Waddington v. Sarausad, 555 U. S. ____ (2009)

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C
On appeal, Sarausad argued that because the State did not prove that he had intent to kill, he could not be convicted as an accomplice to second-degree murder under Washington law. The Washington Court of Appeals affirmed his convictions, explaining that under Washington law, an accomplice must have “general knowledge” that the crime will occur, but need not have the specific intent required for that crime’s commission. App. to Pet. for Cert. 259a. The court referred to accomplice liability as “a theory of criminal liability that in Washington has been reduced to the maxim, ‘in for a dime, in for a dollar.’ ” Id., at 235a. The Washington Supreme Court denied discretionary review. State v. Ronquillo, 136 Wash. 2d 1018, 966 P. 2d 1277 (1998).
Shortly thereafter, the Washington Supreme Court clarified in an unrelated criminal case that “in for a dime, in for a dollar” is not the best descriptor of accomplice liability under Washington law because an accomplice must have knowledge of “the crime” that occurs. State v. Roberts, 142 Wash. 2d 471, 509–510, 14 P. 3d 713, 734–735 (2000). Therefore, an accomplice who knows of one crime—the dime—is not guilty of a greater crime—the dollar—if he has no knowledge of that greater crime. It was error, then, to instruct a jury that an accomplice’s knowledge of “ ‘a crime’ ” was sufficient to establish accomplice liability for “ ‘the crime.’ ” Ibid. 2The Washington Supreme Court limited this decision to instructions containing the phrase “a crime” and explicitly reaffirmed its precedent establishing that jury instructions linking an accomplice’s knowledge to “the crime,” such as the instruction used at Sarausad’s trial, comport with Washington law. Id., at 511–512, 14 P. 3d, at 736 (discussing State v. Davis, 101 Wash. 2d 654, 656, 682 P. 2d 883, 884 (1984)). An instruction that references “the crime” “copie[s] exactly the language from the accomplice liability statute” and properly hinges criminal punishment on knowledge of “the crime” for which the defendant was charged as an accomplice. 142 Wash. 2d, at 512, 14 P. 3d, at 736.
D
Sarausad next sought postconviction relief from the Washington courts. He argued that although the accomplice-liability instruction used at his trial complied with Roberts, “an additional clarifying instruction should have been given” because the prosecutor may have confused the jury by improperly arguing that he had been “ ‘in for a dime, in for a dollar.’ ” Sarausad, 109 Wash. App., at 829, 39 P. 3d, at 311. Therefore, he argued, the jury may have convicted him as an accomplice to second-degree murder based solely on his admission that he anticipated that an assault would occur at Ballard High School.
The Washington Court of Appeals reexamined the trial record in its entirety in light of Roberts,see 109 Wash. App., at 834, 39 P. 3d, at 313–314, but found no error requiring correction. According to the court, the prosecutor’s closing argument in its entirety did not convey “that the jury could find Sarausad guilty as an accomplice to murder if he had the purpose to facilitate an offense of any kind whatsoever, even a shoving match or fist fight.” Id., at 840, 39 P. 3d, at 317. The prosecutor’s “ ‘in for a dime, in for a dollar’ ” illustration also did not convey that standard. Id., at 842–843, 39 P. 3d, at 318. The court explained that in every situation but one, the prosecutor clearly did not use that phrase to argue that Sarausad could be convicted of murder if he intended only a fistfight. Instead, she used it to convey a “gang mentality” that requires a wrong to the gang to be avenged by any means necessary. Ibid. Thus, according to the prosecutor, when a fight did not work, Sarausad knew that a shooting was required to avenge his gang. See ibid.
There was one “in for a dime, in for a dollar” hypothetical in the prosecutor’s closing that did not convey this gang-mentality meaning and thus, the court recognized, “may or may not be problematic under Roberts” depending on how it was interpreted. Id., at 843, 39 P. 3d, at 318.3The court concluded that it did not need to decide whether the hypothetical was improper under state law because, even if it was, it did not prejudice Sarausad. Sarausad’s jury was properly instructed and “the prosecutor made it crystal clear to the jury that the State wanted Sarausad found guilty … because he knowingly facilitated the drive-by shooting and for no other reason.” Id., at 843–844, 39 P. 3d, at 319.
Sarausad sought discretionary postconviction review from the Supreme Court of Washington. In denying his petition, the court held that “the trial court correctly instructed the jury” that knowledge of the particular crime committed was required. App. to Pet. for Cert. 191a. The court also found that no prejudicial error resulted from the prosecutor’s potentially improper hypothetical. Id., at 192a. “[W]hatever the flaws in the argument, the prosecutor properly focused on Mr. Sarausad’s knowing participation in the shooting, not in some lesser altercation.” Ibid.
