LAFAYETTE DESHAWN UPSHAW v. GEORGE STEPHENSON, Warden - Articles

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LAFAYETTE DESHAWN UPSHAW v. GEORGE STEPHENSON, Warden

Posted by: Tanja Trezise on Mar 28, 2024

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1: ARGUED and ON BRIEF: Jared D. Schultz, OFFICE OF THE MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERAL, Lansing, Michigan, for Appellant.

Attorneys 2: ARGUED: Daniel S. Harawa, NEW YORK UNIVERSITY, New York, New York, for Appellee.

Attorneys 3: ON BRIEF: Daniel S. Harawa, Zach Hollstrom, Faith Katz, Jacob Seeley, Malak Shahin, WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY, St. Louis, Missouri, for Appellee.

Judge(s): MOORE, GIBBONS, and STRANCH, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan at Detroit

JANE B. STRANCH, Circuit Judge. This appeal centers on the habeas petition of Lafayette Deshawn Upshaw, a state inmate in the custody of the Michigan Department of Corrections. In 2014, the State charged Upshaw with crimes associated with two separate incidents that occurred on the same day: a gas station robbery and a home invasion. Upshaw entered a plea deal in the home invasion case but went to trial and was convicted on counts stemming from the robbery. Michigan’s state courts affirmed his robbery conviction on direct appeal. After exhausting his state court remedies, Upshaw filed a petition for habeas relief in federal court. The district court granted relief on two of Upshaw’s claims: an ineffective assistance of counsel claim based on trial counsel’s failure to investigate alibi witnesses and a Batson claim deriving from the State’s use of peremptory challenges to strike six Black jurors. The Warden now appeals. We AFFIRM.

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