U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit

Fuston v. Quick

August 21, 2026

Summary

The court affirmed the denial of Fuston's federal habeas petition on both claims. It held that the state court reasonably applied the lesser-included-offense rule because the trial evidence did not permit a rational juror to find that Fuston lacked the intent to kill, and that existing constitutional precedent did not clearly establish his entitlement to an intellectual-disability hearing based on multiple IQ scores. The court therefore deferred to the state court's determinations under the governing habeas standard.