Hughes

MEMORANDUM **

Lee Edward Hughes (“Hughes”) appeals the denial of his habeas petition, arguing that he was denied due process by the use of false testimony, and requesting a grant of certificate of appealability on his *522 ineffective assistance claims. We decline to certify his ineffective assistance claims and deny his petition for habeas corpus relief.

I. Certificate of Appealability

Under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (“AEDPA”), a certificate of appealability may only issue when “the applicant has made a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right.” 28 U.S.C. § 2253 (c)(2). When, as here, the district court has rejected the constitutional claims on the merits, “[t]he petitioner must demonstrate that reasonable jurists would find the district court’s assessment of the constitutional claims debatable or wrong.” Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473, 484 , 120 S.Ct. 1595 , 146 L.Ed.2d 542 (2000).

1. Failing to Prepare Cross-Examination of Prosecution Witnesses

No reasonable jurist could disagree with the district court’s conclusion that Hughes’s trial defense counsel was not ineffective for failing to impeach witness Satwant Gill’s testimony…