In th e S u p re m e Co u rt o f Ge o rg ia

De c id e d : Ja nu ary 2 0 , 2 0 1 5

S 1 4 A1 2 9 3 . F UNCK v . THE S T ATE.

HINES , P re sid in g Ju stic e

.

F o llo win g th e d e n ia l o f h i s m o tio n fo r ne w tria l, a s a m e n d e d

, Ma rc u s

F u n c k a p p e a ls h is c o n v i c tio n fo r fe lo n y m u rd e r wh ile in th e c o m m issio n o f

c r i mi n a l a tte m

pt to p o sse ss c o c a in e in c o n n e c tio n w ith th e de a th o f Ch a r l e s

Jo h n so n

. F u n c k c o m

p la in s o f a ru lin g re g a rd in g th e c ro ss-e x a m in a tio n o f h is

c o -in d ic te e , th a t h e wa s a lle g e d ly re q u ire d to w e a r p riso n g a rb a t h is tria l, a n d

th a t h is tria l c o u n se l wa s in e ffe c tiv e

. F in d in g th e c ha lle n g e s to b e with o u t m e rit,

we a ffirm

. 1

Th e e v id e n c e c o n stru e d in fa v o r o f th e v e rd ic t sh o we d th e fo llo win g

.

1 The murder a

nd underly ing felony occurred on Aug u st 18, 2 006. On December 5, 2006, a Richmond County g rand jury returned an indictment ag ainst F unck a nd L isa Moody Morse, charg ing

them w ith t h e f

e l ony murder of Charles J o hnson while in the commission of criminal a ttempt to

possess c ocaine by fatally striking J o h n s on with a vehicle. F u nck w as tried alone b efore a jury

November 13-15, 2007, and found g u ilty of the felony murder; he w as sentenced to life in prison on November 15, 2007. A motion for new trial was filed o n N ovember 16, 2007, amended on December 7, 2012, and denied on J uly 9, 2013. A notice o f a ppeal was filed o n Aug ust 6, 2013, and

the case was d ocketed in this Court’s 2014 September Term. The appeal was submitted for decision

on the briefs.On Au g ust 1 8

, 2 0 0 6

, F u n c k a nd h is g irlfrie n d

, Mo rse , b o rro w ed a v a n

fro m a frie n d

, P a z -S a n c h e z

. Th e y wa n te d to o b ta in c ra c k c oc a in e , a n d p la n n e d

to g e t t h e mo n e y t o p u rc h a se it b y se llin g a sto le n re m o te c o ntro l to a d ru g

d e a le r. Un su c c e ssfu l in se llin g o r p a w n in g th e sto le n i t e m, a n d h a v in g n o

m o n e y to p u r ch a s e th e d ru g s, th e p a ir d e c id e d th e y wo u ld fin d so m e o n e wh o

wo u ld se ll th e m c o c a in e a n d a fte r re c e iv in g th e dru g s d riv e o ff w ith o ut p a y in g

.

Th e y h a d p re vio u sly u se d th is m e th o d to o b ta in d ru g s.

Mo rse a n d F u nc k sp ie d Jo h n so n wa lk in g d o wn to wn a nd a sk e d him wh e re

th e y c ou ld p urc h a se c ra c k c o c a in e , te llin g h im th a t th e y wa n te d to p u rc h a se $ 5 0

wo rth

. Jo h n so n we n t to g e t th e d ru g s wh ile F u n c k a n d M o rse wa ite d in th e v a n

.

F iv e or te n m in u te s la te r, Jo h n so n re tu rn e d to th e v a n, wh ic h wa s ru n n in g , a n d

h a n d e d F u n c k th e d ru g s. F un c k th e n twic e ord e re d Mo rse , w h o wa s driv in g , “ to

g o , go .” As M o rse sta rte d d riv in g a wa y , Jo h n so n h u n g o nto th e sid e of th e v a n

.

F u n c k th e n k ic k e d Jo hn so n o ff th e sid e o f th e va n b y p uttin g h is fe e t th ro u g h th e

o p e n va n win d o w. M o rse h e a rd a n d th e n fe lt a “ th u m

p ” ; fe a rin g th a t sh e m ig h t

h a v e h it a p e rso n , sh e m

utte re d

, “ [O] h Go d ” a n d sta rte d to slo w d o wn th e v a n

.

Bu t F u n c k a ssu re d h e r th a t J o h n s o n w a s o k a y a n d to ld h e r to d riv e on , wh ic h

sh e d id

.

