⚖ 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.

We hope these enhancements make oral argument recordings easier to understand, more accessible, and more enjoyable to listen to.

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United States v. Donald et al. — 2d Cir. (Sep 22, 2026)

No. 25-455 Argued September 22, 2026 Published September 30, 2026

Four men appeal together from a federal gang trial in Bridgeport, Connecticut. In December 2023, a jury convicted Keishawn Donald, Trevon Wright, Eric Hayes and Travon Jones of conspiring in the East End gang's racketeering activity. The trial traced drug dealing and a series of shootings in conflicts with rival groups; the district judge later denied the four men's requests for acquittal or a new trial. Racketeering conspiracy here means an agreement to take part in an enterprise's pattern of crimes. One central question is what proof of continued participation after age eighteen allows adult prosecution when a gang conspiracy began while a defendant was a juvenile. Justin Pugh of Justin C. Pugh and Associates represents Donald and will argue that the prosecution did not meet that requirement.

United States v. Donald et al. (No. 25-455) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, argued September 22, 2026.

Sources
Consolidated argument audio — Second Circuit (public domain, 17 U.S.C. § 105):https://ww3.ca2.uscourts.gov/audio/25-455,%2025-608,%2025-761,%2025-933.mp3
Argument listing — Second Circuit:https://ww3.ca2.uscourts.gov/oral_arguments.html
Post-trial ruling — District of Connecticut:https://ecf.ctd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2021cr0008-674=
Trial and verdict — U.S. Attorney for Connecticut:https://www.justice.gov/usao-ct/pr/four-members-violent-bridgeport-gang-guilty
Juvenile Delinquency Act — U.S. Code:https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?edition=2023&num=0&req=granuleid%3AUSC-2023-title18-section5032
Federal Rule of Evidence 403:https://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/fre/rule_403
Appeal docket — Donald:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca2/25-455
Appeal docket — Wright:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca2/25-608
Appeal docket — Jones:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca2/25-761
Appeal docket — Hayes:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca2/25-933
Counsel profile — Pugh:https://justincpugh.com/about
Counsel profile — Koch Jr:https://ccdla.org/members/william-t-koch-jr/
Counsel profile — Schoenhorn:https://schoenhorn.com/
Counsel profile — Koch Iii:https://nlcba.org/nlcba-directory/name/w-theodore-koch-iii/

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