SCOTUS Blog has a preview of today's oral argument in Harbison v. Bell. All the briefing is available here on ScotusWiki. The transcript of the oral argument should be available here, at the Supreme Court's website, before the end of the day.
Here's an excerpt from Kristina Moore's preview:
At 1 p.m. today, the Court will hear argument in Harbison v. Bell (07-8521), involving the right of prisoners to have federally funded counsel during state clemency proceedings. Dana Hasen of the Knoxville, Tenn., defender’s office will argue for the petitioner, and William Jay of the Solicitor General’s office will argue as amicus curiae in support of the judgment below.
In Harbison v. Bell, the Court will consider two questions: (1) whether 18 U.S.C. § 3599 permits federally funded habeas counsel to represent a condemned inmate in state clemency proceedings; and (2) whether a district court’s denial of a request for federally funded clemency counsel may be appealed even without a certificate of appealability (COA).
18 U.S.C. § 3599 provides indigent capital defendants with counsel in post conviction proceedings and insures that “unless replaced by a similarly qualified counsel upon the attorney or defendant’s own motion…each attorney so appointed shall represent the defendant throughout every subsequent stage of available judicial proceedings.” The statute was originally enacted as part of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, which made drug-related homicides a federal capital offense and specified sentencing procedures. Congress also included an appropriation for indigent criminal defense and authorized federal courts to appoint counsel for unrepresented defendants in death-penalty-related proceedings. The Terrorist Death Penalty Enhancement Act of 2005, part of the PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act, recodified this provision without change in Section 3599.
Earlier coverage of the case is here.
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