Dion Wilmont v. Scott Kernan

MEMORANDUM

California prisoner Dion Wilmont appeals the denial of his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 habeas corpus petition. We affirm.

Denial of a habeas petition is reviewed de novo. Parker v. Small, 665 F.3d 1143, 1147 (9th Cir.2011) (per curiam). Under AEDPA, federal courts may grant relief to state prisoners only where the state court’s adjudication of a claim on the merits was either (1) “contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court,” or (2) “based on an unreasonable determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented.” 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (d). AEDPA review is “highly deferential.” Cullen v. Pinholster, - U.S. -, -, 131 S.Ct. 1388, 1398 , 179 L.Ed.2d 557 (2011).

The admission of the evidence of Wil-mont’s previous convictions was not so fundamentally unfair as to deny him due process because it was the anticipated consequence of his attorney’s strategy. “[Djenial of due process is the failure to observe that fundamental fairness essen tial to the very concept of justice.... [W]e must find that the absence of that fairness fatally infected the trial; the acts complained of must be of such quality as…