In Re Willie Clifford Coley on Habeas Corpus — Liu, J., Concurring

Summary

Justice Liu concurred in the court's opinion except for its treatment of petitioner's Apprendi claim. He would have deemed the claim forfeited because petitioner did not object below or raise it in his appellate briefing, and he criticized the majority for addressing the merits without resolving whether the challenged fact was essential to the sentence's legality under the Eighth Amendment or whether Apprendi applied to such a fact. Justice Werdegar, concurring, likewise viewed the Apprendi claim as forfeited and shared Liu's concern that the majority had not fully answered it.