Summary
adjudicating an "application" for a COA after habeas relief denied
Summary of this case from Coleman v. U.S.Opinion
CIVIL ACTION NO. 00-1552 SECTION "T" (3).
December 13, 2000.
ORDER AND REASONS
Before the Court is the Petitioner's Application for a Certificate or Appealability. Having considered the record, the law, and the application submitted by the Petitioner, the Court hereby DENIES the Petitioner's request.
I. BACKGROUND
On July 24, 1990, a jury found petitioner guilty of second degree murder in violation of La. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 14:30.1 (West 1997). On August 13, 1990, the trial judge sentenced Hymes to life in prison at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. On May 15, 1991, the Louisiana Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal affirmed Petitioner's conviction and sentence.
Subsequently, Petitioner filed two applications for post-conviction relief in state court. After exhausting her state court remedies, Hymes filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus with this Court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. In that petition, Hymes alleged two grounds for relief: 1) denial of equal protection of the law under the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution because the grand jury foreperson was chosen in a racially discriminatory way; and 2) denial of effective assistance of counsel because the trial counsel failed to challenge the indictment on the ground that the grand jury foreperson was selected in a racially discriminatory manner. After reviewing the entire record, the memoranda submitted by the parties, and the applicable law, this Court denied Petitioner's request for habeas corpus relief on October 20, 2000.
II. LEGAL ANALYSIS
Under 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c), Hymes has no right of appeal from this Court's October 20, 2000 judgment; she must obtain a Certificate of Appealability. This Court may issue such a certificate "only if the applicant has made a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right." 28 U.S.C. § 2253 (c)(2).
This Court finds that the Petitioner has not made a substantial showing of a constitutional right in the case at hand. Hymes merely restates the claims she made in her original petition, which, as stated above, was denied by this Court on October 20, 2000.
After a thorough review of the record, the applicable law, and the application submitted by the Petitioner, this Court finds that it has addressed the issues and arguments presented by Hymes in her request for a Certificate of Appealability and has determined they are without merit.
Accordingly,
IT IS ORDERED that a Certificate of Appealability in the above captioned matter shall not be issued for the reasons stated above.
New Orleans, Louisiana, this 13 day of December, 2000.