United States v. Kenneth Olsen

Kenneth Olsen was convicted in 2003 of knowingly possessing a biological agent, toxin, or delivery system for use as a weapon, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 175 . This court affirmed his conviction on direct appeal. See United States v. Olsen, 120 Fed.Appx. 18 (9th Cir.2004). In 2009, Olsen filed a motion to vacate, set aside, or correct his sentence under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 , raising a number of grounds for relief. After holding an evidentiary hearing on one of those grounds, the district court denied the motion. This court granted a certificate of appealability as to four of Olsen’s claims: violation of Brady v. Maryland, ineffective assistance of counsel, juror bias, and cumulative error. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1291 and 2255. We affirm.

I. Background

Kenneth Olsen was an employee of Agi-lent Technologies, Inc., in Liberty Lake, Washington, where he worked as a computer support technician. In August of 2001, a co-worker discovered that a document labeled the Terrorist Encyclopedia, which referenced explosives and other disturbing matters, had been printed on a shared office printer. Agilent security identified Olsen as the person who printed the document.…