Short Circuit: A Roundup of Recent Federal Court Decisions
Please enjoy the latest edition of Short Circuit, a weekly feature written by a bunch of people at the Institute for Justice.
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- The Clear Air Act says “new” pollution sources are those built after EPA promulgates the relevant pollution standard for that source. In 2022 EPA came up with some standards for certain industrial boilers and said they applied to the boilers even though the boilers were built before the standards had been proposed. D.C. Circuit: Which means the boilers aren’t “new.”
- Maine law and jail policy prohibit officers from being in the delivery room while a prisoner is in labor or giving birth, absent a request from medical staff. First Circuit: And it’s clearly established that, absent an emergency, the Fourth Amendment prohibits observing the prisoner’s naked body, unless “inadvertent, occasional, casual, and/or restricted.” So no qualified immunity for these officers, both of whom also allegedly have histories of inappropriate conduct with female inmates. (IJ filed an amicus brief, with our friends at the MacArthur Justice Center, urging this course of action.)
- “Is it ‘fair use’ for a nonprofit organization to scan copyright-protected print books in their entirety, and distribute those digital copies online, in full, for free, subject to a one-to-one owned-to-loaned ratio between its print copies and the digital copies it makes available at any given time, all without authorization from the copyright-holding publishers or authors?” Second Circuit: We have a 64-page opinion you can read, but—from that description of the question—we’re pretty sure you can guess the answer.
- Man is arrested after causing traffic accident and appearing unsteady on his feet. He’s got no alcohol in his system, so maybe drugs? Yikes! Turns out he’d had a stroke. Can he sue an NYPD officer who pursued charges (that required him to come to court several times before they’re dismissed) even after learning of the stroke? Second Circuit (unpublished): No, he could have had the stroke after the accident, so the officer had at least arguable probable cause, which defeats a malicious prosecution claim.
- FullStory Inc. sells a script of computer code that allows businesses to collect data about how visitors interact with their websites. E.g., Papa John’s uses the code to capture website visitors’ mouse movements, clicks, scrolls, zooms, window resizes, keystrokes, and text entries. Mamma mia! Two class actions filed in Pennsylvania allege that FullStory (produces the code) and Papa John’s (uses the code) violated the state’s wiretapping and privacy laws. The district court dismisses both cases for lack of personal jurisdiction over the out-of-state corporations. Third Circuit (over a dissent): Dismissal of Papa John’s is affirmed, but dismissal of FullStory is vacated and remanded for district court to apply the correct test.
- Allegation: Man in Houston drives in the early morning to help his girlfriend in a fender bender and is getting along well with assisting officers until police sergeant barrels in, escalates the situation, and then chokeslams man on a car hood, leading to a scuffle in which the man is tased and arrested. Fifth Circuit: If the facts are as alleged, no qualified immunity. Dissent: “This is an absurd result.” Bodycam video shows man assault sergeant, so sergeant should get qualified immunity. Concurrence: I don’t see that in the video at all, so this should be decided at trial, “not by three appellate judges playing junior-varsity jury.”
- Driver pleads guilty to felony fleeing after high-speed chase and then sues Hernando, Miss. officers for excessive force. District court: Heck bar precludes claims and, alternatively, driver hasn’t identified a constitutional violation. No attorneys’ fees for prevailing defendants. Fifth Circuit (unpublished): Driver’s counsel has inexplicably failed to appeal the alternative holding so he loses, but also no fees because civil-rights defendants can only get those when claims are frivolous. Concurrence: The text of the fee-shifting statute for civil rights cases doesn’t differentiate between plaintiffs and defendants, so maybe precedent that treats pl
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