The New York Court of Appeals denied Diaz's application for leave to appeal. People v. Diaz, 54 N.Y.2d 1029, 446 N.Y.S.2d 1029, 430 N.E.2d 1324 (1981). Diaz raises the following claims: 1) his conviction was obtained using statements coerced in violation of his Fourteenth Amendment right to due process, which the trial judge failed to find specifically were voluntary prior to admitting them at trial; 2) his conviction was based on a confession obtained in violation of his privilege against self-incrimination because it was neither spontaneous nor preceded by Miranda warnings; 3) he was denied his right to a fair trial because the jury remained impaneled although some jurors made statements that, according to Diaz, indicated the jurors' bias against the defendant; 4) his right to due process was violated when the Assistant District Attorney who interrogated Diaz also prosecuted the case, read the transcript of the interrogation to the jury, and characterized Diaz's defenses as "smokescreens;" 5) he was denied due process because the trial court's jury instruction was erroneous; and 6) his sentence violated the Eighth Amendment's pro