Published opinions released by the U.S. 5th Circuit on April 8, 2008:

• U.S. v. Gulley (King, DeMoss, Southwick, JJ., per curiam). Affirming conviction for first degree murder; finding sufficient evidence; finding no error in district court’s exclusion of evidence of victim’s eight prior instances of violence, which defendant had sought to introduce to support self-defense defense; finding no reversible error in government’s pre-indictment delay of in district court’s refusal to hold in camera hearing into reasons for delay; denying defendant’s ineffective assistance of counsel claim (regarding trial counsel’s failure to elicit testimony of crime scene reconstruction expert) as not ripe for review, since IAC claim on direct appeal will ordinarily only be entertained if there was a hearing on the issue before the district court.
• Cadle Co. v. Pratt (Weiner, Barksdale, Dennis, JJ.; opinion by Weiner, J.). Affirming denial of sanctions against debtor’s counsel, finding that creditor had failed to comply with service requirement of Rule 9011; declining to rule as to appeal of award of attorneys’ fees to debtor, on basis that district court had remanded that issue to the bankruptcy court, depriving the Court of Appeals of jurisdiction over that issue.
• Trans-Serve, Inc. v. U.S. (Jones, Weiner, Clement, JJ.; opinion by Weiner, J.). Affirming district court’s holding that Trans-Serve owes taxes at higher rate required by the Railroad Retirement Tax Act and the Railroad Unemployment Repayment Tax Act.