Ward v. Whitley

POLITZ, Chief Judge:

Thomas Lee Ward, convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to death, appeals the denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus. We affirm.

Background

Upon his release from a California jail Ward boarded a bus for New Orleans. He drank vodka and shot cocaine throughout the three-day trip and slept little, if at all. Arriving late in the evening of June 22,1983, he went directly to the Hagan Street address of Lydia and John Spencer, where his wife, Linda, and their children were living. Lydia Spencer was Linda’s mother. Explaining that he was on his way to New York…