Topic
Every decision we've filed under Habeas Corpus - State Prisoner (28 USC 2254).
The Tenth Circuit denied Venancio Vigil's request for a certificate of appealability because he failed to argue that reasonable jurists could debate the district court's procedural ruling. The court dismissed the appeal without reaching the merits of his claims regarding perjury, evidence tampering, and Brady violations.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed the denial of a habeas petition challenging the deprivation of nearly 19 years of good time credits for a violent attack on a correctional officer. The court held that the administrative record contained sufficient evidence to support the finding of serious bodily injury and that the sanction was not grossly disproportionate under the Eighth Amendment.
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.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the denial of Winston Calder's federal habeas petition, holding that the state court's finding of no prejudice constituted an adjudication on the merits under AEDPA. The court concluded that the state court's determination that the evidence was sufficient for conviction without the challenged impeachment statement was not an unreasonable application of federal law.
The Seventh Circuit reversed a district court order transporting a death row inmate for mental health testing, holding that the All Writs Act does not authorize such measures without a sufficient nexus to a specific claim for relief. The court found the petitioner failed to demonstrate how the requested brain scans would be admissible evidence to support his equitable tolling argument.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed the denial of habeas relief, holding that a juror's comments about knowing the defendant's family and fearing for their safety were internal to the deliberation process. The court ruled that the West Virginia Supreme Court did not unreasonably apply federal precedent in finding this conduct did not constitute impermissible external influence.
The Supreme Court held that the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act does not bar federal prisoners from seeking certiorari review of a court of appeals' denial of authorization for a second or successive § 2255 motion. The Court further ruled that the statutory bar on 'do-over' claims in § 2244(b)(1) applies only to state prisoners, not federal prisoners.
The First Circuit held that a state prisoner's second habeas petition challenging a conviction is not 'second or successive' under AEDPA when the underlying sentence was modified by a state court ruling declaring the original sentence unconstitutional. Because the modification created a new judgment, the petitioner bypassed the federal court's gatekeeping requirements for successive petitions.
The Eleventh Circuit denied Frank A. Walls's motion for a stay of execution, ruling that his last-minute Eighth Amendment challenge to Florida's lethal injection protocol was barred by inexcusable delay. The court held that Walls failed to demonstrate a likelihood of success on the merits because he waited months to file suit despite knowing of his health risks and the protocol's history for years.
The First Circuit affirmed the denial of James Garrey's habeas petition, ruling that the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court did not unreasonably apply federal law in upholding a prosecutor's peremptory strike of a minority juror. The court held that the state trial court's acceptance of the prosecutor's race-neutral explanation was reasonable given the ambiguous record and the high deference required under AEDPA.