Starr

MEMORANDUM **

Antonio Starr (“Starr”) appeals the district court’s denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254 . We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 2253 , and we AFFIRM.

1. Starr contends that a substantial amount of irrelevant and highly prejudicial evidence was admitted at his trial which so infected the proceedings as to deny him due process. This evidence consisted of a “hard-core” pornographic video tape; a collection of sexually-explicit photographs that Starr took of nude women; and a set of diaries in which Starr had recorded numerous entries describing women he had seen on the street, including their license plate numbers and sexually-explicit comments.

We acknowledge that whether this evidence was admissible is a close question. However, we think it was proper because (1) the fact that Starr either showed the video tape to his minor stepdaughter or watched it while she was in the room demonstrated that he had a sexual interest in her, and was therefore relevant to Starr’s motive to commit the offenses charged, see Cal. Evid.Code § 1101(b); and (2) the photographs and diaries were admissible to rebut the defense’s assertions of…