E
Sarausad filed this petition for a writ of habeas corpus in Federal District Court pursuant to 28 U. S. C. §2254. The District Court granted the petition, finding “ample evidence that the jury was confused about what elements had to be established in order for [Sarausad] to be found guilty of second degree murder and second degree attempted murder.” App. to Pet. for Cert. 129a. The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed, finding that the state postconviction court unreasonably applied this Court’s decisions in Estelle v. McGuire, 502 U. S. 62 (1991) , Sandstrom v. Montana, 442 U. S. 510 (1979) , and In re Winship, 397 U. S. 358 (1970) , in affirming Sarausad’s conviction in spite of ambiguous jury instructions and the “ ‘reasonable likelihood that the jury … applied the challenged instruction in a way’ that violates the Constitution.” 479 F. 3d, at 683 (quoting Estelle, supra, at 72). The court denied rehearing en banc over the dissent of five judges. Sarausad v. Porter, 503 F. 3d 822 (2007). We granted certiorari, 552 U. S. ___ (2008), and now reverse.
II
Under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA), 110 Stat. 1214, a federal court may grant habeas relief on a claim “adjudicated on the merits” in state court only if the decision “was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States.” 28 U. S1. C. §2254(d)(1). Where, as here, it is the state court’s application of governing federal law that is challenged, the decision “ ‘must be shown to be not only erroneous, but objectively unreasonable.’ ” Middleton v. McNeil, 541 U. S. 433, 436 (2004) (per curiam) (quoting Yarborough v. Gentry, 540 U. S. 1, 5 (2003) (per curiam)); see also Schriro v. Landrigan, 550 U. S. 465, 473 (2007) (“The question under AEDPA is not whether a federal court believes the state court’s determination was incorrect but whether that determination was unreasonable—a substantially higher threshold”).
Our habeas precedent places an “especially heavy” burden on a defendant who, like Sarausad, seeks to show constitutional error from a jury instruction that quotes a state statute. Henderson v. Kibbe, 431 U. S. 145, 155 (1977) . Even if there is some “ambiguity, inconsistency, or deficiency” in the instruction, such an error does not necessarily constitute a due process violation. Middleton, supra, at 437. Rather, the defendant must show both that the instruction was ambiguous and that there was “ ‘a reasonable likelihood’ ” that the jury applied the instruction in a way that relieved the State of its burden of proving every element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Estelle, supra, at 72 (quoting Boyde v. California, 494 U. S. 370, 380 (1990) ). In making this determination, the jury instruction “ ‘may not be judged in artificial isolation,’ but must be considered in the context of the instructions as a whole and the trial record.” Estelle, supra, at 72(quoting Cupp v. Naughten, 414 U. S. 141, 147 (1973) ). Because it is not enough that there is some “slight possibility” that the jury misapplied the instruction, Weeks v. Angelone, 528 U. S. 225, 236 (2000) , the pertinent question “is ‘whether the ailing instruction by itself so infected the entire trial that the resulting conviction violates due process,’ ” Estelle, supra, at 72(quoting Cupp, supra, at 147).
A
The Washington courts reasonably concluded that the trial court’s instruction to the jury was not ambiguous. The instruction parroted the language of the statute, requiring that an accomplice “in the commission of the crime” take action “with knowledge that it will promote or facilitate the commission of the crime.” App. 16–17 (emphasis added); Wash. Rev. Code §§9A.08.020(2)(c), (3)(a) (2008). It is impossible to assign any meaning to this instruction different from the meaning given to it by the Washington courts. By its plain terms, it instructed the jury to find Sarausad guilty as an accomplice “in the commission of the [murder]” only if he acted “with knowledge that [his conduct] will promote or facilitate the commission of the [murder].” App. 16–17.4Because the conclusion reached by the Washington courts that the jury instruction was unambiguous was not objectively unreasonable, the Court of Appeals’ 28 U. S. C. §2254(d)(1) inquiry should have ended there.5
B
Even if we agreed that the instruction was ambiguous, the Court of Appeals still erred in finding that the instruction was so ambiguous as to cause a federal constitutional violation, as required for us to reverse the state court’s determination under AEDPA, 28 U. S. C. §2254(d). The Washington courts reasonably applied this Court’s precedent when they determined that there was no “reasonable likelihood” that the prosecutor’s closing argument caused Sarausad’s jury to apply the instruction in a way that relieved the State of its burden to prove every element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. The prosecutor consistently argued that Sarausad was guilty as an accomplice because he acted with knowledge that he was facilitating a driveby shooting. Indeed, Sarausad and Reyes had admitted under oath that they anticipated a fight, Tr. 2671, 2794, and yet the prosecutor never argued that their admission was a concession of accomplice liability for murder. She instead argued that Sarausad knew that a shooting was intended, App. 123, because he drove his car in a way that would help Ronquillo “fire those shots,” id., at 39. The closing argument of Sarausad’s attorney also homed in on the key legal question: He challenged the jury to look for evidence that Sarausad “had knowledge that his assistance would promote or facilitate the crime of premeditated murder” and argued that no such evidence existed. Id., at 83.
