Boyer v. Israel

DECISION and ORDER

MYRON L. GORDON, District Judge.

In his petition for a writ of habeas corpus, Mr. Boyer attacks his conviction for first degree murder on the grounds that the state trial court instructed the jury that it could presume the essential element of intent from the petitioner’s acts. A jury instruction involving such a presumption was found to be unconstitutional in Sandstrom v. Montana, 442 U.S. 510, 99 S.Ct. 2450, 61 L.Ed.2d 39 (1979).

The respondents raise several arguments to support the conviction, including the petitioner’s failure to exhaust state remedies and his failure to…