Pruitt v. Jones

MARCUS, Circuit Judge:

Rodney Lynn Pruitt, an Alabama prisoner proceeding pro se, appeals the district court’s dismissal of his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 petition for habeas corpus relief. We granted a certificate of appealability (“COA”) to consider the following issues: (1) whether the district court erred by finding that Pruitt’s ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims were procedurally defaulted because he did not petition the Alabama Supreme Court for discretionary review of those claims during his state collateral review proceedings, and (2) if so, whether the district court further erred by…