253
SEC. 804. DISCRETION TO DENY HABEAS CORPUS APPLICA-
TION DESPITE FAILURE TO EXHAUST STATE
REMEDIES.
Section 2254(b) of title 28, United State Code, is
amended to read as follows:
‘‘(b) An application for a writ of habeas corpus in
behalf of a person in custody pursuant to the judgment
of a State court shall not be granted unless it appears
that the applicant has exhausted the remedies available
in the courts of the State, or that there is either an ab-
sence of available State corrective process or the existence
of circumstances rendering such process ineffective to pro-
tect the rights of the applicant. An application may be
denied on the merits notwithstanding the failure of the
applicant to exhaust the remedies available in the courts
of the State.’’.
SEC. 805. PERIOD OF LIMITATION FOR FEDERAL PRIS-
ONERS FILING FOR COLLATERAL REMEDY.
Section 2255 of title 28, United States Code, is
amended by striking the second paragraph and the penul-
timate paragraph thereof, and by adding at the end the
following new paragraphs:
‘‘A two-year period of limitation shall apply to a mo-
tion under this section. The limitation period shall run
from the latest of the following times:
254
‘‘(1) The time at which the judgment of convic-
tion becomes final.
‘‘(2) The time at which the impediment to mak-
ing a motion created by governmental action in vio-
lation of the Constitution or laws of the United
States is removed, where the movant was prevented
from making a motion by such governmental action.
‘‘(3) The time at which the right asserted was
initially recognized by the Supreme Court, where the
right has been newly recognized by the Court and is
retroactively applicable.
‘‘(4) The time at which the factual predicate of
the claim or claims presented could have been dis-
covered through the exercise of reasonable dili-
gence.’’.
Subtitle B—Special Procedures for
Collateral Proceedings in Cap-
ital Cases
SEC. 811. DEATH PENALTY LITIGATION PROCEDURES.
Title 28, United States Code, is amended by inserting
the following new chapter immediately following chapter
153:
255
‘‘CHAPTER 154—SPECIAL HABEAS CORPUS
PROCEDURES IN CAPITAL CASES
‘‘Sec.
‘‘2256. Prisoners in State custody subject to capital sentence; appointment of
counsel; requirement of rule of court or statute; procedures for
appointment.
‘‘2257. Mandatory stay of execution; duration; limits on stays of execution; suc-
cessive petitions.
‘‘2258. Filing of habeas corpus petition; time requirements; tolling rules.
‘‘2259. Evidentiary hearings; scope of Federal review; district court adjudica-
tion.
‘‘2260. Certificate of probable cause inapplicable.
‘‘2261. Application to State unitary review procedures.
‘‘2262. Limitation periods for determining petitions.
‘‘2263. Rule of construction.
‘‘§ 2256. Prisoners in State custody subject to capital
sentence; appointment of counsel; re-
quirement of rule of court or statute; pro-
cedures for appointment
‘‘(a) This chapter shall apply to cases arising under
section 2254 brought by prisoners in State custody who
are subject to a capital sentence. It shall apply only if the
provisions of subsections (b) and (c) are satisfied.
‘‘(b) This chapter is applicable if a State establishes
by rule of its court of last resort or by statute a mecha-
nism for the appointment, compensation and payment of
reasonable litigation expenses of competent counsel in
State postconviction proceedings brought by indigent pris-
oners whose capital convictions and sentences have been
upheld on direct appeal to the court of last resort in the
State or have otherwise become final for State law pur-
256
poses. The rule of court or statute must provide standards
of competency for the appointment of such counsel.
‘‘(c) Any mechanism for the appointment, compensa-
tion and reimbursement of counsel as provided in sub-
section (b) must offer counsel to all State prisoners under
capital sentence and must provide for the entry of an
order by a court of record: (1) appointing one or more
counsel to represent the prisoner upon a finding that the
prisoner is indigent and accepted the offer or is unable
competently to decide whether to accept or reject the offer;
(2) finding, after a hearing if necessary, that the prisoner
rejected the offer of counsel and made the decision with
an understanding of its legal consequences; or (3) denying
the appointment of counsel upon a finding that the pris-
oner is not indigent.
‘‘(d) No counsel appointed pursuant to subsections
(b) and (c) to represent a State prisoner under capital
sentence shall have previously represented the prisoner at
trial or on direct appeal in the case for which the appoint-
ment is made unless the prisoner and counsel expressly
request continued representation.
‘‘(e) The ineffectiveness or incompetence of counsel
during State or Federal collateral postconviction proceed-
ings in a capital case shall not be a ground for relief in
a proceeding arising under section 2254 of this chapter.
