Habeas Review and Miranda

Habeas Review and Miranda

Robert C. Phillips
Deputy District Attorney (Ret)
June, 2019

            One of the procedural tactics available to a defendant convicted of criminal violations in state court is a federal habeas corpus review.  In a death penalty case, the availability of habeas review not only draws out an already lengthy process, but provides defendants with another avenue—sometimes referred to as a “collateral attack”—other than a direct appeal in his or her attempt to obtain a reversal of a death sentence. 

But habeas review is very limited in its scope.  A federal habeas petition in a state case is governed by the provisions of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA).[1]  AEDPA greatly restricts the circumstances under which a federal habeas court may grant relief to a state prisoner whose claim has already been adjudicated on the merits in State court.  Under AEDPA, the federal court may only grant habeas relief if a state court’s decision was (1) “contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States,” or (2) is “based on an unreasonable determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented in the State court proceeding.”© 2026 Legal Updates, LLC.
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