Lawhorn v. Allen

BIRCH, Circuit Judge:

An Alabama jury found petitioner James Charles Lawhorn (“Lawhorn”) guilty of *1276capital murder and recommended that he be sentenced to death. The state circuit court judge adopted that recommendation and sentenced Lawhorn to death. After exhausting his state court remedies, Law-horn filed a federal habeas corpus petition pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. The district court granted in part and denied in part Lawhorn’s habeas petition, and the state appealed.1 After a thorough review of the record, and having the benefit of oral argument and the parties’ briefs, we REVERSE the…