Supreme Court of the United States

Maples v. Thomas

January 18, 2012132 S. Ct. 912

Summary

Justice Alito concurs in the judgment, agreeing that the petitioner was effectively deprived of legal representation due to abandonment by his attorneys. He attributes this to a unique combination of eight unfortunate events rather than systemic flaws in Alabama's representation system. Justice Scalia dissents, arguing the default was attributable to counsel's error.