United States Ninth Circuit

In a capital habeas matter, the denial of the petition is affirmed as to petitioner's guilt where: 1) petitioner failed to claim potential or actual bias on the part of a juror; 2) there was no reasonable probability that the outcome of the guilt phase of the trial would have been different had suppressed evidence regarding a witness's plea agreement been introduced. However, the denial of the petition is reversed as to the penalty phase where trial counsel was constitutionally ineffective for failing to investigate and present to the jury the wealth of classic mitigating evidence that was available to him.

Appellate Information

• Argued 01/20/2009
• Decided 09/18/2009
• Published 09/18/2009

Judges

• WARDLAW, Circuit Judge:, Before: KIM McLANE WARDLAW, WILLIAM A. FLETCHER, and RICHARD A. PAEZ, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Katherine L. Hart, Law Offices of Katherine L. Hart, Fresno, CA; Saor E. Stetler, Law Offices of Saor E. Stetler, Mill Valley, CA, for petitioner Michael Allen Hamilton.


• For Appellees:
  
• Catherine Chatman, Deputy Attorney General, Office of the California Attorney General, Sacramento, CA, for respondent Robert L. Ayers.