4th Circuit remands for evidentiary hearing on Brady claim

On November 16, 2017, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the district court's denial of relief on Virginia death row inmate Anthony Juniper's Brady claim and remanded for an evidentiary hearing.  Juniper v. Zook, ___ F.3d ___ (4th Cir. Nov. 16, 2017).  The appeals court concluded that the district court had "failed to assess the plausibility of that claim through the proper legal lens."  The suppressed evidence involved statements by neighbors of the victims that could have called into question the testimony of key prosecution witnesses and allowed Juniper to mount an alternative suspect defense.