Legal Opinion
Wiggins v. Smith, Warden
Supreme Court of the United States
Decided June 26, 2003No. 02-311PublishedCited by 5,426 opinions
1Opinion of the CourtJustice O’Connor
Petitioner, Kevin Wiggins, argues that his attorneys’ failure to investígate his background and present mitigating evidence of his unfortunate life history at his capital sentencing proceedings violated his Sixth Amendment right to counsel. In this case, we consider whether the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit erred in upholding the Maryland Court of Appeals’ rejection of this claim.
I
A
On September 17, 1988, police discovered 77-year-old Florence Lacs drowned in the bathtub of her ransacked apartment in Woodlawn, Maryland. Wiggins v. State, 352 Md. 580, 585, 724 A. 2d 1, 5…
2Cases cited16 opinions
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