicide. The brief seeks to overturn a lower court’s decision that abortion providers in South Dakota are not required to inform women of these risks . . . AUL’s brief in Planned Parenthood v. Rounds is available at http://blog.aul.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/PP-v-Rounds-AUL-amicus-brief.pdf.

Sioux City Journal (AP): “Two South Dakota pregnancy counseling centers have joined the state in appealing a ruling that struck down two provisions of a 2005 law requiring informed consent to abortion . . . Harold Cassidy, an attorney for the groups intervening, said they also appealed to the full court because it has already heard the case and ruled on parts of it, and the issue is significant.”

Religion Clause Blog reports: “. . . The U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals has joined the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th Circuits in holding that while RLUIPA’s prisoner provisions are an appropriate use of Congress’ spending power, states do not waive their sovereign immunity from damage claims under the Act by accepting federal prison funds. The 11th Circuit has taken the opposite position. In Van Wyhe v. Reisch, (8th Cir., Sept. 10, 2009) . . . ”

Van Wyhe v. Reisch, No. 08-1413 (8th Cir. Sept. 10, 2009) . . . “Sisney, a SDSP inmate who practices the Jewish faith, brought suit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and RLUIPA for the violation of his free exercise of religion rights . . . Sisney claimed that the prison officials violated his right to the free exercise of religion under RLUIPA and the First Amendment by denying (among other things not relevant to this appeal) his request to possess and use a succah, his request to have a tape player in his cell to study the Hebrew language, and his request for additional group religious and language study time . . . ”

a href=”http://www.aclu.org/religion/schools/40352prs20090716.html” target=”_blank”>ACLU: “The American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri applauded the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit that upheld a permanent injunction ending the practice of Bible distribution in the public school of a rural Missouri county.”

Americans United for Separation of Church and State: “Americans United for Separation of Church and State today praised a federal appeals court decision barring Bible distribution in a Missouri public school district. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously that the South Iron R-1 School District may not allow distribution of Bibles to children in elementary school.”

Liberty Counsel: “Today the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the South Iron School District and upheld the right of the district to establish an open forum for distribution of materials on school property. The Court of Appeals reversed the District Court and held that the District’s new policy should not have been declared unconstitutional by the lower court judge. Under the district’s policy, secular and religious material can be distributed by any group, including the Gideons . . . ”

Leigh Jones writes at the National Law Journal (Law.com): “The two lower courts had found that repaying the ‘shockingly immense’ debt would create an undue hardship for Jesperson. But the appeals court on Wednesday determined that his ‘self-imposed limitations,’ which resulted in a gross income of $48,000, were no excuse for nonpayment.”

day, in a 3-0 decision, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld local ordinances enacted to discourage illegal immigration and protect business owners . . . In reviewing the facts, the appellate court was puzzled as to why the ACLU even brought the case and dismissed their second complaint with prejudice . . .

. . . the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals . . . said there was a distinction between on-site and off-site businesses . . . Unfortunately for Erotic City, federal district courts in Missouri must follow the law of the 8th Circuit . . .

OneNewsNow: “Missouri is the second state in two weeks to gain approval. Joel Oster is an attorney with the Alliance Defense Fund. “We represent Choose Life of Missouri, and they wanted to have a specialty license plate but they were denied their request because two pro-abort senators rejected their application because they disagreed with the pro-life viewpoint,” he says.”

Religion Clause: “In a release on the decision from Alliance Defense Fund (which represented plaintiffs) indicates that Missouri has already begun to sell the plates since the Court of Appeals had refused to stay the injunction previously issued by the district court. The Kansas City Star also reports on the decision.”

St. Louis Today (AP): “Missouri officials began issuing the plates last month and about 170 are on the roads now, said a Department of Revenue spokesman. Said Joel Oster, an attorney with the Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative Christian legal organization that had sued when the plates were first rejected: “The court recognized that the license plate constituted private speech and that the pro-life message can’t be censored just because a couple of pro-choice senators disagree with that message.”

LifeNews reports: “A federal appeals court has issued a decision agreeing with a lower district court ruling upholding the right of Missouri residents to purchase Choose Life license plates for their vehicles. The proceeds from the sales of the plates will fund pregnancy centers that help women avoid abortions.”

ADF attorneys win victory in decision that upholds ruling against state’s unconstitutional license plate approval process

Over the past ten years, at least nine other state and federal courts (excluding cases still pending on appeal) have ruled that marriage laws are not discriminatory, but have a rational basis in “responsible procreation.”

AP: “A federal appeals court has rejected the appeal of a North Dakota man sentenced to more than 21 years in prison in a child pornography case, saying his 1968 conviction in Iowa could be considered in his sentencing.”

The 8th Circuit has posted a ruling in Lawrence Gladson v. Iowa Dept. of Corrections, No. 07-3528 (8th Cir. Jan. 8, 2009): U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa – Des Moines [Smith, Author, with Wollman and Gruender, …

The 8th Circuit has issued a ruling in Shirley Phelps-Roper v. Jeremiah Nixon, No. 07-1295 (8th Cir. Oct. 31, 2008). This is the summary posted on the court’s website: U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri – Jefferson …

The Religion Clause Blog reports: “In Olsen v. Mukasey, (8th Cir., Sept. 8, 2008), the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals held that plaintiff’s attempt to enjoin enforcement against him of the federal and Iowa’s controlled substances acts should be dismissed.  Carl …

The Religion Clause Blog describes and links to the ruling: “Straights and Gays for Equality (SAGE) v. Osseo Area Schools, (8th Cir., Aug. 29, 2008). “Applying a definition of non-curriculum related groups developed by the U.S. Supreme Court in a …

The constitutionality of the uniform policy is not at issue—it has been deemed constitutional. We find defendants’ attempts to meaningfully distinguish Tinker unconvincing. We hold that Tinker . . . is dispositive.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State has issued this press release that begins: A Missouri public school must end its policy of allowing an evangelical Christian group to distribute Bibles to fifth-graders on school property during school hours, …

The Religion Clause Blog reports: “In Fegans v. Norris, (8th Cir., Aug. 11, 2008), the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, in a 2-1 decision, rejected an Assemblies of Yahwah adherent’s challenge to Arkansas grooming regulations for prisoners.”

The 8th Circuit has issued a unanimous panel ruling in United States v. Zastrow, No. 07-3139 (8th Cir. July 23, 2008). The opinion begins: Emory James Zastrow (Zastrow) pled guilty to one count of producing child pornography, in violation of …

The Voices Carry Blog reports: It was anything but a typical Monday morning at South Dakota’s only abortuary. (Today was compliance day.) Five women arrived for appointments and found the doors were closed and locked . . . You’ll recall …

Roe v. Wade will be nullified where none of us have any voice, by a medical profession with an ever-diminishing memory of the past.

Sherry F. Colb has this commentary on Findlaw discussing the recent Eighth Circuit ruling on South Dakota’s informed consent law. She concludes: Despite its value-laden content, the government, under existing precedents, may directly communicate with women the view that embryos …

Liberty Counsel has issued this press release that begins: The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, in a 7-4 decision, will allow South Dakota to begin enforcing a state law that requires abortion providers to tell women, …

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit ruled 7–4 Friday to lift an injunction against a South Dakota informed consent abortion law. The law requires abortionists to inform women about the nature of abortion and the risks involved before they elect to terminate their pre-born child’s life.

Liberty Counsel has issued this press release indicating: “Liberty Counsel filed its Initial Brief with the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in defense of an equal access policy of the South Iron School District (“District”) that permits the Gideons to …