⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

Real court arguments, crisp audio, with context.

Court recordings can be difficult to follow, and many suffer from poor audio quality. This podcast enhances the audio, provides a brief introduction to each case, and explains legal concepts that may be unfamiliar to some listeners.

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United States v. Siyang Chen — 2d Cir. (Sep 23, 2026)

No. 25-1916 Argued September 23, 2026 Published October 2, 2026

The Second Circuit hears the government's appeal in United States v. Siyang Chen. Trial evidence described a prostitution business run by Chen and his wife, and attacks on women working independently or for rival operations. A jury convicted Chen of conspiring to commit sex trafficking. The district judge later set aside that conviction, finding that the violence targeted competition rather than forcing women to perform commercial sex. Only that count is at issue here. Rule twenty-nine permits this kind of acquittal only if no rational jury could find the charged crime proved beyond a reasonable doubt. The question is what the violence was intended to accomplish. The government will contend that the jury could infer coercion of the organization's own workers, even if the attacks also discouraged competition. Prosecutor Sophia Suarez will ask the court to restore the jury's verdict.

United States v. Siyang Chen (No. 25-1916) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, argued September 23, 2026.

Sources
Argument audio — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (public domain, 17 U.S.C. § 105):https://ww3.ca2.uscourts.gov/audio/25-1916.mp3
Argument listing and date — Second Circuit:https://ww3.ca2.uscourts.gov/oral_arguments.html
District court Memorandum and Order, July 7, 2025 — E.D.N.Y., No. 1:22-cr-00158 (court text mirrored by Midpage):https://app.midpage.ai/document/united-states-v-chen-1000445601853
Appellate docket and advocate identities — Second Circuit (court docket mirrored by Justia):https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca2/25-1916
Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 29 — rule text, Cornell Legal Information Institute:https://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcrmp/rule_29
18 U.S.C. § 1591 — statute text, Cornell Legal Information Institute:https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1591

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