31:
357:, the federal law requiring heightened sentences for drug sales causing death or serious bodily injury. The language in that statute requires that the death “results from” the sale of illegal drugs. Because the deceased in this case was found with multiple drugs in his system, the heroin sold by the defendant could not be considered an independently sufficient cause of death.
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heroin use "was the proximate cause of death." Instead, the court instructed the jury to determine if "the heroin distributed by was a contributing cause of Joshua Banka's death." The jury convicted him and the court sentenced him to 20 years' imprisonment, consistent with the minimum sentence in the law. The
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Burrage moved for acquittal because Banka's death was not "because of" the heroin (there was no evidence that heroin was a but-for cause of death), but the motion was denied. The district court also declined giving
Burrage's proposed jury instructions, including requiring the government to prove that
317:
Two medical experts testified at trial regarding the cause of Banka's death. One, a forensic toxicologist, determined that multiple drugs were present but could not say whether Banka would have lived if he had not taken the heroin, though he concluded that the drug was a factor in Banka's death.
130:
At least when the use of a drug distributed by the defendant is not an independently sufficient cause of the victim's death or serious bodily injury, a defendant cannot be liable for penalty enhancement under the penalty enhancement provision of the
Controlled Substance Act unless such use is a
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The Court held that the law considers causation as a hybrid between two constituent parts: actual cause, or cause-in-fact, and legal cause, which is also known as proximate cause. Because the cause-in-fact requirement was not met in this case, the Court did not rule on whether the crime of
306:. Only one of those offenses, count 2, which alleged that Burrage unlawfully distributed heroin on April 14, 2010, and that "death...resulted from the use of th substance"—thus subjecting Burrage to the 20 year mandatory minimum of
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unless such use is a but-for cause of the death or injury, at least when the use of a drug distributed by the defendant is not an independently sufficient cause of the victim's death or serious bodily injury.
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Another, an Iowa state medical examiner, similarly could not determine whether Banka would have lived had he not taken the heroin, but said that his death would have been much less likely.
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The Court heard oral argument on
November 12, 2013. Angela L. Campbell was appointed by the Court to argue for the petitioner, and Benjamin Horwich, assistant to the
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distribution of drugs causing death required a foreseeability or proximate cause requirement. Instead, the Court focused on the specific text found in
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case in which a unanimous Court held that a defendant cannot be liable for penalty enhancement under the penalty enhancement provision of the
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373:, objecting to an analogy made in the opinion that compared the "results from" language in drug statutes to similar language found in
279:, Joshua Banka died on April 15. His wife found his body late that morning; they had purchased heroin together from Marcus Burrage in
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Burrage pleaded not guilty to a superseding indictment alleging two counts of distributing heroin in violation of
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Scalia, joined by
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After an extended drug binge which began on April 14, 2010, involving
517:"Supreme Court relaxes mandatory drug-dealer sentencing in overdoses"
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wrote an opinion concurring in the judgment, joined by
Justice
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454:"U.S. Supreme Court throws out conviction of Iowa drug dealer"
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United States
Supreme Court cases of the Roberts Court
491:"Justices Weigh Role Drug Played in a Fatal Cocktail"
54:Marcus Andrew Burrage, Petitioner v. United States
360:
603:
627:United States controlled substances case law
227:Ginsburg (in judgment), joined by Sotomayor
553:, 571 U.S. 204 (2014) is available from:
478:United States v. Burrage, 687 F. 3d 1015
594:Supreme Court (slip opinion) (archived)
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375:Title VII's anti-retaliation provision
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131:but-for cause of the death or injury.
18:2014 United States Supreme Court case
452:Rodgers, Grant (January 27, 2014).
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515:Savage, David (January 27, 2014).
489:Liptak, Adam (November 12, 2013).
36:Supreme Court of the United States
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612:United States Supreme Court cases
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345:wrote the opinion of the Court.
333:, argued for the United States.
326:affirmed Burrage's convictions.
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622:2014 in United States case law
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361:Justice Ginsburg's Concurrence
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250:, 571 U.S. 204 (2014), was a
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423:___, 134 S. Ct. 881 (2014).
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585:Oyez (oral argument audio)
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377:. Citing her dissent in
247:Burrage v. United States
45:Decided January 27, 2014
43:Argued November 12, 2013
24:Burrage v. United States
458:The Des Moines Register
120:(reversed and remanded)
135:reversed and remanded.
521:The Los Angeles Times
93:797; 82 U.S.L.W. 4076
527:on February 25, 2014
337:Opinion of the Court
85:134 S. Ct. 881; 187
312:§ 841(b)(1)(C)
295:, and other drugs.
179:Ruth Bader Ginsburg
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438:The Oyez Project:
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293:hydrocodone
224:Concurrence
203:Elena Kagan
606:Categories
411:, No.
396:References
289:clonazepam
285:alprazolam
263:Background
91:U.S. LEXIS
89:715; 2014
60:Docket no.
371:Sotomayor
273:oxycodone
269:marijuana
87:L. Ed. 2d
70:Citations
549:Text of
367:Ginsburg
365:Justice
341:Justice
216:Majority
99:Argument
531:July 2,
500:July 1,
463:July 2,
413:12-7515
125:Holding
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287:and
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428:^
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