Strouth v. Colson

OPINION

SUTTON, Circuit Judge.

Thirty-four years ago, a jury convicted Donald Strouth of first-degree murder for killing James Keegan during a robbery of Keegan’s used-clothing store in Kingsport, Tennessee. The jury sentenced Strouth to death, a sentence the Tennessee appellate courts affirmed on direct appeal and in two collateral-review proceedings. Strouth sought a writ of habeas corpus in federal district court, asserting sixteen grounds for relief. The district court denied the petition. We affirm.

I

On February 15, 1978, Keegan’s wife found her husband’s dead body on the floor of his…