Rapelje v. McClellan

(1) Whether a state-court order denying a request for relief on a constitutional claim "for lack of merit in the grounds presented" constitutes a merits adjudication of that claim for purposes of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA); and (2) whether a federal habeas court may, consistent with AEDPA, delve into the internal procedures of a state court to support its speculation that an order denying relief "for lack of merit" is not, in fact, a merits adjudication.