COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - An appeals court has refused to reopen federal claims by a condemned Ohio man who shot his three sons to death as they slept in 1982.
A three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday unanimously ruled against allowing Reginald Brooks of East Cleveland to argue he had poor legal counsel and that one of his lawyers had a conflict of interest.
The court said the 66-year-old Brooks, who is scheduled to die Tuesday, waited too long to file the new claims and wouldn't succeed in his argument even if he had filed in time.
The court said Brooks' attorneys made exhaustive filings on his behalf. Judges also rejected an argument that the son of a judge who previously ruled against Brooks shouldn't have represented Brooks.
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