J.C. Bell v. A.L. Lockhart, Director, Arkansas Department of Corrections

WOLLMAN, Circuit Judge.

The State of Arkansas appeals from the district court’s order granting J.C. Bell federal habeas corpus relief under 28 U.S.C. § 2254. We reverse.

I

This case has a long and convoluted history. On February 9, 1974, K.B. Allen, a businessman in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, was shot and killed during a robbery at his shoe store. Petitioner Bell, along with two other men, was arrested in connection with the murder. The state subsequently charged Bell with capital felony murder in the perpetration of robbery.

The facts concerning the hearing described in the following paragraph were…