257
This limitation shall not preclude the appointment of dif-
ferent counsel, on the court’s own motion or at the request
of the prisoner, at any phase of State or Federal
postconviction proceedings on the basis of the ineffective-
ness or incompetence of counsel in such proceedings.
‘‘§ 2257. Mandatory stay of execution; duration; limits
on stays of execution; successive peti-
tions
‘‘(a) Upon the entry in the appropriate State court
of record of an order under section 2256(c), a warrant
or order setting an execution date for a State prisoner
shall be stayed upon application to any court that would
have jurisdiction over any proceedings filed under section
2254. The application must recite that the State has in-
voked the postconviction review procedures of this chapter
and that the scheduled execution is subject to stay.
‘‘(b) A stay of execution granted pursuant to sub-
section (a) shall expire if—
‘‘(1) a State prisoner fails to file a habeas cor-
pus petition under section 2254 within the time re-
quired in section 2258, or fails to make a timely ap-
plication for court of appeals review following the de-
nial of such a petition by a district court;
‘‘(2) upon completion of district court and court
of appeals review under section 2254 the petition for
258
relief is denied and (A) the time for filing a petition
for certiorari has expired and no petition has been
filed; (B) a timely petition for certiorari was filed
and the Supreme Court denied the petition; or (C)
a timely petition for certiorari was filed and upon
consideration of the case, the Supreme Court dis-
posed of it in a manner that left the capital sentence
undisturbed; or
‘‘(3) before a court of competent jurisdiction, in
the presence of counsel and after having been ad-
vised of the consequences of his decision, a State
prisoner under capital sentence waives the right to
pursue habeas corpus review under section 2254.
‘‘(c) If one of the conditions in subsection (b) has
occurred, no Federal court thereafter shall have the au-
thority to enter a stay of execution or grant relief in a
capital case unless—
‘‘(1) the basis for the stay and request for relief
is a claim not previously presented in the State or
Federal courts;
‘‘(2) the failure to raise the claim is (A) the re-
sult of State action in violation of the Constitution
or laws of the United States; (B) the result of the
Supreme Court recognition of a new Federal right
that is retroactively applicable; or (C) based on a
259
factual predicate that could not have been discovered
through the exercise of reasonable diligence in time
to present the claim for State or Federal
postconviction review; and
‘‘(3) the facts underlying the claim would be
sufficient, if proven, to undermine the court’s con-
fidence in the determination of guilt on the offense
or offenses for which the death penalty was imposed.
‘‘§ 2258. Filing of habeas corpus petition; time re-
quirements; tolling rules
‘‘Any petition for habeas corpus relief under section
2254 must be filed in the appropriate district court within
one hundred and eighty days from the filing in the appro-
priate State court of record of an order under section
2256(c). The time requirements established by this section
shall be tolled—
‘‘(1) from the date that a petition for certiorari
is filed in the Supreme Court until the date of final
disposition of the petition if a State prisoner files
the petition to secure review by the Supreme Court
of the affirmance of a capital sentence on direct re-
view by the court of last resort of the State or other
final State court decision on direct review;
‘‘(2) during any period in which a State pris-
oner under capital sentence has a properly filed re-
261
presented and litigated in the State courts except
when the prisoner can show that the failure to raise
or develop a claim in the State courts is (A) the re-
sult of State action in violation of the Constitution
or laws of the United States; (B) the result of the
Supreme Court recognition of a new Federal right
that is retroactively applicable; or (C) based on a
factual predicate that could not have been discovered
through the exercise of reasonable diligence in time
to present the claim for State postconviction review;
and
‘‘(2) conduct any requested evidentiary hearing
necessary to complete the record for habeas corpus
review.
‘‘(b) Upon the development of a complete evidentiary
record, the district court shall rule on the claims that are
properly before it.
‘‘§ 2260. Certificate of probable cause inapplicable
‘‘The requirement of a certificate of probable cause
in order to appeal from the district court to the court of
appeals does not apply to habeas corpus cases subject to
the provisions of this chapter except when a second or suc-
cessive petition is filed.
262
‘‘§ 2261. Application to State unitary review proce-
dure
‘‘(a) For purposes of this section, a ‘unitary review’
procedure means a State procedure that authorizes a per-
son under sentence of death to raise, in the course of di-
rect review of the judgment, such claims as could be raised
on collateral attack. The provisions of this chapter shall
apply, as provided in this section, in relation to a State
unitary review procedure if the State establishes by rule
of its court of last resort or by statute a mechanism for
the appointment, compensation and payment of reasonable
litigation expenses of competent counsel in the unitary re-
view proceedings, including expenses relating to the litiga-
tion of collateral claims in the proceedings. The rule of
court or statute must provide standards of competency for
the appointment of such counsel.
