Gerald Eldridge v. William Stephens, Director ( 2015 )


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  •      Case: 13-70023         Document: 00512905580      Page: 1    Date Filed: 01/16/2015
    IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
    FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
    No. 13-70023
    United States Court of Appeals
    Fifth Circuit
    FILED
    GERALD CORNELIUS ELDRIDGE,                                               January 16, 2015
    Lyle W. Cayce
    Petitioner—Appellant                                           Clerk
    v.
    WILLIAM STEPHENS, DIRECTOR, TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL
    JUSTICE, CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS DIVISION,
    Respondent—Appellee
    Appeal from the United States District Court
    for the Southern District of Texas
    USDC No. 4:05-CV-1847
    Before STEWART, Chief Judge, and OWEN and SOUTHWICK, Circuit
    Judges.
    PER CURIAM:*
    Gerald Cornelius Eldridge seeks a certificate of appealability (COA) on
    the issue of his competence to be executed under Ford v. Wainwright 1 and
    Panetti v. Quarterman. 2 We deny his request for a COA.
    * Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not
    be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH
    CIR. R. 47.5.4.
    1   
    477 U.S. 399
    (1986).
    2   
    551 U.S. 930
    (2007).
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    I
    In 1994, Eldridge was convicted of murdering his former girlfriend
    Cynthia Bogany, and her daughter Chirissa, and was sentenced to death. 3 As
    we previously recounted:
    The evidence established that Eldridge went to Cynthia Bogany’s
    apartment, kicked in the door, and shot Chirissa between the eyes
    at point-blank range, killing her instantly. Eldridge then shot at
    close range his son Terrell and another individual, Wayne Dotson,
    both of whom were wounded but survived. Cynthia fled the
    apartment but Eldridge chased and caught her when she tripped
    and fell on the stairs outside a neighbor’s apartment. Despite
    Cynthia’s pleas for her life, Eldridge shot her twice in the head,
    killing her instantly. Eldridge was twenty-eight years old at the
    time of the murders. 4
    Eldridge’s first habeas corpus petition was pending in the Texas state courts
    when the Supreme Court decided Atkins v. Virginia. 5 He subsequently filed a
    second petition raising an Atkins claim; the Texas courts denied the first
    petition, and dismissed the second as an abuse of the writ. 6 Eldridge then filed
    a habeas petition in federal district court raising only his Atkins claim. 7 The
    district court determined Eldridge was not intellectually disabled to render his
    execution unconstitutional under Atkins, 8 and this court denied Eldridge’s
    request for a COA. 9 Eldridge’s execution was set for November 17, 2009. 
    10 3 Rawle at 1965
    .
    4   Eldridge v. Quarterman, 325 F. App’x 322, 323 (5th Cir. 2009).
    5   
    536 U.S. 304
    (2002).
    6   Rawle at 1965
    .
    7   R. at 
    1965-66. 8 Rawle at 662-64
    .
    9   Eldridge, 325 F. App’x at 
    329. 10 Rawle at 1966
    .
    2
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    On August 19, 2009, Eldridge moved the state trial court to appoint a
    mental-health expert to conduct a preliminary evaluation of his competence to
    be executed. 11 The state trial court appointed Dr. Mary Alice Conroy, who
    interviewed Eldridge for two hours and concluded that Eldridge appeared to
    suffer from a psychotic disorder. 12 On September 17, 2009, the trial court then
    granted the State’s motion to allow Dr. Mark S. Moeller evaluate Eldridge.
    Dr. Moeller concluded Eldridge was malingering (i.e., feigning mental illness)
    to avoid execution. 13 Eldridge then requested funding for a comprehensive
    evaluation of his competency to be executed, and sought an evidentiary
    hearing. 14 The state trial court denied both requests. 15 On November 16, 2009,
    the eve of Eldridge’s execution, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed
    the trial court. 16 Eldridge then filed a habeas corpus petition in federal district
    court on the ground that he was incompetent to be executed.
