Opinion ID: 1390030
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 11

Heading: Petitioner's Lack of Credibility

Text: Petitioner argues that his innocence is evident because he had no motive to kill the Ryens and Chris Hughes. (Pet. at 22.) Petitioner previously made this argument to the jury at trial, and the jury rejected his testimony. (106 RT 7796-97.) Petitioner's admission of facts says nothing about his credibility considering the evidence connecting Petitioner to the murders. Before Petitioner admitted his presence at the hideout house, he already knew that his fingerprint was on a jar in the kitchen, his semen was in the closet, and he had made phone calls to old girlfriends from the hideout house shortly before the massacre. Petitioner's trial testimony cannot serve to support a showing of actual innocence, both because it is not newly discovered, 28 U.S.C. § 2244(b), and because it does not rebut by clear and convincing evidence the express factual findings of the California Supreme Court which are entitled to a presumption of correctness. See 28 U.S.C. § 2254(e).