United States Ninth Circuit

In a murder prosecution, a denial of petitioner's habeas petition is reversed and remanded where, in light of the anomalous medical and toxicological evidence, the ready availability of an alternative cause of death, the lapse in the chain of custody of the victim's autopsy specimens, and the failure of petitioner's attorneys to have a test conducted that could have conclusively contradicted the prosecution's theory of the case, petitioner made a strong showing that her lawyers' performance was deficient, and the district court needs to conduct an evidentiary hearing on this issue.

Appellate Information

• Decided 09/23/2010
• Published 09/23/2010

Judges

• Nancy Gertner

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• William J. Genego, Edmund G. Brown Jr.