    The district court determined Eldridge had made a substantial showing
    of incompetency based on demonstrated bizarre behavior and delusional
    statements, corroborated by expert evidence, and that Eldridge was entitled to
    a fair hearing on his claim. 17 The court further concluded that the state court’s
    failure to grant Eldridge funding for a comprehensive evaluation or give him
    an opportunity to respond to the State’s expert opinion did not adhere to the
    requirements of due process as articulated by the Supreme Court in Panetti, 
    18 11 Rawle at 1966
    .
    12   R. at 
    1966. 13 Rawle at 1967
    .
    14   R. at 
    1967. 15 Rawle at 1967
    .
    16   R. at 
    1967. 17 Rawle at 955
    .
    18   
    551 U.S. 930
    (2007).
    3
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    and therefore, the state court’s finding of competency was not entitled to
    deference under the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act
    (AEDPA). 19       The district court stayed Eldridge’s execution, granted him
    funding for expert assistance, and scheduled an evidentiary hearing. 20
    At the hearing, the district court heard from four mental health experts:
    Dr. Pradan A. Nathan, Eldridge’s treating physician for two years prior to the
    hearing; Dr. Michael Roman, a clinical psychologist retained by Eldridge
    specifically for his habeas petition; Dr. Thomas Allen, a psychiatrist retained
    by the State; and Dr. Moeller, the forensic psychologist who testified in the
    state habeas proceedings, also retained by the State. 21 The court found that
    Dr. Roman’s testimony was neither reliable nor credible, and that Dr. Nathan’s
    testimony, while credible, was limited in probative value because most of his
    contact with Eldridge was via videoconference, and because Dr. Nathan had
    not specifically tested for malingering. 22 In contrast, the court noted that the
    State’s experts both had considerably more forensic experience than Dr.
    Roman and were credible witnesses. 23
    In determining that Eldridge was competent, the district court first
    noted that a number of mental health professionals had raised questions about
    Eldridge’s credibility and found that he was feigning symptoms, and that other
    courts had rejected his claims of mental retardation based on findings that his
    claimed cognitive and intellectual limits were not credible or accurate. 24 
    The 19 Rawle at 956
    ; see 28 U.S.C. § 
    2254(d). 20 Rawle at 958
    , 
    964. 21 Rawle at 1968-69
    , 1972, 1982, 1984, 2835, 
    2954. 22 Rawle at 1992-93
    .
    23   R. at 
    1993-94. 24 Rawle at 1992
    .
    4
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    court then concluded that, although there was some evidence that Eldridge is
    mentally ill:
    [The State] was able to marshal far more evidence in support of
    [its] position that Eldridge has a far greater understanding of the
    reality he faces than Eldridge admits or describes . . . includ[ing]
    years of inconsistencies in the symptoms Eldridge described and
    the behavior he exhibited; years of mental health professional
    assessments; test results showing malingering; and Dr. Allen’s
    own observations of the numerous and substantial inconsistencies
    between Eldridge’s claimed symptoms and his behavior. 25
    The court noted that Dr. Moeller had also “presented compelling evidence that
    Eldridge is malingering, noting the atypical presentation of Eldridge’s
    symptoms.” 26
    The district court considered sua sponte whether Eldridge was entitled
    to a COA. 27 Because it determined that the evidence did not support his claim,
    the court concluded that Eldridge had failed to make a substantial showing of
    the denial of a constitutional right and denied a COA. 28 Eldridge now seeks a
    COA from this court to appeal the district court’s judgment that he is
    competent to be executed.
    II
    To obtain a COA under 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c), a petitioner “must make ‘a
    substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right’ by demonstrating
    that ‘reasonable jurists would find the district court’s assessment of the
    constitutional claims debatable or wrong.’” 29 This is a threshold inquiry 
    that 25 Rawle at 1994
    .
