Star Van Pool v. Ron Kenan

MEMORANDUM

Petitioner-Appellant Star Monique Van Pool appeals the district court’s denial of her 28 U.S.C. § 2254 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus challenging her conviction for assault with a deadly weapon and carjacking, both committed for the benefit of a criminal street gang. Van Pool asserts that (1) during her trial, the prosecutor improperly vouched for the credibility of a witness, Eric Thomas; (2) her trial counsel’s failure to object to that vouching amounted to ineffective assistance of counsel; (3) the prosecutor committed misconduct by making an allegedly threatening statement to a witness, Leonore Lettman, outside of the jury’s presence; and (4) her due process rights were violated when witness Eric Thomas was permitted to testify as to how females are initiated into the Raymond Avenue Crips gang. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 2253 and we affirm.

1. As to Van Pool’s first claim, the California Court of Appeal reasonably concluded that the prosecutor’s statements did not rise to the level of impermissible “vouching.” The court reasonably concluded that such statements were an attempt to convince the jury to, in the prosecutor’s words, “look at all the…