HELENA (AP) — The Montana Supreme Court has denied a request for a new trial from a Helena man convicted of stabbing his visiting nephew to death in 1999.

A five-judge panel on Tuesday unanimously rejected the claim by Joseph Deschon that lack of effective counsel denied him the right to a fair trial.

The court also rejected the claim that defense counsel made no effort to restore the credibility of a defense witness the state portrayed as unreliable.

The high court rejected both arguments, reaffirming an earlier District Court ruling against Deschon.

The 48-year-old Deschon was convicted of killing James Azure of Minneapolis when the two men got into an argument after several hours of drinking in November 1999. Deschon was sentenced to 46 years in prison.