Vernon Frank Stone v. W. J. Estelle, Director, Texas Department of Corrections

AINSWORTH, Circuit Judge:

Appellant Vernon Frank Stone was convicted by a Texas jury of murder with malice, and punishment was assessed at twenty-six years’ imprisonment. The conviction was affirmed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Stone v. State, 1974, 510 S.W.2d 612 (Tex.Cr.App.). Stone then filed a state court petition for habeas corpus which was denied, as was his application in the federal court below, from which this appeal was taken.

The issue before us is whether impeachment cross-examination by the prosecutor of the defendant, Stone, regarding his post-arrest exercise of…