A panel of federal judges has refused the appeal of a Virginia man who bragged to prosecutors that he killed a teenage girl and tried to rape her after he thought he couldn't face the death penalty.

In a 2-1 ruling Wednesday, justices rejected Paul Warner Powell's argument that he couldn't be convicted twice for the same crime.

Powell was convicted of Stacie Reed's capital murder in 2000, but the Virginia Supreme Court overturned that verdict, ruling he could not be executed because prosecutors lacked evidence that he tried to either rape or rob the Manassas teenager.

Powell then wrote the taunting letter to prosecutors. He was convicted again in 2003.

The dissenting justice said Powell's conviction constituted double jeopardy and must be thrown out.