2Mo rse a n d F u n c k wa sh e d th e v a n a n d re tu rn e d it to P a z -S a n c h e z

. Mo rse

to ld P a z -S a n c h e z th a t th e y h a d o b t a in e d c ra c k c oc a in e a n d th a t F u n c k h a d

p u n c h e d a

m a n th a t trie d to ju m

p o n th e sid e o f th e v an

.

At th e tim e o f th e fa t a l i mp a ct

, a lo n g -tim e re sid e nt o f Jo h n so n ’s

n e ig hb o rh o o d w h o k ne w Jo h n so n h e ard “ h o lle rin g ” a nd we n t to in v e stig a te

.

Th is m a n sa w Jo hn so n ’s sh o e in th e m id d le o f th e stre e t a n d th e n sa w Jo h n so n

h im se lf ly in g in th e stre e t. He sa w th a t Jo h n so n wa s no t b re a th in g a n d c a lle d fo r

a n a m b u la n c e

. Jo h n so n wa s de a d a t th e sc e n e

. Th e re wa s a d ra g m a rk fro m th e

so le o f th e sh oe le a d in g u p to th e lo n e sh o e in th e ro a d a n d th e n a n o th e r d ra g

m a rk g o in g fro m

th e sh o e to Jo h n so n ’s b o d y

.

La te r th a t n ig ht, M o rse h e a rd on th e n e ws th a t th e re h a d b e e n a fa ta lity

,

a n d o n c e sh e re a liz e d th a t Jo h n so n h a d d ie d

, sh e e x p re sse d h e r fe ar a n d c o n c e rn

to F u n c k

, a n d h e re sp o nd e d

, “ [T] h a t’s ju st o ne le ss n

_ _

_ _ _ . ” Mo rse wa n te d

to tu rn he rse lf in to t h e p o l i c e , b u t F u n c k to ld h e r n o t to

. Fu n c k to ld a frie n d

a b o u t wh a t h a d h a

p p e n e d, sa y in g t h a t a fte r th e y g o t th e c ra c k c o c a in e a n d

“ rip p e d [Jo h n so n ] o ff,” Jo h n so n ju m p e d o n th e va n a n d F u n c k a nd Mo rse “ to o k

o ff,” a n d wh e n th e y “ go t to a c e rta in sp e e d ,” i.e

., a b o u t 4 0 m ile s p e r ho ur, F u n c k

“ th re w [Jo h n so n ] o ff” a n d “ h e we n t u p u n de r th e [v a n] .”

3Jo h n so n die d a s th e re su lt o f m u ltip le b lu n t fo rc e tra u m a to h is h e a d

, n e c k

,

a n d a n te rio r to rso

.

1

. F u n c k c o n te nd s th a t h is c o n v ic tio n sh o u ld be re v e rse d b e c a u se h is tria l

c o u n se l wa s “ p e r se ” in e ffe c tiv e fo r fa ilin g to tim e ly file a v a lid d e m u rre r to th e

in d ic tm e n t, i.e

., with in te n d a y s o f a rra ig n m e n t, 2 in th a t th e fe lo n y m u rd e r

c h a rg e is b a se d up o n th e c h a rg e o f c rim in a l a tte m p t to p o sse ss c o c a in e , wh ic h

is n o t in h e re n tly d a n ge ro u s o r life -th re a t e n in g so a s to b e a v a lid u n d e rly in g

fe lo ny a s a

m a tte r o f la w an d u nd e r th e c irc u m sta n c e s o f th is c a se

.

In o rd e r fo r Fu n c k to p re v a il o n h is c la im of th e in e ffe c tiv e n e ss o f h is tria l

c o u n se l, h e h a s to d e m o n stra te , u n d e r S tric k la n d v

. W a sh in g to n , 4 6 6 U.S . 6 6 8

( 1 0 4 S Ct 2 0 5 2

, 8 0 LE2 d 6 7 4 ) (1 9 8 4), th a t h is c o u n se l' s p e rfo rma n c e w a s

d e fic ie n t a n d th a t, b u t f

o r su c h d e fic ie n c y , th e re is a re a so n a b le p ro ba b ility o f

a m o re fa v o ra

b le o u tc o m e a t tria l. Alle n v

. S ta te

, 2 93 Ga

. 6 26

, 6 27 (2 ) (7 48 S E2 d

8 8 1 ) (2 0 1 3 ). To sa tisfy th e first p ro n g o f S tric k la n d

, F u n c k h a s to ov e rc o m e th e

stro ng p re su m

p tio n th a t h is tria l c o u n se l' s pe rfo rm an c e wa s with in th e b ro a d

2 F unck cites OCGA§ 17-7-110, which provides:

All pretrial motions, including demurrers and special p leas, shall be filed within ten day s after the date of arraig

n ment, unless the time for filing is ex tended by the court.

