United States Ninth Circuit

A conviction and death sentence for first degree murder, felony murder, carjacking resulting in death, and related offenses is affirmed over claims of error regarding: 1) challenges to the jurisdiction of the federal court and to application of the Federal Death Penalty Act (FDPA); 2) jury selection; 3) denial of a motion to suppress post-arrest statements by defendant; 4) joinder and discovery; 5) other evidentiary rulings; 6) an aiding and abetting instruction; 7) the trial court's declining to grant a mistrial for misconduct in opening statement and closing argument; 8) victims' family members sitting in the courtroom wearing buttons with pictures of the victims; 9) ex parte meetings by the district judge with the United States Marshals Service; 10) issues regarding capital sentencing under the FDPA; 11) defendant's decision not to be present for the penalty phase, and his counsel's request to withdraw; 12) Brady violations; 13) evidentiary rulings relating to the penalty phase; 14) instructional error; 15) prosecutorial misconduct; and 16) a Booker claim.

Appellate Information

• Argued 02/15/2007
• Decided 09/05/2007
• Published 09/05/2007

Judges

• Before:  STEPHEN REINHARDT, PAMELA ANN RYMER, and BARRY G. SILVERMAN, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Celia M. Rumann, Assistant Federal Public Defender, Phoenix, AZ, and Michael P. O'Connor, Tempe, AZ, for appellant Lezmond Mitchell.


• For Appellees:
  
• Daniel R. Drake, Assistant United States Attorney, and Vincent Q. Kirby, Assistant United States Attorney, Phoenix, AZ, for appellee the United States.