Court Of Appeals Upholds Conviction

{Louisville, Kentucky}...When a jury in Louisville convicted Michael Anthony Peak of murdering a Hispanic man, identified in 2008 as 34 year old Miguel Garcia of Freer, Texas, it did so largely on the weight of a taped statement of co-defendant Patrick Meeks, who never testified at the trial, even though he waived his right against self-incrimination and could have been called to the stand. Peak and Meeks were convicted in 2002 of killing the man as part of a plan to steal a kilogram of cocaine from him in Louisville in 1998, then dump the body in Henry County. Wednesday, a split panel from the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Peak's conviction and sentence of life without parole for 25 years. Judge Danny Boggs wrote that while Peak's constitutional rights "may well have been violated," the court cannot find a reason to overturn his conviction under recent Supreme Court decisions. Judge Eric Clay said the constitutionally guaranteed right to confront one's accusers should be enough to give Peak a new trial. Clay called on the Supreme Court to consider taking Peak's case for review.