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Clay Melton Denton v. United States

Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, No. 22-40020 · judgment January 10, 2023

Certiorari denied · October 2, 2023

Pre-decision estimate: 7% cert probability (95% interval 5%–10%)

Before the decision, about 1.8× the 4.1% base rate. The model weighted this up for a Fifth Circuit decision below, a circuit split argued in the petition, and a petition filed soon after the judgment below.

Question presented

If critical evidence, which is at a minimum potentially exculpatory, is lost as a result of government’s failure to preserve it, when is a defendant entitled to an instruction that permits the jury to consider the spoliation of said critical evidence and apply an adverse inference therefrom?

Counsel of record

For petitioner
Bruce Anton
Udashen Anton

For respondent
Elizabeth B. Prelogar
Solicitor General

Case

Conference history
Distributed for 1 conference

Proceedings

Oct 02 2023
Petition DENIED.
Jun 28 2023
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/26/2023.
Jun 14 2023
Brief of respondent United States in opposition filed.
Main Document Proof of Service
May 11 2023
Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including June 14, 2023.
May 09 2023
Motion to extend the time to file a response from May 15, 2023 to June 14, 2023, submitted to The Clerk.
Main Document
Apr 10 2023
Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due May 15, 2023)
Petition Appendix Certificate of Word Count Proof of Service