Smith v. Phillips

Justice Rehnquist delivered the opinion of the Court.

Respondent was convicted in November 1974 by a New York state-court jury on two counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. After trial, respondent moved to vacate his conviction pursuant to §330.30 of the N.Y. Crim. Proc. Law (McKinney 1971) (CPL),[1] and a hearing on his mo [*211] tion was held pursuant to CPL §330.40.[2] The hearing was held before the justice who presided at respondent’s trial, and the motion to vacate was denied by him in an opinion concluding “beyond a reasonable doubt” that the events giving rise to the motion did not influence the verdict. People v. Phillips, 87 Misc. 2d 613, 614, 630, 384 N. Y. S. 2d 906, 907-908, 918 (1975). The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department, affirmed the conviction without opinion. 52 App. Div. 2d 758, 384 N. Y. S. 2d 715 (1976). The New York Court of Appeals denied leave to appeal. 39 N. Y. 2d 949, 352 N. E. 2d 894 (1976).

Some four years after the denial of leave to appeal by the Court of Appeals, respondent sought federal habeas relief in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on the same ground which had been asserted in the state post-trial hearing. The District Court granted the writ, 485 F. Supp. 1365 (1980), and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed on a somewhat different ground. 632 F. 2d 1019 (1980). We granted certio-rari to consider the important questions of federal constitutional law in relation to federal habeas proceedings raised by these decisions. 450 U. S. 909 (1981). We now reverse.