Jefferson v. Upton

Summary

The Court vacated the Court of Appeals’ judgment because it treated one statutory exception to the presumption of correctness as controlling without considering Jefferson’s arguments that other exceptions applied to the state court’s factfinding process. The Court remanded for the lower courts to determine whether the state findings remained entitled to a presumption of correctness and whether further proceedings were necessary, without deciding the ineffective-assistance claim. Justice Scalia, joined by Justice Thomas, dissented, arguing that the statutory issue was neither properly presented nor decided below and that the Court of Appeals committed no such error.