Wednesday, March 24, 2004

Habeas petition denied in Lynchburg rape and murder case

The opening paragraph of this opinion by Chief Judge Wilson describes the case:

"There is no dispute but that Brandon Wayne Hedrick and an accomplice robbed and had sex with Lisa Yvonne Alexander Crider, abducted her at gunpoint, drove her to a remote location near a river, dragged her to the riverbank as she cried and begged for mercy, shot her in the face at close range with a shotgun, and returned to their apartment and went to sleep. In fact, against the advice of counsel, whom Hedrick now disparages, Hedrick spoke with law enforcement officials and admitted as much. Hedrick, however, disputes evidence that he raped and forcibly sodomized Crider, and he contends he only intended to scare, not kill, her. He now brings this Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254 blaming his counsel for his conviction and death sentence. But from a thorough review of the record, the court cannot identify anything counsel did or did not do that prejudiced Hedrick and finds no other ground to grant Hedrick’s petition and accordingly dismisses it."

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