Put simply, there was no evidence of ultimate juror confusion as to the test for accomplice liability under Washington law. Rather, the jury simply reached a unanimous decision that the State had proved Sarausad’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Indeed, every state and federal appellate court that reviewed the verdict found that the evidence supporting Sarausad’s knowledge of a shooting was legally sufficient to convict him under Washington law. 479 F. 3d, at 677–683; Sarausad, 109 Wash. App., at 844–845, 39 P. 3d, at 319. Given the strength of the evidence supporting the conviction, along with the jury’s failure to convict Reyes—who also had been charged as an accomplice to murder and also had admitted knowledge of a possible fight—it was not objectively unreasonable for the Washington courts to conclude that the jury convicted Sarausad only because it believed that he, unlike Reyes, had knowledge of more than just a fistfight. The reasoning of the Court of Appeals, which failed to review the state courts’ resolution of this question through the deferential lens of AEDPA, does not convince us otherwise.
First, the Court of Appeals found that the evidence of Sarausad’s knowledge of the shooting was so “thin” that the jury must have incorrectly believed that proof of such knowledge was not required. 479 F. 3d, at 692–693. That conclusion, however, is foreclosed by the Court of Appeals’ own determination that the evidence was sufficient for a rational jury to reasonably infer that Sarausad knowingly facilitated the driveby shooting. As explained above, the Court of Appeals acknowledged that the evidence showed that Ronquillo, while seated in Sarausad’s front passenger seat, tied a bandana over the lower part of his face and pulled out a gun. Id., at 681. There also was evidence that Sarausad then asked the Diablos in the other car, “ ‘Are you ready?’ ” before driving to the school and “slow[ing] his car in front of the school in a manner that facilitated a drive-by shooting.” Ibid. Other gang members testified to prior knowledge of the gun and to discussing the shooting as an option during the gang meeting held between trips to Ballard High School. Id., at 682. There also was testimony from Sarausad that he suspected that members of the Bad Side Posse would be armed when they returned to Ballard High School, ibid., making it reasonable to conclude that Sarausad would expect his gang to be similarly prepared for the confrontation. There was nothing “thin” about the evidence of Sarausad’s guilt.
Second, the Court of Appeals faulted the prosecutor for arguing “clearly and forcefully” for an “in for a dime, in for a dollar” theory of accomplice liability. Id., at 693. But the Washington Court of Appeals conducted an in-depth analysis of the prosecutor’s argument and reasonably found that it contained, at most, one problematic hypothetical. Sarausad, supra, at 842–843, 39 P. 3d, at 318–319. The state court’s conclusion that the one hypothetical did not taint the proper instruction of state law was reasonable under this Court’s precedent, which acknowledges that “arguments of counsel generally carry less weight with a jury than do instructions from the court.” Boyde, 494 U. S., at 384. On habeas review, the Court of Appeals should not have dissected the closing argument and exaggerated the possible effect of one hypothetical in it. There was nothing objectively unreasonable about the Washington courts’ resolution of this question.6
Third, and last, the Court of Appeals believed that the jury’s questions “demonstrated substantial confusion about what the State was required to prove.” 479 F. 3d, at 693. Sarausad focuses special attention on this factor, arguing that it was the “failure to remedy” this confusion that sets this case apart from previous decisions and establishes that the jury likely “did not understand accomplice liability” when it returned its verdict. Brief for Respondent 29, 31. But this Court has determined that the Constitution generally requires nothing more from a trial judge than the type of answers given to the jury here. Weeks, 528 U. S., at 234. Where a judge “respond[s] to the jury’s question by directing its attention to the precise paragraph of the constitutionally adequate instruction that answers its inquiry,” and the jury asks no followup question, this Court has presumed that the jury fully understood the judge’s answer and appropriately applied the jury instructions. Ibid.
Under this established standard, it was not objectively unreasonable for the state court to conclude that Sarausad’s jury received the answers it needed to resolve its confusion.7Its questions were spaced throughout seven days of deliberations, involved different criminal charges, and implicated the interrelation of several different jury instructions. The judge pinpointed his answers to the particular instructions responsive to the questions and those instructions reflected state law. Under these circumstances, the state court did not act in an objectively unreasonable manner in finding that the jury knew the proper legal standard for conviction.
III
Because the state-court decision did not result in an “unreasonable application of … clearly established Federal law,” 28 U. S. C. §2254(d)(1), the Court of Appeals erred in granting a writ of habeas corpus to Sarausad. The judgment below is reversed, and the case is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
It is so ordered.

Souter, J., dissenting
SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES
DOUG WADDINGTON, SUPERINTENDENT,
WASHINGTON CORRECTIONS CENTER,
PETITIONER v. CESAR SARAUSAD
on writ of certiorari to the united states court of appeals for the ninth circuit



[January 21, 2009]

Justice Souter, with whom Justice Stevens and Justice Ginsburg join, dissenting.
The issue in this habeas case is whether it was objectively reasonable for the state court to find that there was no reasonable likelihood that the jury convicted respondent Cesar Sarausad on a mistaken understanding of Washington law. The underlying question is whether the jury may have thought it could find Sarausad guilty as an accomplice to murder on the theory that he assisted in what he expected would be a fist fight, or whether the jury knew that to convict him Washington law required it to conclude Sarausad aided in what he understood was intended to be a killing.
So far as the instructions addressed these alternatives, the judge charged the jurors in these words: “A person is an accomplice in the commission of a crime if, with knowledge that it will promote or facilitate the commission of the crime, he or she either:
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