4ra n g e o f re a so n a b le p ro fe s s i o n a l c o n d u c t; th e re a so n a b le n e ss o f su c h c o n d u c t

is a sse sse d fro m c o u n se l' s p e rsp e c tiv e a t th e tim e o f tria l a n d u nd e r th e p a rtic u la r

c irc u ms t a n c e s t h e n e x istin g in th e c a se

. Id

. Th e se c o nd p ro n g o f S tric k la n d

re q u ire s th a t F u nc k d e m o n s tra te th e re a so n a ble p ro b a b ility th a t, a

b se n t a n y

u n p ro fe ssio n a l e r ro rs o n c o u nse l' s p a rt, th e re su lt o f h is tria l wo uld h a v e b e e n

d iffe re n t. Id . F u n c k

c a n n o t m e e t h is b u rd e n u n d e r S tric k la n d

.

On th e fin a l d a y o f tria l, F u n c k ’s c o un se l d id in fa c t m o v e th e c o u rt fo r

wh a t c o u n se l te rm e d a “ sp e c ia l d e m u rre r” to th e in d ic tm e n t a n d fo r a d ire c te d

v e rd ic t o f a c q u itta l, a rg u in g th a t t h e u n d e rly in g fe lo n y o f c rim in a l a tte m p t to

p o sse ss c o c a in e wa s “ n o t d a n g e ro u s p e r se ” o r in h e re n tly d a n g e ro u s u n d e r th e

e v id e n c e a t tria l. Ho we v e r, th e in d ic tm e n t pla in ly a nd with sp e c ific ity c h a rg e d

th e o ffe n se of fe lo n y m

u rd e r wh ile in th e c o m m issio n o f th e fe lo n y o f c rim in a l

a tte m p t to p osse ss c o c a in e a s th e p ro x im a te c a u s e o f Jo h nso n ’s d e a th

. 3 Th e

c rim in a l a tte m

p t to p osse ss c o c a in e c a n b e u se d a s th e u n de rly in g fe lo n y fo r a

fe lo ny m u rd e r c o n v ic tio n

. Ch a n c e v

. S ta te

, 2 9 1 Ga

. 2 4 1 (7 2 8 S E2 d 6 3 5 ) (2 0 1 2 ).

Th e re fo re , th e fe lo n y m

urd e r c h a rg e w a s n o t su b

je c t to e ith e r a pre tria l g e n e ra l

3 The indictment c harg e d that F unck “did w hile in the commission of the felony of Criminal Attempt to Possess Cocaine, cause the d e at h o f Charles J ohnson, a h uman being

, b y striking him

with a vehicle . . . .”

5o r sp e c ia l d e m u rre r. S e e Sta te v . W

y a tt

,

2 9 5 Ga . 2 57 (7 5 9 S E2 d 5 0 0 ) (2 0 1 4 ). In d e e d,

th e o n ly lim ita tio n o n th e ty p e o f fe lo n y th a t ma y s e rv e a s a n

u n d e rly in g fe lo n y fo r a fe lo n y m u rd e r c o nv ic tio n is th a t th e fe lo n y

m u st b e in h e re n tly d a n g e r o us to h u m an life

. F o r a fe lo n y to b e

c o n sid e re d in h e re n tly d a n g e ro u s, it m u st b e d an g e ro u s p e r se o r it

m u st b y its c irc u m sta n c e s c re a te a fo re se e a b l e risk of d e a th

. In
d e te rm in in g wh e th e r a fe lo n y m e e ts th a t d e fin itio n , th is Co u rt d o e s

n o t c o n sid e r th e e le m e n ts o f th e fe lo n y in th e a bstra c t, b u t in ste a d

c o n sid e rs th e c irc u m sta n c e s u n d e r wh ic h th e fe lo n y wa s c om m itte d

.

