California IN BRIEF : SAN FRANCISCO : Lawyers for Harris File Federal Appeal

Condemned killer Robert Alton Harris is seeking a permanent reprieve from a death sentence imposed for the murder of two teen-agers in 1978. Lawyers for Harris, 37, filed a lengthy brief with the San Francisco-based U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, contending that Harris was denied competent psychiatric help at his 1979 trial. The attorneys argued that Harris deserves a chance to prove he suffers mental disorders that drove him to kill on impulse. Similar claims led a 9th Circuit Judge to block Harris’ scheduled April 3 execution. Harris was convicted of killing Michael Baker and John Mayeski, both 16.