Leonard Marvin Laws v. Bill Armontrout

MAGILL, Circuit Judge.

The State of Missouri appeals from the district court’s grant of habeas corpus relief to Laws. The district court vacated Laws’ death sentence after concluding that Laws had received ineffective assistance of counsel during the punishment phase of his trial. We reverse and reinstate the sentence, finding no valid claim of ineffectiveness of trial counsel.

We deal here with a defendant who conspired to and did commit three separate and distinct robberies and murders on elderly and helpless victims. He claims ineffectiveness here only in the penalty phase of the trial for…