No. 23-1358

George Stephenson, Warden v. Lafayette Deshawn Upshaw

Lower Court: Sixth Circuit
Docketed: 2024-06-28
Status: Denied
Type: Paid
Response Waived Experienced Counsel
Tags: clearly-established-federal-law federal-courts federal-review habeas-corpus habeas-corpus-review-28-usc-2254 ineffective-assistance plurality-opinion plurality-opinions state-courts statutory-interpretation supreme-court-holding unreasonable-application
Key Terms:
HabeasCorpus Privacy JusticiabilityDoctri
Latest Conference: 2024-09-30
Question Presented (from Petition)

1. Does a rule announced in a four-Justice plurality opinion constitute a holding of this Court, and therefore "clearly established Federal law" under § 2254(d)(1), when no other Justice adopted—either explicitly or implicitly—the plurality's rule or any reasoning supporting that rule?

2. Did the Sixth Circuit violate § 2254(d)(1)'s strict limitations when it independently analyzed the prejudice prong of an ineffective-assistance claim without addressing the state court's prejudice analysis or explaining why the state court's opposite conclusion was "beyond any possibility for fairminded disagreement"?

Question Presented (AI Summary)

Does a rule announced in a four-Justice plurality opinion constitute a holding of this Court, and therefore 'clearly established Federal law' under § 2254(d)(1), when no other Justice adopted—either explicitly or implicitly—the plurality's rule or any reasoning supporting that rule?

Docket Entries

2024-10-07
Petition DENIED.
2024-07-24
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/30/2024.
2024-07-17
Waiver of Lafayette Deshawn Upshaw of right to respond submitted.
2024-07-17
Waiver of right of respondent Lafayette Deshawn Upshaw to respond filed.
2024-06-26

Attorneys

George Stephenson
Ann Maurine ShermanMichigan Department of Attorney General, Petitioner
Lafayette Deshawn Upshaw
Daniel Scott HarawaNYU School of Law, Federal Appellate Clinic, Respondent