    26   R. at 
    1994. 27 Rawle at 1999
    .
    28   R. at 1999.
    29 Hearn v. Thaler, 
    669 F.3d 265
    , 271 (5th Cir. 2012) (quoting Slack v. McDaniel, 
    529 U.S. 473
    , 484 (2000)).
    5
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    “does not require full consideration of the factual or legal bases adduced in
    support of the claims.” 30 In a death penalty case, “any doubts as to whether a
    COA should issue must be resolved in the petitioner’s favor.” 31
    “In a habeas corpus appeal, we review the district court’s findings of fact
    for clear error and review its conclusions of law de novo; applying the same
    standard of review to the state court’s decision as the district court.” 32 A
    prisoner’s competency to be executed is a factual determination, and a state
    habeas court’s factual finding is usually entitled to deference under
    § 2254(e)(1). 33 In this case, however, the district court determined that the
    state court, when it found Eldridge competent to be executed, denied Eldridge
    due process because it refused to grant him funding for a comprehensive
    psychiatric evaluation after Eldridge made a substantial showing of his
    incompetency. 34 The district court thus correctly did not afford the state court
    any deference when making its own determination of Eldridge’s competence. 35
    Therefore, we now review for clear error the district court’s finding that
    30   Miller-El v. Cockrell, 
    537 U.S. 322
    , 336 (2003).
    Blue v. Thaler, 
    665 F.3d 647
    , 653 (5th Cir. 2011) (citation and internal quotation
    31
    marks omitted).
    32   Thompson v. Cain, 
    161 F.3d 802
    , 805 (5th Cir. 1998).
    33   Patterson v. Dretke, 
    370 F.3d 480
    , 484 (5th Cir. 
    2004). 34 Rawle at 956
    ; see Panetti v. Quarterman, 
    551 U.S. 930
    , 949 (2007) (“Once a prisoner
    seeking a stay of execution has made ‘a substantial threshold showing of insanity,’ the
    protection afforded by procedural due process includes a ‘fair hearing’ in accord with
    fundamental fairness.” (quoting Ford v. Wainwright, 
    477 U.S. 399
    , 424, 426 (1986) (Powell,
    J., concurring))).
    35R. at 956 (“[T]he state court findings are not entitled to deference under AEDPA.”);
    R. at 1963-2000 (evaluating Eldridge’s competency with no deference to state court
    determinations); see 
    Panetti, 551 U.S. at 948
    (holding that no deference was owed when the
    “state court’s failure to provide the procedures mandated by Ford constituted an
    unreasonable application of clearly established law”).
    6
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    Eldridge is competent to be executed. 36 “A finding is clearly erroneous only if
    it is implausible in light of the record considered as a whole.” 37
    In sum, a COA should issue for Eldridge if reasonable jurists could
    debate whether the district court did not clearly err when it found Eldridge
    competent to be executed.
    III
    The Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment
    prohibits the execution of a prisoner who is incompetent. 38 The Supreme Court
    has declined to set forth a specific standard for determining a prisoner’s
    competency to be put to death; however, it has noted that “[g]ross delusions
    stemming from a severe mental disorder may put an awareness of a link
    between the crime and its punishment in a context so far removed from reality
    that the punishment can serve no proper purpose.” 39 This court has previously
    discussed with approval a standard that seeks to determine whether the
    prisoner has a rational understanding of his crime, his impending death, and
    the causal relationship between the two. 40 The district court articulated this
    standard in its order, explaining that “[t]he critical issue is whether Eldridge
    has a present rational understanding of the fact of his crime, of his death
    sentence, and of the connection between his crime and his death sentence.” 41
    36 
    Thompson, 161 F.3d at 805
    ; see also Panetti v. Stephens 
    727 F.3d 398
    , 409-10 (5th
    Cir. 2013) (reviewing the district court’s competence standard de novo while reviewing the
    district court’s “ultimate finding of competency” for clear error).
