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Saad Sakkal v. United States

Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, No. 20-3880 · judgment May 31, 2023


Certiorari denied · January 8, 2024
Pre-decision estimate: 0% cert probability

Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.

Question presented

The question presented here is whether, in a jury instruction under the Controlled Substances Act, 21 U.S.C. § 801 et seq., language taken from an agency regulation (in particular, 21 C.F.R. § 1306.04(a)) may replace the statutory requirement, imposed by Section 841(a)(1), that a physician may be convicted as a drug dealer only if she knowingly or intentionally prescribed without “authorization.” This is the same question presented in the pending petition in Xiulu Ruan and John Patrick Couch v. United States, No. 22-1175. The present case should therefore be held for the disposition of the Ruan petition and thereafter resolved in accordance with the Court’s disposition of that case.

Counsel of record

For petitioner
Saad Sakkal

For respondent
Elizabeth B. Prelogar
Solicitor General

Case

Conference history
Distributed for 2 conferences

Linked docket
24A820

Proceedings

  1. Mar 24 2025
    Rehearing DENIED.
  2. Mar 05 2025
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 3/21/2025.
  3. Feb 25 2025
    Application (24A820) to file petition for rehearing in excess of page limits granted by Justice Kavanaugh. The petition for rehearing may not exceed 140 pages.
  4. Feb 28 2024
    Application (24A820) to file petition for rehearing in excess of page limits, submitted to Justice Kavanaugh.
  5. Jan 31 2024
    Petition for Rehearing filed.
  6. Jan 31 2024
    Motion for leave to proceed further herein in forma pauperis.
  7. Jan 08 2024
    Petition DENIED.
  8. Dec 20 2023
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/5/2024.
  9. Dec 14 2023
    Reply of petitioner Saad Sakkal filed.
  10. Dec 06 2023
    Brief of respondent United States in opposition filed.
  11. Nov 03 2023
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including December 6, 2023.
  12. Nov 02 2023
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from November 9, 2023 to December 6, 2023, submitted to The Clerk.
  13. Oct 05 2023
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including November 9, 2023.
  14. Oct 04 2023
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from October 11, 2023 to November 9, 2023, submitted to The Clerk.
  15. Sep 07 2023
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including October 11, 2023.
  16. Sep 06 2023
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from September 11, 2023 to October 11, 2023, submitted to The Clerk.
  17. Aug 07 2023
    Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due September 11, 2023)