Emergency application
Death row appeal
Tony Barksdale v. Steve T. Marshall, Attorney General of Alabama
What did the Court do?
The Court denied the request on March 31, 2025.
Emergency rulings are temporary and do not decide the underlying case.
What's being asked
Tony Barksdale, an Alabama death-row prisoner, asks the Supreme Court for emergency help: a certificate of appealability (permission to appeal). The underlying case involves a federal district court's denial of his habeas petition (a prisoner's challenge to being locked up). That court also denied his request to change its ruling. The Eleventh Circuit refused his application for permission to appeal. The case names Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall and state prison officials.
What the Court did
The Court refused Barksdale's request for emergency help and denied the application (formally refused it). It did not decide his underlying case or explain why; the Court did not publish how the justices voted.
What it means
The temporary emergency ruling does not decide who wins Barksdale's underlying case; the Eleventh Circuit's refusal to let him appeal remains in place. The docket lists no related case on the main legal question, and the Court set no argument.
Sources
Facts on this page come from the Supreme Court docket, orders, and opinions for No. 24A796. The answers restate that record in plain words; explainer copy is written from the record and the filings only.