Coble v. Quarterman

• Decision Date: 14 August 2007
• Docket Number: No. 01-50010.,01-50010.
• Citation: 496 F.3d 430
• Parties: Billie Wayne COBLE, Petitioner-Appellant, v. Nathaniel QUARTERMAN, Director, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Institutional Division, Respondent-Appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit

496 F.3d 430

Billie Wayne COBLE, Petitioner-Appellant, v. Nathaniel QUARTERMAN, Director, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Institutional Division, Respondent-Appellee.

No. 01-50010.

United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.

August 14, 2007.

Allen Richard Ellis, Law Office of A. Richard Ellis, Mill Valley, CA, for Coble.

Edward Larry Marshall, Austin, TX, for Quarterman.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas.

ON PETITION FOR REHEARING

Before JOLLY, GARZA, and STEWART, Circuit Judges.

EMILIO M. GARZA, Circuit Judge:

In Coble v. Dretke, 444 F.3d 345 (5th Cir.2006), we affirmed the district court's denial of a writ of habeas corpus to petitioner Billie Wayne Coble on the grounds that he did not receive ineffective assistance of counsel at his capital murder trial and that all of his mitigating evidence could be given effect within the "special issue" interrogatories in the Texas capital sentencing instruction. Coble filed petitions for panel rehearing and rehearing en banc, in which he challenged our holding regarding the Texas special issues; he did not challenge our resolution of his ineffective assistance of counsel claims. While his petitions were pending, our en banc court decided Nelson v. Quarterman, 472 F.3d 287 (5th Cir.2006) (en banc), in which a majority held that, with respect to the Texas special issues, the relevant inquiry under clearly established Supreme Court precedent is "whether there was a reasonable likelihood that the jury would interpret the Texas special issues in a manner that precluded it from fully considering and giving full effect to all of the defendant's mitigating evidence." Id. at 293. Shortly thereafter, the United States Supreme Court issued two decisions dealing with the Texas special issues: Abdul-Kabir v. Quarterman, ___ U.S. ___, 127 S.Ct. 1654, 167 L.Ed.2d 585 (2007), and Brewer v. Quarterman, ___ U.S. ___, 127 S.Ct. 1706, 167 L.Ed.2d 622 (2007). In those cases, the Supreme Court confirmed that (1) its precedent "firmly established that sentencing juries must be able to give meaningful consideration and effect to all mitigating evidence that might provide a basis for refusing to impose the death penalty on a particular individual, notwithstanding the severity of his crime or his potential to commit similar offenses in the future," Abdul-Kabir, 127 S.Ct. at 1664, and (2) prior to Nelson, our court had "mischaracterized the law as demanding only that [mitigating] evidence be given `sufficient mitigating effect,' and [had] improperly equated `sufficient effect' with `full effect,'" Brewer, 127 S.Ct. at 1713. We asked the parties for additional briefing in light of these three cases. Because we are persuaded that there was a reasonable likelihood that the Texas special issues precluded the jury from giving meaningful consideration and effect to Coble's mitigating evidence, we conclude that the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals' determination that the special issues were constitutional as applied to Coble was an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law as announced by the Supreme Court. Accordingly, Coble's petition for rehearing is GRANTED. We WITHDRAW the opinion issued on March 22, 2006 and reported at 444 F.3d 345, and substitute this opinion:

I

Petitioner, Billie Wayne Coble ("Coble"), was convicted of capital murder in the state court of Texas and sentenced to death. Based on a Certificate of Appealability ("COA") on two issues, one granted by the district court and one by this court, Coble appeals the district court's denial of federal habeas relief.

Coble was convicted of the capital murders of his brother-in-law, father-in-law, and mother-in-law. The facts of Coble's crimes are set forth in the opinion of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ("TCCA") disposing of Coble's direct appeal.

Coble was having marital problems and separated from his wife, Karen Vicha, not long before the murders. Coble kidnapped Karen Vicha at knife-point. He attempted to convince her not to divorce him, but eventually released her unharmed. Coble v. State, 871 S.W.2d 192, 195-96 (Tex.Crim.App.1993) (en banc). Several weeks later, Coble was seen driving around the area where Karen Vicha and her parents lived. Id. at 196. That afternoon, he was waiting at his wife's house when her daughters returned from school. Coble handcuffed and tied up her three children and one of their cousins. Id. Next, Coble cut the phone lines to the house and went down the street to the house of his brother-in-law, Bobby Vicha. Coble and Bobby Vicha struggled, and Coble ultimately shot Bobby Vicha in the neck. Id. at 196-97 & n. 6. He returned to Karen Vicha's house for a period of time and then went across the street to the Vicha family home. Coble fatally shot Karen Vicha's parents, Zelda Vicha and Robert Vicha. He cut the phone lines to the Vicha family home as well. Id. at 196-97.

