Smith v. Duckworth

McHUGH, Circuit Judge.

I. INTRODUCTION

Michael DeWayne Smith was charged with two counts of murder for the killings of Sarath Pulluru and Janet Moore. He was convicted and sentenced to death. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed his convictions on direct appeal and denied his two applications for postconviction relief. Mr. Smith sought a writ of habeas corpus in federal district court, arguing, as relevant here, that he is ineligible for the death penalty because he is intellectually disabled, that the state trial court had erred in admitting Mr. Smith’s videotaped confession to the…