Ex Parte Floyd

The dispositive issue in this review by certiorari is whether the petitioner timely raised his claim that the district attorney impermissibly used peremptory challenges to remove black persons from the venire at his initial trial. In order to address that issue it is necessary to determine whether petitioner's case was "pending on direct appeal" at the timeBatson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79, 106 S.Ct. 1712, 90 L.Ed.2d 69 (1986), was decided on April 30, 1986. We hold that even though this Court had affirmed petitioner's conviction on direct review and had denied his application for rehearing…