Opinion ID: 3049887
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: issues

Text: 1 Because the Atkins decision announced a “new rule of constitutional law made retroactive to cases on collateral review,” In re Holladay, 331 F.3d 1169, 1172 (11th Cir. 2003), the district court noted that Thomas’s Eighth Amendment claim that it would be cruel and unusual punishment to execute him because he is mentally retarded could not be defaulted under state procedural rules. Accordingly, the district court gave no deference to the state courts’ opinions to the contrary and reviewed the claim under the parameters set forth in the Anti-terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act, 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (2006). In this appeal, the State does not challenge the district court’s decision with respect to any procedural bar. Thus, any such challenge is deemed abandoned, and we consider the merits of the issue according no deference to any state court decision on this, or any tangentially-related, issue. See Holladay v. Allen, 555 F.3d 1346, 1348 n.1 (11th Cir. 2009). 4 Whether the district court clearly erred in finding Thomas mentally retarded and ineligible for execution under the Eighth Amendment.