David L. Coulter v. Tommy Herring, Commissioner, Alabama Department of Corrections W.P. Johnson, Warden, Holman Unit

In this capital case appeal, we affirm the district court’s denial of habeas corpus relief.

BACKGROUND

In October 1978, appellant, David L. Coulter, was convicted of capital murder in Colbert County, Alabama. 1 The trial judge sentenced Coulter to death. The Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals reversed Coulter’s conviction “on the authority of Beck v. State, 396 So.2d 645 (Ala.1981).” Coulter v. State, 396 So.2d 1098, 1098 (Ala.Crim.App.1981). Coulter’s second trial commenced in October 1981, but ended in a mistrial. Bryce Graham and James Marks represented Coulter during his second trial. Judge…