Second Circuit – Habeas Corpus: Brown v. James

Listen to this article

United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

 Habeas Corpus — Justification — Jury charge

Brown v. James

23-7864

Judges Cabranes, Nardini, and Kahn

Background: The petitioner was convicted of first-degree murder after he shot and killed a person during an argument. The New York Court of Appeals reinstated the conviction after it was overturned on appeal. The court held that the petitioner was the first person in the confrontation to pull out a gun and thereby threatened the use of deadly force, which made him the initial aggressor under New York law. He was denied habeas relief by the district court.

Opinion: The Second Circuit affirmed. The court held that there was no error in the Court of Appeals holding that the trial court properly declined to charge the jury on justification under state law. Therefore he did not make the proper showing that there was a federal due process violation.

Kristen Santillo, of Gelber & Santillo, for the petitioner-appellant; Tae-Hoon Charles Won, of the district attorney’s office, for the respondent-appellee.

Oral argument audio