Court rules killer's limp no reason for new trial

A convicted killer who argued he had a limp that witnesses would have noticed as he ran away has had his chance for a new trial turned down.

An appeals court threw out the ruling of a U.S. judge that said Johnny Ray Conner needed a new trial because his lawyers did not pursue medical evidence showing he had the limp.

Conner had argued his limp could have caused jurors at his trial to reach a different verdict. He could not run quickly, and witnesses described seeing the gunman running away quickly.

But "Conner has done nothing in lessen the impact of the other evidence against him," including fingerprints at the scene, the appeals court said.

There also was no testimony at his trial about his limp, and none of his lawyers ever noticed it.

Conner, 31, was convicted of killing convenience store Kathyanna Nguyen during an attempted robbery in 1998.