Associated Press
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - A federal judge in Mississippi erroneously denied Thomas Loden Jr.'s request to review the conduct of his defense attorneys, the lawyers for the death row inmate argue in briefs filed with the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The 5th Circuit will hear oral arguments on Loden's appeal on Dec. 16 in Houston, Texas.
Loden, now 48, pleaded guilty in 2001 in the murder of teenager Leesa Gray. Loden was sentenced to death plus 30 years on kidnapping and rape counts.
In 2013, U.S. District Judge Neal B. Biggers in Oxford, Mississippi, ruled Loden failed to prove his trial attorneys were inadequate.
Loden argued his defense attorney failed to fully investigate his mental condition and background. Loden argued poor legal advice led him to plead guilty and waive jury sentencing.
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