Joe Vern Pierce v. Harold J. Cardwell, Superintendent Arizona State Prison

Joe Pierce, an Arizona state prisoner, appeals from the district court’s denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus. Pierce seeks relief from a sentence of life imprisonment imposed after his conviction in 1974 for first degree murder.

Pierce’s petition enumerates alleged violations of his constitutional rights during his state trial. All of these claims were raised in a state-court petition for post conviction relief which was denied without an evidentiary hearing. Upon the recommendation of a United States magistrate, the district court also denied Pierce’s petition without an evidentiary hearing.

The most important of Pierce’s claims is his contention that his Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights were violated by the admission at his trial of certain incriminating statements made by him after he had asked to see a public defender.

This court must conduct a two-step inquiry in dealing with this type of claim. Townsend v. Sain, 372 U.S. 293 , 83 S.Ct. 745, 9 L.Ed.2d 770 (1963). First, we must determine whether Pierce has alleged facts which, if proved, would entitle him to relief. If we find that he has, we must then determine whether the district court was required to…