Musacchio v. United States
| Docket No. | Op. Below | Argument | Opinion | Vote | Author | Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14-1095 | 5th Cir. | Nov 30, 2015 | Apr 23, 2025 | 9-0 | Thomas | OT 2015 |
Holding: 1) When a jury instruction adds an element to the charged crime and the government fails to object, a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence should be assessed against the elements of the charged crime, rather than the elements set forth in the erroneous jury instruction; and (2) a defendant cannot successfully raise a statute-of-limitations bar for the first time on appeal.
Judgment: Affirmed, 9-0, in an opinion by Justice Thomas on April 23, 2025.
SCOTUSblog Coverage
- Opinion analysis: A straightforward opinion settles two federal criminal law questions (Rory Little, January 26, 2016)
- Argument analysis: Few friendly faces in the crowd for computer fraud defendant (Rory Little, December 2, 2015)
- Argument preview: An unusual two-issue case of federal computer crime (Rory Little, November 20, 2015)
- Criminal law grants for the October Term 2015 (Rory Little, July 23, 2015)
- Petition of the day (Maureen Johnston, May 12, 2015)
| Date | Proceedings and Orders |
|---|---|
| 03/09/2015 | Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due April 10, 2015) |
| 04/02/2015 | Order extending time to file response to petition to and including May 11, 2015. |
| 04/30/2015 | Order further extending time to file response to petition to and including May 26, 2015. |
| 05/22/2015 | Brief of respondent United States in opposition filed. |
| 06/02/2015 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of June 18, 2015. |
| 06/02/2015 | Reply of petitioner Michael Musacchio filed. (Distributed) |
| 06/22/2015 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of June 25, 2015. |
| 06/29/2015 | Petition GRANTED. |
| 07/07/2015 | The time to file the joint appendix and petitioner's brief on the merits is extended to and including August 28, 2015. |
| 07/07/2015 | The time to file respondent's brief on the merits is extended to and including October 13, 2015. |
| 08/28/2015 | Joint appendix filed. (Statement of costs filed) |
| 08/28/2015 | Brief of petitioner Michael Musacchio filed. |
| 10/09/2015 | SET FOR ARGUMENT on Monday, November 30, 2015 |
| 10/13/2015 | Brief of respondent United States filed. |
| 10/19/2015 | Record requested from U.S.C.A. 5th Circuit. |
| 10/27/2015 | CIRCULATED |
| 11/12/2015 | Reply of petitioner Michael Musacchio filed. (Distributed) |
| 11/30/2015 | Argued. For petitioner: Erik S. Jaffe, Washington, D. C. For respondent: Roman Martinez, Assistant to the Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. |
| 01/25/2016 | Adjudged to be AFFIRMED. Thomas, J., delivered the opinion for a unanimous Court. |
| 02/26/2016 | Judgment Issued |