‘‘(b) A unitary review procedure, to qualify under this
section, must include an offer of counsel following trial
for the purpose of representation on unitary review, and
entry of an order, as provided in section 2256(c), concern-
ing appointment of counsel or waiver or denial of appoint-
ment of counsel for that purpose. No counsel appointed
to represent the prisoner in the unitary review proceedings
shall have previously represented the prisoner at trial in
the case for which the appointment is made unless the
263
prisoner and counsel expressly request continued represen-
tation.
‘‘(c) Sections 2257, 2258, 2259, 2260, and 2262
shall apply in relation to cases involving a sentence of
death from any State having a unitary review procedure
that qualifies under this section. References to State ‘post-
conviction review’ and ‘direct review’ in those sections
shall be understood as referring to unitary review under
the State procedure. The references in sections 2257(a)
and 2258 to ‘an order under section 2256(c)’ shall be un-
derstood as referring to the post-trial order under sub-
section (b) concerning representation in the unitary review
proceedings, but if a transcript of the trial proceedings
is unavailable at the time of the filing of such an order
in the appropriate State court, then the start of the one
hundred and eighty day limitation period under section
2258 shall be deferred until a transcript is made available
to the prisoner or his counsel.
‘‘§ 2262. Limitation periods for determining petitions
‘‘(a) The adjudication of any petition under section
2254 of title 28, United States Code, that is subject to
this chapter, and the adjudication of any motion under
section 2255 of title 28, United States Code, by a person
under sentence of death, shall be given priority by the dis-
trict court and by the court of appeals over all noncapital
264
matters. The adjudication of such a petition or motion
shall be subject to the following time limitations:
‘‘(1) A Federal district court shall determine
such a petition or motion within 180 days of filing.
‘‘(2)(A) The court of appeals shall hear and de-
termine any appeal relating to such a petition or
motion within 180 days after the notice of appeal is
filed.
‘‘(B) The court of appeals shall decide any ap-
plication for rehearing en banc within 30 days of the
filing of such application unless a responsive plead-
ing is required in which case the court of appeals
shall decide the application within 30 days of the fil-
ing of the responsive pleading. If en banc consider-
ation is granted, the en banc court shall determine
the appeal within 180 days of the decision to grant
such consideration.
‘‘(b) The time limitations under subsection (a) shall
apply to an initial petition or motion, and to any second
or successive petition or motion. The same limitations
shall also apply to the re-determination of a petition or
motion or related appeal following a remand by the court
of appeals or the Supreme Court for further proceedings,
and in such a case the limitation period shall run from
the date of the remand.
265
‘‘(c) The time limitations under this section shall not
be construed to entitle a petitioner or movant to a stay
of execution, to which the petitioner or movant would oth-
erwise not be entitled, for the purpose of litigating any
petition, motion, or appeal.
‘‘(d) The failure of a court to meet or comply with
the time limitations under this section shall not be a
ground for granting relief from a judgment of conviction
or sentence. The State or Government may enforce the
time limitations under this section by applying to the court
of appeals or the Supreme Court for a writ of mandamus.
‘‘(e) The Administrative Office of United States
Courts shall report annually to Congress on the compli-
ance by the courts with the time limits established in this
section.
‘‘§ 2263. Rule of construction
‘‘This chapter shall be construed to promote the expe-
ditious conduct and conclusion of State and Federal court
review in capital cases.’’.
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of chapters
at the beginning of part VI of title 28, United States Code,
is amended by inserting after the item relating to chapter
153 the following new item:
‘‘154. Special habeas corpus procedures in capital cases 2256’’.
266
Subtitle C—Funding for Litigation
of Federal Habeas Corpus Peti-
tions in Capital Cases
SEC. 821. FUNDING FOR DEATH PENALTY PROSECUTIONS.
Part E of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and
Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.) is
amended by adding at the end the following new section:
‘‘SEC. 515. Notwithstanding any other provision of
this subpart, the Director shall provide grants to the
States, from the funding allocated pursuant to section
511, for the purpose of supporting litigation pertaining to
Federal habeas corpus petitions in capital cases. The total
funding available for such grants within any fiscal year
shall be equal to the funding provided to capital resource
centers, pursuant to Federal appropriation, in the same
fiscal year.’’.
TITLE IX—PUBLIC CORRUPTION
SEC. 901. OFFENSES.
(a) OFFENSES.—Chapter 11 of title 18, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow-
ing:
‘‘§ 226. Public corruption
‘‘(a) STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT.—
‘‘(1) HONEST
SERVICES.—Whoever, in a cir-
cumstance described in paragraph (3), deprives or