    37   St. Aubin v. Quarterman, 
    470 F.3d 1096
    , 1101 (5th Cir. 2006).
    38   Ford v. Wainwright, 
    477 U.S. 399
    , 409-10 (1986).
    39See 
    Panetti, 551 U.S. at 960-61
    (“[W]e do not attempt to set down a rule governing
    all competency determinations.”).
    40   
    Panetti, 727 F.3d at 409-10
    .
    41   R. at 1991-92.
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    In concluding that Eldridge had a rational understanding of those facts
    and was therefore competent to be executed, the district court found that
    although Eldridge had presented evidence of mental illness, there was
    extensive evidence inconsistent with his claim of incompetence, particularly in
    regard to malingering and feigning symptoms. 42 We now consider Eldridge’s
    challenges to the district court’s findings.
    A
    Eldridge first argues that the district court failed to give sufficient
    weight to the evidence that his symptoms had been documented at length by
    mental health professionals at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
    (TDCJ) without any suggestion that they might be feigned, and that he has
    been prescribed powerful antipsychotic medications since 2009. 43              This
    argument fails because the district court explicitly considered Eldridge’s
    mental-health history—indeed, it found that “Eldridge has presented evidence
    supporting his claim that he is mentally ill.” 44 It simply determined that the
    veracity of this evidence was called into question by “the inconsistency of his
    symptoms, the self-serving nature of his complaints, past findings of
    malingering by [the] court and suspicions of malingering by treating
    professionals and expert witnesses.” 45
    Eldridge takes issue with the district court’s reliance on his past history
    of malingering, which he claims constitutes an improper assumption that he is
    necessarily feigning his present symptoms.         However, the district court’s
    reliance on Eldridge’s past history of malingering was only one of a number 
    of 42 Rawle at 1992
    .
    43   Eldridge Br. at 
    31-32. 44 Rawle at 1992
    .
    45   R. at 1998.
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    facts that it appropriately considered as probative, but not dispositive,
    evidence of malingering. 46 Eldridge does not argue that his past history of
    malingering has no evidentiary value, and thus his assertion that the district
    court improperly relied on it fails. Reasonable jurists could not debate that the
    district court did not clearly err in its weighing of this evidence.
    B
    The district court found that Dr. Nathan’s conclusion that Eldridge’s
    symptoms were genuine did not support a finding that he was incompetent to
    be executed because Dr. Nathan had conducted his evaluations of Eldridge via
    videoconference and had not specifically tested for malingering. 47 Eldridge
    asserts that the district court erred in discounting Dr. Nathan’s assessment
    because Dr. Nathan is a trained psychiatrist with nearly thirty years of
    forensic psychiatric experience, and he was constantly looking for signs of
    malingering. 48 Eldridge also points to the fact that Dr. Nathan identified
    specific reasons for believing Eldridge suffers from genuine mental illness,
    such as his demonstrated looseness of association, his tendency not to call
    attention to his symptoms, and the waxing and waning pattern of his
    symptoms. 49
    As Dr. Nathan testified, however, he saw Eldridge in a clinical, rather
    than forensic, capacity. 50 Although he considered generally the possibility that
    Eldridge was malingering, as he does for all inmates, he admitted that seeing
    Eldridge via videoconference was not ideal for a forensic assessment. He also
    conceded that it would be easier to feign symptoms, such as looseness 
    of 46 Rawle at 1998
    .
    47   R. at 1992.
    48   Eldridge Br. at 34-35.
    49   Eldridge Br. at 
    36-39. 50 Rawle at 2836
    .
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    association, in a treatment environment, in which patients are seen for shorter
    periods of time, than during a forensic evaluation. 51 Further, as the district
    court noted in its analysis, Dr. Nathan stated that had he known that ten
    mental health experts between 1993 and 2009 had found Eldridge was feigning
    symptoms, he would have made a more substantial effort to ascertain whether
    Eldridge was malingering. 52 Reasonable jurists could not debate that the
    district court’s determination that Dr. Nathan’s opinion lacked sufficient
    probative value to support a determination of incompetence was not clearly
    erroneous.
