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[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
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No. 13-14373
Non-Argument Calendar
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D.C. Docket No. 3:10-cv-00744-RBD-MCR
ROGER D. HUGHES,
Petitioner - Appellant,
versus
SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS,
FLORIDA ATTORNEY GENERAL,
Respondents - Appellees.
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Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Middle District of Florida
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(April 28, 2015)
Before MARCUS, JULIE CARNES, and COX, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
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Roger D. Hughes, a Florida prisoner serving a life sentence for first-degree
murder, appeals the district court’s denial of his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 habeas corpus
petition. The district court dismissed the petition with prejudice, without an
evidentiary hearing, and denied a certificate of appealability. We granted a
certificate of appealability as to one issue: whether the district court erred in
denying Hughes’s first claim for relief.1 In Hughes’s first claim for relief he
alleges that, in his trial for murder, the court should not have admitted evidence of
his confession. He bases this on what he alleges to be a violation of his Fifth
Amendment Miranda rights by the police in obtaining his confession. See Miranda
v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S. Ct. 1602 (1966).
In denying Hughes’s first claim for relief, the district court held that the state
court decisions on this issue were entitled to deference under 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d)
because they were not contrary to law, were not an unreasonable application of the
law, and were not based on an unreasonable determination of the facts.
Because Hughes proceeds pro se, we construe his petition broadly. Cf.
Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519, 520–21, 92 S. Ct. 594, 595–96 (1972).
Construing his petition broadly, he presents two contentions supporting his claim
that the police violated his Miranda rights. First, he contends that there is a factual
1
We need not consider the Respondents’ argument that Hughes failed to exhaust his claim in
state court. See 28 U.S.C. § 2254(b)(2) (“An application for a writ of habeas corpus may be
denied on the merits, notwithstanding the failure of the applicant to exhaust the remedies
available in the courts of the State.”).
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dispute as to whether the police continued to question him and pressure him to
confess after he asked for an attorney. And, he argues that he is entitled to an
evidentiary hearing to resolve this factual dispute. Second, he contends that, even
on the undisputed facts admitted by the Respondents, the police officers did
nothing to locate his attorney after he requested one, but merely ceased questioning
him.
Hughes filed a motion to suppress evidence of his confession in the state
trial court. The court denied the motion summarily, without discussion of the
factual or legal issues. The First District Court of Appeals affirmed Hughes’s
conviction without an opinion. Under 28 U.S.C. § 2254, a state court’s
adjudication on the merits is entitled to deference unless (1) it was contrary to
established Supreme Court law, or (2) it was based on an unreasonable
determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented. Blankenship v. Hall,
542 F.3d 1253, 1271 (11th Cir. 2008). We construe Hughes’s first contention as
alleging that the state trial and appellate courts’ failure to suppress evidence of his
confession was an unreasonable determination of the facts, and we construe
Hughes’s second contention as alleging that the state trial and appellate courts’
failure to suppress evidence of his confession was contrary to established Supreme
Court law (even on the undisputed facts).
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Turning to Hughes’s first contention, we hold that the state trial court’s
determination was not an unreasonable determination of the facts. In deciding
whether to suppress evidence of Hughes’s confession, the state trial court was
presented with contradictory versions of what occurred immediately before his
confession. According to the police officers, he asked for an attorney, the police
immediately ceased questioning, and Hughes voluntarily reinitiated conversation
approximately fifteen minutes later. According to Hughes, he asked for an
attorney, and the police continued to question him and pressure him to confess.
The state trial court summarily denied the motion without explicit factual findings.
The state trial court was, therefore, presented with two versions of the facts.
One supported the requested relief, and the other did not. See Edwards v. Arizona,
451 U.S. 477, 484–85, 101 S. Ct. 1880, 1885 (1981) (“[A]n accused . . . having
expressed his desire to deal with the police only through counsel, is not subject to
further interrogation by the authorities . . . unless the accused himself initiates
further communication . . . .”).
As discussed, a state court’s adjudication on the merits is entitled to
deference. Blankenship, 542 F.3d at 1271. And, even summary adjudications
qualify as adjudication on the merits. Id. Finally, “dispositive ruling[s] may
contain implicit findings, which, though unstated, are necessary to that ruling.” Id.
at 1272 (quotations omitted). We conclude that the state trial court made the
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implicit finding that the police officers’ version of events was credible. And, we
conclude that this factual finding was not an unreasonable determination of the
facts based on the evidence presented and is entitled to deference. Hughes was not
entitled to an evidentiary hearing.
Turning to Hughes’s remaining contention, we hold that the state courts’
determination was not contrary to established Supreme Court law. Hughes’s basic
argument is that Miranda and its progeny require more than simply ceasing
questioning when an accused asks for an attorney. According to Hughes, the
police were required to take affirmative steps to put Hughes in contact with his
attorney. Hughes cites no Supreme Court case for this proposition, and we are
aware of no Supreme Court case suggesting that this conduct constitutes a Miranda
violation. Hughes has failed to show that the state courts’ determination was
contrary to established Supreme Court law. This determination is entitled to
deference.
For the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the district court dismissing the
petition is affirmed.
AFFIRMED.
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