Pinnell v. Palmateer

Petitioner was convicted of aggravated murder and felony murder and sentenced to death. The convictions and sentence ultimately were affirmed on direct appeal. Petitioner then filed a petition for post-conviction relief, advancing a number of claims concerning the constitutionality of the criminal trial proceedings and the adequacy of his counsel. The trial court rejected those claims and dismissed the petition. Petitioner appeals, assigning error both to the dismissal of those claims and to what he contends were erroneous rulings by the trial court in the post-conviction proceeding itself.…