When Karen Vicha arrived home from work, Coble was waiting for her. Id. at 197. He admitted to killing her parents and brother and told her that Bobby Vicha had shot him. He then handcuffed her and drove her out to a rural area in her car. Karen Vicha later testified that Coble assaulted her during the drive. Coble was eventually apprehended after a brief high-speed pursuit, which ended when Coble crashed into a parked car. At the hospital where Coble and Karen Vicha were taken for treatment, Coble spontaneously told various hospital personnel and police officers that he had killed three people. Id.

Coble was subsequently convicted of capital murder. At the close of the penalty phase evidence, the jury answered the special issues in the affirmative and the judge sentenced Coble to death. His direct appeal was affirmed by the TCCA, and the Supreme Court denied his petition for a writ of certiorari. Id. at 208, cert. denied, Coble v. Texas, 513 U.S. 829, 115 S.Ct. 101, 130 L.Ed.2d 50 (1994).

Coble filed an application for a state writ of habeas corpus, alleging twenty-six claims for relief. The trial court held an evidentiary hearing on five of these claims, but recommended that relief be denied. The TCCA agreed, adopted the trial court's findings of fact and conclusions of law, and denied relief in an unpublished order. Ex parte Coble, No. 39,707-01 (Tex.Crim.App.1999).

Coble then applied for federal habeas relief, and the district court appointed counsel. Coble filed his habeas petition, alleging twenty-five claims, and the district court stayed his execution pending resolution of the petition. The district court denied Coble's request for an evidentiary hearing and denied the writ. The district court did, however, grant COA on the issue of ineffective assistance of counsel. Coble then petitioned for COA from this court on eleven additional grounds. We granted COA on the issue of whether the "special issue" interrogatories in the Texas capital sentencing instruction precluded effective consideration of Coble's mitigating evidence in violation of the mandates of Penry v. Lynaugh, 492 U.S. 302, 109 S.Ct. 2934, 106 L.Ed.2d 256 (1989) ("Penry I"), and Penry v. Johnson, 532 U.S. 782, 121 S.Ct. 1910, 150 L.Ed.2d 9 (2001) ("Penry II"). Coble v. Cockrell, 80 Fed.Appx. 301 (5th Cir.2003).

II

"In a habeas corpus appeal, we review the district court's findings of fact for clear error and review its conclusions of law de novo, applying the same standard of review to the state court's decision as the district court." Thompson v. Cain, 161 F.3d 802, 805 (5th Cir.1998). Because Coble filed his federal habeas petition after the effective date of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 ("AEDPA"), the district court's federal habeas review was governed by AEDPA.

Under AEDPA, habeas relief is not available to a state prisoner

with respect to any claim that was adjudicated on the merits in State court proceedings unless the adjudication of the claim —

(1) resulted in a decision that was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States; or

(2) resulted in a decision that was based on an unreasonable determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented in the State court proceeding.

28 U.S.C. § 2254(d). "Under AEDPA, our duty is to determine whether the state court's determination was contrary to or an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law as determined by the Supreme Court at the time that [Coble's] conviction became final" in 1994. Nelson v. Quarterman, 472 F.3d 287, 293 (5th Cir.2006) (en banc) (citing Williams v. Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 405, 120 S.Ct. 1495, 146 L.Ed.2d 389 (2000)). A state court decision is contrary to clearly established Supreme Court precedent if: (1) "the state court applies a rule that contradicts the governing law set forth in [the Supreme Court's] cases," or (2) "the state court confronts a set of facts that are materially indistinguishable from a decision of [the Supreme] Court and nevertheless arrives at a result different from [Supreme Court] precedent." Williams, 529 U.S. at 406, 120 S.Ct. 1495. A state court decision is an unreasonable application of clearly established Supreme Court precedent if the state court "correctly identifies the governing legal rule but applies it unreasonably to the facts of a particular prisoner's case." Id. at 407-08, 120 S.Ct. 1495. The inquiry into unreasonableness is objective. Id. at 409-10, 120 S.Ct. 1495. A state court's incorrect application of clearly established Supreme Court precedent is not enough to warrant federal habeas relief; in addition, such an application must also be unreasonable. Id. at 410-12, 120 S.Ct. 1495. The state court's factual findings are presumed to be correct, and the habeas petitioner has the burden of rebutting that presumption by clear and convincing evidence. 28 U.S.C. § 2254(e)(1).

III

Coble makes multiple ineffective...