    C
    Eldridge next challenges the district court’s determination that Dr.
    Roman was “neither reliable nor credible.” 53 Eldridge asserts the district court
    improperly relied on Dr. Allen’s testimony that Dr. Roman misrepresented
    evaluations given to Eldridge because the record indicates Dr. Allen actually
    mischaracterized Eldridge’s evaluations. 54 He also takes issue with the district
    court’s statement that Dr. Roman conceded violating ethical standards when
    he allowed Eldridge’s counsel in the interview room during his first meeting
    with Eldridge. 55
    But even assuming, arguendo, that Eldridge is correct on both points, it
    does not follow that the district court’s determination that Dr. Roman’s
    testimony was neither reliable nor credible was in error. The district court’s
    adverse credibility determination of Dr. Roman was premised in large part on
    Dr. Roman’s inadequate responses to the “numerous red flags 
    indicating 51 Rawle at 2836
    , 
    2947-48. 52 Rawle at 1972
    , 2899-902, 
    2951. 53 Rawle at 1993
    .
    54   Eldridge Br. at 41-43.
    55   Eldridge Br. at 43-45.
    10
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    malingering throughout Eldridge’s record.” 56 Specifically, the district court
    found that Dr. Roman ignored contrary evidence or dismissed it with
    unpersuasive explanations, and selectively emphasized evidence favoring his
    determination that Eldridge was incompetent. 57
    Eldridge argues that Dr. Roman acknowledged the contrary evidence
    and did not ignore it. However, this does not address the district court’s
    concern that Dr. Roman responded to this evidence by deemphasizing it or
    providing unsatisfactory explanations as to why it did not indicate
    malingering.         Additionally, the district court noted that Dr. Roman had
    conducted only one previous capital competency evaluation and had been found
    to be not credible by the district court in that case. 58 Thus, it was Dr. Roman’s
    inadequate testimony, inexperience, and past performance record that led the
    district court to find him not to be credible. Reasonable jurists could not debate
    that the district court did not clearly err in finding Dr. Roman to not be a
    credible expert witness.
    D
    Eldridge next argues that the district court relied on scientifically flawed
    assertions by Dr. Allen and Dr. Moeller when finding Eldridge competent to be
    executed. However, there is nothing in the record to which Eldridge can point
    that could render infirm the district court’s findings.
    Eldridge first argues that Dr. Moeller’s testimony that schizophrenia is
    a progressive, degenerative disease is inaccurate, as was his conclusion 
    that 56 Rawle at 1993
    .
    57   R. at 1993.
    58R. at 1993; see also Wood v. Thaler, 
    787 F. Supp. 2d 458
    , 499 (W.D. Tex. 2011) (“This
    Court finds incredible the conclusions and diagnosis of Dr. Michael A. Roman . . . . Dr.
    Roman’s diagnosis is simply unworthy of belief.”).
    11
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    the absence of increasingly severe symptoms is indicative of malingering. 59
    But the district court did not actually rely on this testimony in its analysis.