Ch a n c e v

. S ta te a t 2 4 2

. (In te rn a l c ita tio n a nd q u o ta tio n m a rk s o m itte d .) Th e

c irc u m sta n c e s o f th is c a se we ll illu stra te th e v a li d i t y o f a c h a rg e o f fe lo n y

m u rd e r p r e mi se d u p on th e c rim in a l a tte m p t to p o sse ss c oc a in e

. F u nc k a n d

Mo rse ’s p la n to ob ta in c o c ai n e b y ro b bin g th e su pp lie r o f th e dru g s, a n d su c h

p la n go in g a wry , wa s th e p ro x im a te c a use of Jo h nso n 's d e a th

. Th e re f o r e , t h e

c o m m itte d fe lo ny o f c rim in a l a tte m pt to p o sse ss c o c a in e d ire c tly a n d m a te ria lly

c o n trib u te d to th e su b se q u e n t im m e d ia te c a u se o f th e d e a th

. Da v is v

. Sta te

, 2 9 0

Ga

. 75 7

, 7 6 0 (4 ) (7 2 5 S E2 d 2 8 0 ) (2 0 1 2 )

. F u r t h e rm o re , th e p la n to ro b a n

in d iv id u a l d e a lin g in ille g a l d ru g s c a rrie d with i t a f o r e se e a b le risk o f d a n g e r

a n d d e a th . Id

.

Th u s, e v e n a tim e ly p re tria l d e m u rre r to th e in d ic tm e n t o n th e ba sis u rg e d

6wo u ld no t h a v e b e e n su c c e ssfu l. Th e fa ilu re to m a k e a m e ritle ss m o tio n c a n n o t

p ro v id e th e ba sis u p o n w h ic h to fin d in e ffe c tiv e a ssista nc e of c o u n se l. Ha mp to n

v

. S ta te

, 2 9 5 Ga

. 66 5 (

--- S E2 d ----) (2 0 14 ). Co n se q u e n tly

, F u n c k’s c la im o f h is

tria l c o u nse l b e in g in e ffe c tiv e in th is re g a rd c a n n o t p re v a il.

2

. As to th e e v id e n c e a t tria l, it wa s su ffic ie n t to e n a b le a ra tio n a l trie r o f

fa c t to fin d b e y o n d a re a so n a b le d o u b t th a t F u n c k wa s g uilty of th e fe lo n y

m u rd e r o f Jo h n so n

. J

a c k so n v

. Virg in ia

, 4 43 U.S

. 3 0 7 (9 9 S Ct 2 78 1, 61 LE2 d

5 6 0 ) (1 9 7 9 ).

3

. F u n c k n e xt c la im s e rro r in a ru lin g by th e tria l c o u rt a lle g e d ly lim itin g

h is a tto rn e y ’s a

b ility to c ro ss-e x a m in e Mo rse , wh o te stifie d a s a S ta te ’s w itn e ss,

a b o u t an y d e a ls sh e m a y h a ve re a c h e d with th e S ta te

. B u t, th e c om pla in t is

u n a v a ilin g

.

Im m e d ia te ly b e fo re tria l, th e re wa s a he a rin g o n se v e ra l d e fe n se m o tio n s.

At th is h e a rin g , F u n c k ’s c o u n se l a rg u e d th a t b e c a u se c e rta in la n g u a g e re g a rd in g

th e wa iv e r o f se n te n c e m o d ific a tio n , n e w tria l, a n d th e rig h t to a p p e a l h a d b e e n

c ro sse d o u t in Mo rse ’s p le a se n te n c in g sh e e t, c o u nse l su sp e c te d th a t th e re wa s

a n a g re e m e n t with Mo rse th a t in e x c ha n g e fo r h e r te stim o n y a ga in st F u n c k

,

Mo rse ’s se n te n c e m ig h t b e m o d ifie d or h e r p le a a g re e m e n t b e “ re m o ld e d .” Th e

7p ro se c u to r re sp o n d e d th a t th e re wa s n o a g re e m e n t a s to a n y “ re m old

, ” a n d th a t

th e p le a a g re e m e n t wa s fo r a 2 0 -y e a r se nte n c e fo r m a n sla u g h te r. T h e a g re e m e n t

a lso r e q u ire d Mo rse to te stify a t F un c k ’s tria l. Th e p ro se c uto r th e n o ra lly

“ mo v e [ d ] in lim in e ” th a t d e fe n se c o u n se l n o t b e a llo w e d to “ g o in to a n y t h i n g

sp e c ula tiv e ,” i.e

., with ou t a fa c tu a l b a sis, re g a rd in g a n y a d d itio n a l b e n e fit

a n tic ip a te d b y Mo r s e. H o we v e r, th e tria l c o u rt de n ie d th e S ta te ’s m o tio n in

lim in e “ a s to th e c ro ss-e x a m in a tio n re g a rd in g [Mo rse ’s] m o tiv a tio n, in c e n tiv e

fo r an y d e a l th a t m ig ht b e th e re ,” b u t th a t “ it’s n o t with o u t lim ita tio n

. . . [a ] n d

if y o u g e t in to it a nd sh e sa y s th is is a ll it wa s y o u k n o w a re a so n a ble a m o u n t o f

fo llo w u p is p ro b a b ly a p p ro p ria te b u t we ’re n o t g o in g to b e la b o r th a t p o in t. . .

