Jimmy Davis, Jr. v. Commissioner, Alabama Department of Corrections
February 19, 2026·1:07-cv-00518-CLS·Published·By James Taylor
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit denied a petition for rehearing en banc in a capital habeas case. The panel decision upholding the death sentence remains in effect despite dissenting arguments regarding jury hesitation and ineffective assistance of counsel.
Jimmy Davis, Jr. was convicted of capital murder during a robbery in Alabama in nineteen ninety-four. After state appeals and federal habeas proceedings, a panel of the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the denial of relief, finding no prejudice from counsel’s failure to present mitigating evidence of childhood abuse and a prior robbery conviction.
The court’s reasoning
The court ordered that the appeal will not be reheard en banc because a majority of the judges in active service voted against granting rehearing. The panel majority concluded that the state court’s application of the Strickland standard was not an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law.
The dissent
What it means going forward
The denial of rehearing en banc leaves the panel’s decision standing, allowing the death sentence to proceed while the dissenting view that the jury’s behavior indicated prejudice remains unaddressed by the full court.
