Opinion ID: 767560
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Ashmus' direct and collateral review

Text: 7 In 1986, Troy A. Ashmus was convicted of murder in California state court and sentenced to death. The State appointed appellate counsel for Ashmus on March 4, 1987. The State of California did not adopt its unitary review scheme in any form until 1989; consequently, when Ashmus received counsel, his attorneys did not have the authority to, nor was it contemplated that they would, develop any collateral claims. 8 On June 6, 1989, the California Supreme Court promulgated policies providing that [a]ppellate counsel in capital cases shall have a duty to investigate factual and legal grounds for the filing of a petition for a writ of habeas corpus. Supreme Court Policies Regarding Cases Arising from Judgments of Death, Cal. Court Rules, Vol. 23, pt. 3, at 143 (1-1) (West 1996) (1989 Supreme Court Policies). Although Ashmus' state-appointed counsel may have been aware of this change in their obligations, they never received orders to investigate collateral claims. 9 The California Supreme Court affirmed Ashmus' death sentence on December 5, 1991. Ashmus initiated his federal habeas proceedings on February 17, 1993. See Ashmus II, 31 F. Supp. 2d at 1177.