The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (also known as AEDPA) is a series of laws in the US signed into law[1] on April 24, 1996 to "deter terrorism, provide justice for victims, provide for an effective death penalty, and for other purposes." It was passed by a Republican-controlled legislature following the Oklahoma City bombing and signed into law by Democratic President Bill Clinton. April 24 is the 114th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (115th in leap years). ... 1996 is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... Capital punishment, also referred to as the death penalty, is the judicially ordered execution of a prisoner as a punishment for a serious crime, often called a capital offense or a capital crime. ... Damage to the Murrah building before cleanup began. ... Order: 42nd President Vice President: Al Gore Term of office: January 20, 1993 – January 20, 2001 Preceded by: George H. W. Bush Succeeded by: George W. Bush Date of birth: August 19, 1946 Place of birth: Hope, Arkansas First Lady: Hillary Rodham Clinton Political party: Democratic William Jefferson Clinton (born...

It imposes a limit for all appeals relating to the right to writ of habeas corpus in capital cases and reduces the length of the appeal process by sharply limiting the role of the federal courts. Habeas corpus is the means by which inmates can test whether their convictions or sentences were obtained in violation of the United States Constitution. In common law jurisdictions, habeas corpus, or more precisely habeas corpus ad subjiciendum, is a prerogative writ which requires the addressee to produce in court a person in its custody and justify his or her imprisonment. ... Page I of the Constitution of the United States of America Page II of the United States Constitution Page III of the United States Constitution Page IV of the United States Constitution The Syng inkstand, with which the Constitution was signed The Constitution of the United States is the supreme...

Some provisions of the AEDPA merely condified judicially created procedural rules surrounding the availability of the writ, such as the requirement of exhaustion of claims in state court. One provision of the AEDPA, not previously applied by federal courts, prohibits federal judges from granting a petition for writ of habeas corpus unless the state court's adjudication of the claim resulted in a decision that was (1) contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States; or (2) resulted in a decision that was based on an unreasonable determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented in the state court proceeding. This provision, and its subsequent interpretation by the federal courts, essentially allow convictions and sentences -- even death sentences -- to be upheld by federal courts even if they were concededly obtained in violation of the United States Constitution. With the AEDPA, not unless a state court resolves a claim "unreasonably" may a federal court intervene and protect the inmate's constitutional rights. Seal of the Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States, based in Washington, D.C., is the highest federal court in the United States. ...

Also new, the AEDPA created a barrier for the filing of second or successive petitions in federal court. Prior judicially created law also limited the availability of the writ of habeas corpus after an initial petition was filed and resolved by a federal court, but the AEDPA imposed new requirements for having a second petition entertained on the merits, restricting successive petitions to persons who are either relying on rare watershed constitutional rules announced by the Supreme Court--such as the prohibition against the execution of the mentally retarded--or to persons who can demonstrate innocence, even when the claim being raised is one that could not have been discovered earlier with the exercise of due dilligence.

To patrol the new restrictions on the filing of successive habeas petitions, the AEDPA created a "gatekeeping" mechanism. Before filing a successive habeas application in a federal district court, the petitioner must first secure authorization from a federal court of appeals. Additionally, a court of appeals' denial of authorization is prohibited from being the subject of a certiorari petition to the Supreme Court, effectively placing final authority for the filing of second petitions in the hands of the federal courts of appeals.

The AEDPA's constitutionality was challenged after it went into effect. The basis of the challenge was that the provisions limiting the ability of persons to file successive habeas petitions violated Article I, Section 9, Clause 2 of the US Constitution, the Suspension Clause. The Supreme Court held unanimously in Felker v. Turpin that these limitations did not unconstitutionally suspend the writ.

External links

• Text of the Act