Burt Lancaster v. Linda Metrish

OPINION

RONALD LEE GILMAN, Circuit Judge.

Burt Lancaster appeals from the district court’s denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2254. In 1998, Lancaster was charged by the state of Michigan with first-degree murder and with possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony. At his 1994 jury trial, he was convicted on both counts despite his asserted defenses of insanity and diminished capacity. The judgment was later overturned, however, due to an error by the State during jury selection (a Bat-son violation).

When Lancaster was retried in 2005, he opted to be…