Connection lost
Server error
United States v. Elliott Duke Case Brief
Why Top Law Students (And Those Aspiring to Be) Use LSD+ Briefs
Let's be real, law school is a marathon. Our exclusive Flash-to-Full case system is designed by Harvard Law School and MIT grads to match your pace: Quick summaries when you're slammed, detailed analysis when you need to go deep. Only LSD+ offers this kind of flexibility to genuinely fit your study flow.
Adaptive Case Views
Toggle between Flash, Standard, and Expanded. Get what you need, when you need it.
Exam-Ready IRAC Format
We deliver the precise structure professors look for in exam answers.
Complex Cases, Clarified
We break down dense legal reasoning into something digestible, helping you grasp core concepts.
Case Brief Summary & Legal Analysis
tl;dr: A court affirmed a child pornography sentence’s length but struck down lifetime, absolute bans on internet access and contact with minors. The court found these supervised release conditions were not narrowly tailored and imposed a greater deprivation of liberty than reasonably necessary.
Legal Significance: Establishes that absolute, lifetime bans on internet access or contact with minors are impermissibly broad conditions of supervised release in the Fifth Circuit, as they are not narrowly tailored and fail to balance liberty interests with statutory sentencing goals.
United States v. Elliott Duke Law School Study Guide
Use this case brief structure for your own legal analysis. Focus on the IRAC methodology to excel in law school exams and cold calls.
Case Facts & Court Holding
Key Facts & Case Background
Elliot Duke pled guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography. The Presentence Investigation Report (PSR) calculated a U.S. Sentencing Guidelines range of 210 to 240 months. At sentencing, Duke argued for a downward variance, citing mitigating factors including an abusive childhood, mental illness, and prior military service. The district court rejected these arguments and sentenced Duke to the statutory maximum of 240 months imprisonment, followed by a lifetime term of supervised release. The court provided its reasoning in a written Statement of Reasons, citing the seriousness of the offense, Duke’s admission to rape fantasies, and his online communications with a teenage girl. As part of the supervised release, the court imposed several special conditions to which Duke objected. The two conditions challenged on appeal were: (1) an absolute, lifetime ban on accessing any computer capable of internet access, and (2) an absolute, lifetime ban on having any contact with individuals under the age of 18. Duke appealed the procedural and substantive reasonableness of his sentence and the legality of these two special conditions.
Court Holding & Legal Precedent
Issue: Are absolute, lifetime bans on internet access and contact with minors, imposed as special conditions of supervised release, impermissibly broad because they impose a greater deprivation of liberty than is reasonably necessary to achieve statutory sentencing goals?
Yes. The court vacated the special conditions, holding that absolute, lifetime bans Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehen
IRAC Legal Analysis
Complete IRAC Analysis for Higher Grades
IRAC (Issue, Rule, Analysis, Conclusion) is the exact format professors want to see in your exam answers. Our exclusive Flash-to-Full briefs combine holding, analysis, and rule statements formatted to match what A+ students produce in exams. These structured briefs help reinforce the essential legal reasoning patterns expected in law school.
Legal Issue
Are absolute, lifetime bans on internet access and contact with minors, imposed as special conditions of supervised release, impermissibly broad because they impose a greater deprivation of liberty than is reasonably necessary to achieve statutory sentencing goals?
Conclusion
This case sets a key precedent in the Fifth Circuit, establishing that Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea
Legal Rule
Under 18 U.S.C. § 3583(d), a special condition of supervised release must Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex e
Legal Analysis
The Fifth Circuit first affirmed the procedural and substantive reasonableness of Duke's Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing e
Flash-to-Full Case Opinions
Summary unavailable
No flash summary is available for this opinion.
