Opinion ID: 618716
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Procedural Appellate History of Case

Text: Merolillo appealed to the California Court of Appeal, which issued an unpublished opinion affirming Merolillo's murder conviction, filed on November 12, 2002. The Court of Appeal held that [t]he court erred in allowing Garber's opinion to be introduced during the cross-examination of Hermann [sic] the defense witness. But the evidentiary error relating to causation was harmless under the Watson or Chapman standard of review. [4] Merolillo then filed a petition for review in the California Supreme Court, which was denied, without comment or citation to authority, on January 29, 2003. Merolillo filed a habeas petition in federal court. The magistrate judge issued a report and recommendation holding the trial court erred in admitting Dr. Garber's opinion, but that the error was harmless. The district court adopted the findings, conclusions and recommendations of the magistrate judge on November 3, 2008, dismissing the petition with prejudice. The district court judge issued an order granting a certificate of appealability with respect to one of Merolillo's claims: Whether petitioner was prejudiced by the admission of hearsay evidence that the victim's death was caused by brain trauma.