Sprouse v. Stephens, No. 13-70018 (5th Cir. 2014)
Annotate this CasePetitioner, convicted of capital murder of a police officer, appealed the denial of his petition for habeas corpus relief under 28 U.S.C. 2254. Petitioner argued that the voluntary-intoxication instruction required by Texas Penal Code 8.04 unconstitutionally limited the jury's ability to consider mitigating evidence. The court rejected petitioner's claim, concluding that the state court's decision was not an unreasonable application of Boyde v. California, Penry v. Lynaugh, or Penry v. Johnson. Because clear Fifth Circuit caselaw foreclosed each of petitioner's five additional challenges, the court did not grant a certificate of appealability (COAs) on any of them. Accordingly, the court affirmed the denial of petitioner's habeas petition and denied petitioner's request for COAs on additional issues.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on April 8, 2014.
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