Dist. Ct. did not err in denying defendant’s habeas petition challenging his murder conviction on ground that his trial counsel was ineffective, where Dist. Ct. found that defendant had procedurally defaulted said claim by failing to raise it in state appellate court until he had filed pro se reply brief at time he was still represented by counsel. Moreover, state appellate court’s discretionary refusal to consider defendant’s ineffective assistance of counsel claim constituted adequate ground to bar federal habeas review. Also, Ct. noted that defendant could have fired his appellate counsel to ensure that defendant’s preferred arguments, including his ineffective assistance of counsel claim, were raised and considered on merits by state appellate court.
Federal 7th Circuit Court
Criminal Court
Habeas Corpus