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SCOTUS takes the DIG route to capital habeas case

By Douglas A. Berman

As reported here at SCOTUSblog, the Supreme Court this morning dismissed Bell v. Kelly, a capital habeas case heard just last week, as ?improvidently granted.?  Kent at C&C provides this helpful explanation: Sometimes "improvidently granted" is a term of art, but this time it is literally true.  They took a case that does not present the issue the petitioner claimed it presents.  As noted here, the premise of the question presented -- that the state court refused to consider evidence -- is false, and counsel for petitioner admitted as much in oral argument.  As discussed here, the case could have been used to resolve some important issues nonetheless, but the Court decided to simply dump it. This DIG of a capital habeas case provides more support for the claims I put forward in my recent "Capital Waste" article...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on November 17, 2008 (boomark / email).