Williams v. Taylor

Terry Williams (defendant) was convicted and sentenced to death; the Virginia Supreme Court affirmed. In state post-conviction proceedings, a judge found that Williams's lawyers failed to present mitigating evidence at sentencing and gave ineffective assistance under Strickland v. Washington, but the Virginia Supreme Court denied relief. Williams sought federal habeas relief under AEDPA (28 U.S.C. section 2254). The federal district court found the death sentence invalid, but the Fourth Circuit reversed, reading section 2254(d)(1) to forbid relief unless the state ruling was one no reasonable jurist could reach. The U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari.

Whether a state court's denial of relief for ineffective assistance of counsel entitles a defendant to federal habeas relief under AEDPA section 2254(d)(1).