Costantino

MEMORANDUM *

The petitioner, Derek Anthony Costantino, raises two related claims in this habeas appeal. First, he argues that his guilty plea is invalid under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments because he did not enter into the plea agreement knowingly or voluntarily. See, e.g., Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S. 238, 242 , 89 S.Ct. 1709 , 23 L.Ed.2d 274 (1969). Second, he argues that his attorney provided ineffective assistance, in violation of his rights under the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments, because the attorney failed to inform him about exculpatory evidence produced by his defense team’s investigation. See Strickland v. Washington 466 U.S. 668, 685 , 104 S.Ct. 2052 , 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984).

The Nevada courts rejected these arguments when Costantino sought post-conviction relief. Therefore, we may grant his petition for habeas corpus only if the state court’s ruling “was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States.” 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (d)(1). Further, the district court conducted an evidentiary hearing to evaluate Costantino’s claims. The district court found that Costantino was…