    Although the district court noted Dr. Moeller’s testimony on the progression of
    schizophrenia, the district court’s analysis focused on the inconsistency of
    Eldridge’s symptoms over time, his mental health history, his test results
    indicating malingering, observed contradictions between Eldridge’s reported
    symptoms and his behavior, and the atypical presentation of his symptoms. 60
    Notably, Eldridge does not contest the legitimacy of Dr. Moeller’s testimony
    regarding the atypical presentation of Eldridge’s symptoms—namely, that the
    fluctuations from symptomatic to non-symptomatic were too extensive,
    frequent, and severe to be explained by ordinary waxing and waning—which
    the district court found to be “compelling evidence that Eldridge is
    malingering.” 61
    Next, Eldridge contends the district court accepted Dr. Allen’s erroneous
    assertion that genuine symptoms of psychosis are not self-serving. 62 While
    Dr. Allen repeatedly asserted that genuine delusions generally get people “in
    trouble, not out of it,” he stopped short of stating that self-serving reports of
    symptoms and genuine symptoms are mutually exclusive. 63                 Instead, he
    explained that if delusions are self-serving, especially when they lead to an
    avoidance of criminal responsibility, there is reason to question their
    veracity. 64 In relying on Dr. Allen’s testimony, the district court was concerned
    59   Eldridge Br. at 
    45-46. 60 Rawle at 1994
    .
    61   R. at 1983, 1994.
    62   Eldridge Br. at 
    47. 63 Rawle at 3642-47
    .
    64   R. at 3646-47.
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    with both the self-serving nature of Eldridge’s symptoms and the timing of
    their presentation, occurring only after his arrest. 65
    Eldridge also finds fault in the district court’s endorsement of Dr. Allen’s
    testimony regarding a link between Eldridge’s antisocial personality disorder
    (ASPD) and malingering. 66 But this cannot be the basis for finding error in the
    district court’s order because it did not rely on this testimony when finding
    Eldridge was malingering. The district court repeated Dr. Allen’s testimony in
    its order and tacitly endorsed it as a reason for discrediting Dr. Roman, noting
    that “Dr. Allen was also sharply critical of Dr. Roman’s failure to consider
    antisocial personality disorder and the relationship of this disorder to
    malingering.” 67 But the district court did not mention ASPD in its analysis as
    being among the numerous reasons for concluding that Eldridge is
    malingering. 68
    Eldridge asserts the district court erred by accepting Dr. Allen’s and Dr.
    Moeller’s testimonies that Eldridge’s claimed delusions were not credible
    because he did not exhibit behaviors consistent with his delusions, and by
    discrediting Dr. Roman’s double-bookkeeping theory of schizophrenia, which
    would have provided an explanation for the inconsistencies. 69 Dr. Roman
    testified that under the double-bookkeeping theory, a person exists in two
    separate realities, a condition in which inconsistencies in delusions and
    behaviors would be expected and not an indication of malingering. 70 Eldridge
    65  See R. at 1997 (finding that another capital inmate’s claim of incompetency was
    significantly more compelling, in part because he “had a long documented history of mental
    illness that predated his crime; Eldridge does not”).
    66   Eldridge Br. at 
    46-47. 67 Rawle at 1989-1990
    .
    68   R. at 
    1991-95. 69 Rawle at 1993-94
    ; Eldridge Br. 
    49-51. 70 Rawle at 2998-99
    .
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    points to a 1950 article that endorsed the double-bookkeeping theory that was
    written by, as Dr. Allen admitted, a physician whose insights are still respected
    and useful in the study of schizophrenia. 71 However, Dr. Moeller testified that
    he reviewed the literature on double bookkeeping and concluded the theory
    “just doesn’t hold water.” 72 Dr. Moeller testified that there is “no scientific
    basis on how [the double-bookkeeping theory] works or if it is volitional or not
    volitional.” 73 Dr. Allen also pointed out that the article Eldridge cites was not
    peer-reviewed. 74 Furthermore, the fact that the author of the theory has other
    still respected and useful insights on schizophrenia does not necessarily mean
    that all of his theories continue to be so highly regarded.
    The purported scientific errors alleged by Eldridge are thus not sufficient
    such that reasonable jurists could debate that the district court did not clearly
    err when weighing the scientific conclusions of the expert witnesses.
    E
    Lastly, Eldridge asserts that the district court erred in finding that
    Eldridge is malingering and competent to be executed. For one, Eldridge
    argues that the district court should not have found inconsistencies in his
    delusions and behaviors and points to a few examples of consistencies. 75 But,
    reasonable jurists could not debate that the district court clearly erred by
    finding Eldridge competent to be executed because it relied on overwhelming
    evidence indicating Eldridge is malingering.
