Opinion ID: 2815298
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Claim Two – “Sentencing Inequity”

Text: In his § 2254 petition, Mr. Brown complained that a year after his conviction and sentence, the state legislature changed attempted second degree murder from a level 1 felony to a level 3 felony but did not make the change retroactive. The district court denied relief because Mr. Brown had failed to identify a violation of the Constitution or federal law. In his brief, Mr. Brown argues he has suffered a Fourteenth Amendment equal protection violation. Aplt. Br. at 8. He did not make this argument before the district court. Even if he had, he has not provided any authority, and we have found none, that the Fourteenth Amendment requires state legislatures that lower the sentence for a particular crime to make that change retroactive. Accordingly, reasonable jurists could not debate the district court’s denial of this habeas claim, and we deny a COA.