United States Fifth Circuit

Conviction and death sentence for a federal prisoner who murdered another inmate in a fight are affirmed over claims of error regarding: 1) the district court's refusal to conduct a hearing to determine whether defendant's due process rights were violated by prosecutorial delay; 2) the constitutionality of the Federal Death Penalty Act; 3) the dismissal of two jurors during voir dire; 4) the admission of allegedly improper testimony; 5) the exclusion of evidence; 6) restrictions on counsel's ability to object; 7) the court's refusal to allow impeachment of a government witness with evidence of a prior conviction for sexual assault; 8) the government's impeachment of one of defendant's witnesses with a non-final conviction; 9) the denial of defendant's request to allocute; 10) the failure to instruct the sentencing jury that it could consider "residual doubts" about defendant's guilt; 11) the consistency of the verdict; and 12) the denial of a motion for new trial.

Appellate Information

• Decided 11/17/2008
• Published 11/17/2008

Judges

• JERRY E. SMITH, Circuit Judge:, Before SMITH, WIENER, and HAYNES, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Fifth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Traci Lynne Kenner, Asst. U.S. Atty. (argued), Tyler, TX, Joseph R. Batte, Asst. U.S. Atty., Beaumont, TX, for U.S., Douglas Milton Barlow (argued), Barlow Law Firm, Beaumont, TX, Robert A. Morrow, Spring, TX, for Jackson.