    The district court’s discussion of the expert witnesses’ testimony
    supports its finding that Eldridge is malingering. For example: Dr. 
    Moeller 71 Rawle at 3672
    ; Eldridge Br. at 
    51. 72 Rawle at 3483
    , 3494-95, 
    3512-13. 73 Rawle at 3483
    .
    74   R at 3712-13.
    75   Eldridge Br. at 52.
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    testified that the fluctuations in Eldridge’s symptoms were too severe to be
    natural waxing and waning, as Dr. Roman asserted. Waxing and waning of
    symptoms occurs gradually but Dr. Moeller’s review of Eldridge’s psychiatric
    history reveals rapid changes from symptomatic to non-symptomatic. 76 Dr.
    Moeller also testified that when shown crime-scene photographs of his victims,
    Eldridge responded emotionally, acknowledging that he must have committed
    the crime. But, as Dr. Moeller explained, if Eldridge genuinely suffered from
    schizophrenia and believed he did not commit the murders, he would have
    challenged the veracity of the photographs rather than accept his apparent
    culpability. 77
    Dr. Allen noted several oddities in the historical presentation of
    Eldridge’s symptoms. As an example, Eldridge reported a combination of
    auditory, tactile and visual hallucinations; this combination, Dr. Allen
    testified, is inconsistent with genuine mental illness. 78 Dr. Allen also testified
    about Eldridge’s results on the TOMM, SIMS, and M-FAST tests he
    administered; all three tests indicated a high probability Eldridge was feigning
    his symptoms. 79
    The district court was further persuaded by Dr. Roman’s concessions
    regarding much of the evidence of malingering in Eldridge’s psychiatric
    history. First, Dr. Roman stated that certain delusions Eldridge self-reported
    were “crazy stuff” inconsistent “with the way that mentally ill 
    people 76 Rawle at 1983
    , 
    3490-91. 77 Rawle at 1983
    , 
    3484. 78 Rawle at 1986
    , 3550 (“[Dr. Allen]: It would be really rare to have someone who is
    delusional and has inconsistent hallucinations and tactile hallucinations and the
    hallucinations include auditory and visual hallucinations. That just would be incredibly
    
    rare.”). 79 Rawle at 1987
    , 3570-72.
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    present.” 80 Dr. Roman also acknowledged that much of Eldridge’s psychiatric
    history contained evidence of malingering, such as the absence of major
    mental-health complaints before the scheduling of his execution date in 2009. 81
    Furthermore, Dr. Roman testified that many statements and behaviors
    exhibited by Eldridge during an examination by Dr. Moeller were more
    consistent with malingering than schizophrenia. 82              Subsequently, as the
    district court noted, Dr. Roman conceded that Eldridge’s ability to obtain
    cocaine in prison “would suggest a much better ability to navigate the social
    and physical environment and consider all sorts of things [than] we would
    typically apply to somebody with a severe psychotic disorder.” 83
    Ultimately Dr. Moeller and Dr. Allen believed that Eldridge was
    malingering.       Although Dr. Nathan and Dr. Roman both concluded that
    Eldridge was not competent to be executed, Dr. Nathan did not test Eldridge
    for malingering 84 and Dr. Roman conceded much of Eldridge’s psychiatric
    history provides evidence of malingering. Thus, reasonable jurists could not
    debate that the district court did not clearly err when it found Eldridge
    competent to be executed.
    *     *        *
    We therefore DENY Eldridge’s application for a COA on the issue of his
    competence to be 
    executed. 80 Rawle at 3203
    .
    81   R. at 1979-80, 
    3257-58. 82 Rawle at 1980
    , 
    3258-60. 83 Rawle at 1981
    , 
    3331-32. 84 Rawle at 1971-72
    .
    16