father, Malcolm H. Kerr, in Beirut, Lebanon. On June 21, 2022, the Supreme Court reinforced in Shoop v. Twyford that the power of federal courts to grant habeas corpus is restricted by AEDPA. Reception While the act has several titles and provisions, the majority of criticism stems from the act's tightening of habeas corpus laws. Those in favor of the bill say that the act prevents those convicted of crimes from being able to "thwart justice and avoid just punishment by filing frivolous appeals for years on end", while critics argue that the inability to make multiple appeals increases the risk of an innocent person being killed. Title IV also received criticism following the enactment of the AEDPA. The section allowing a single Immigration and Naturalization officer to decide whether to offer asylum to an individual who claims persecution but does not have identification was specifically targeted. The provision extending the ability of officers to deport anyone who illegally entered the country at any point in time without a hearing before a judge was also criticized. Other, more recent criticism centers on the deference that the law requires of federal judges in considering habeas petitions. In Sessoms v. Grounds (Ninth Circuit), the majority of the judges believed that the state erred in not throwing out testimony made in the absence of the defendant's attorney after he had requested counsel, but they were required to overturn his appeal. The dissenting opinion said that federal courts can only grant habeas relief if "there is no possibility fair-minded jurists could disagree that the state court's decision conflicts with [the Supreme] Court's precedents". In popular culture On March 6, 2022, in the main segment of his show Last Week Tonight called Wrongful Convictions, John Oliver advocated for the abolition of AEDPA based on how difficult it makes it for convicts to appeal, by citing the cases of several wrongfully convicted individuals. He cited in particular Melissa Lucio, who is on death row in Texas for the murder of one of her children, which she claims was a household accident. She has been granted a stay of execution as the courts examine new evidence. See also Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 Immigration Act of 1990 Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 Notes and references External links Text of the Act, also in PDF Timeline of Passage Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act