(AP) — A Nebraska judge has denied a convicted killer’s efforts to appeal his conviction.

Scotts Bluff County District Judge Randall Lippstreu says in a memorandum Tuesday that Jeffrey Hessler is not entitled to an evidentiary hearing on any issue raised in his second motion for post-conviction relief.

Post-conviction relief is a civil proceeding that asks a court to overturn a criminal conviction.

Hessler was convicted in 2004 of kidnapping, raping and killing a 15-year-old newspaper carrier, Heather Guerrero, in 2003. The state Supreme Court upheld his conviction and death sentence in November 2007.

Hessler filed the motion in August 2012. He claims he was mentally ill and incompetent to stand trial. Lippstreu says his claims were addressed and denied during his first motion for post-conviction relief.