Taniko Smith v. Brian Williams, Sr.

OPINION

REINHARDT, Circuit Judge:

BACKGROUND

Taniko Smith was convicted of first degree murder, attempted murder, two counts of robbery, and attempted robbery in a Nevada superior court on March 28, 1997. Following the conclusion of direct appeal, he filed a series of state and federal habeas petitions between 1999 and 2006, all of which were denied. 1 On January 31, 2007, Smith filed his third state habeas petition, arguing that under the Nevada Supreme Court’s intervening decision in Sharma v. State, 118 Nev. 648, 56 P.3d 868 (2002), the jury had not been properly instructed on the specific…