.”

On dire c t e x a m in a t i o n , Mo rse te stifie d th a t sh e e n te re d a gu ilty p le a to

m a n sla u g h te r a nd wa s se n te n c e d to 2 0 y e a rs, a n d th a t b e fo re th e p le a sh e d id n o t

k n o w wh a t h e r se nte n c e wa s g o i n g t o b e

. On c ro ss-e x a m in a tio n Mo rse wa s

a sk e d if sh e h a d d isc usse d with h e r a tto rn e y a b o u t h e r c o m in g b a c k to c o u rt fo r

p o ssib le se n te n c e re c on sid e ra tio n a fte r sh e te stifie d a n d sh e sta te d th a t th e re wa s

su c h d isc u ssio n be twe e n h e r a n d h e r a tto rn e y a n d th a t it wa s h e r in te n tio n to

re tu rn to c o urt to h a v e h e r se nte n c e re d u c e d.

8Th u s, F u n c k w a s p e rm itte d to q ue stio n Mo rse a bo ut h e r p le a d e a l a n d a n y

b e n e fit sh e e x p e c te d to re c e iv e in e x c h a n g e fo r h e r te stim o n y

. In de e d, h e h a s

n o t p o in t e d t o a n y sp e c ific in fo rm a tio n a b o u t wh ic h h e wa s p re v e n te d fro m

a sk in g ; n o r h a s he a lle g e d wh a t sp e c ific s a b o u t Mo rse ’s m o tiv a tio n fo r

te stify in g we re n o t re v e a le d a s a re su lt o f h e r d ire c t a n d c ro s s

- e x a m in a tio n

te stim o n y

.

In d e e d, a d e fe n d a n t h a s th e rig h t to a th oro ug h a n d siftin g

c ro ss-e x a m in a tio n , bu t th e d isc re tio n o f th e tria l c o u rt to d e te rm in e its sc o p e a n d

th e re le v a n c y o f th e so u g h t te stim o n y is b ro a d ; th e c o u rt’s d isc re tio n w ill n o t b e

d istu rb e d o n a

p p e a l u n le ss it h a s b e e n a bu se d

. L a wto n v

. S ta te

,

2 8 1 Ga

. 4 5 9

, 4 6 1 (1 ) (6 4 0 S E2 d 1 4 ) (2 0 0 7 ). Ce rta in ly , a d e fe n d a n t is e n title d

to a re a so n a

b le c ro ss-e x a m in a tio n o n th e q ue stio n o f wh e th e r th e witn e ss

b e lie v e s th a t h e o r sh e wo u ld re c e iv e a p e rso n a l b e n e fit fro m te stify in g

fa v o ra bly fo r th e S t a t e

. I d

. Ev e n so , th e re a re lim its o n th e c ro ss-e x a m in e r' s

in q u iry i n t o t h e po te n tia l b ia s o f a n a d v e rse witn e ss; a tria l c o u rt re ta in s wid e

la titu d e in im

p o sin g re a so n a

b le lim its o n su c h c ro ss-e x a m in a tio n. Id

.

Bu t, in th is c a se , th e tria l c ou rt’s ru lin g d id n o t, in a c tu a lity

, lim it F u nc k ’s c ro ss9e x a m in a tio n o f Mo rse a b o u t wh a t b e ne fit sh e d id re c e iv e a n d ho pe d to re c e iv e

f o llo win g h e r te stim on y fo r th e S ta te

. Ev e n if a n y lim ita tio n im p o se d b y t h e

tria l c o u rt’s ru lin g wa s d e e m e d e r ro r, F u n c k ha s fa ile d to sh ow th a t h e wa s

h a rm e d b y th e c o u rt' s a c tio n

. J u n io r v

. S ta te

, 2 8 2 Ga

. 6 8 9

, 6 9 2 (3 ) (6 5 3 S E2 d

4 8 1 ) (2 00 7 ).

4

. F in a lly

, F u n c k c o n te n d s th a t h is c o n v ic tio n sh o u ld b e re v e rse d b e c a use

h e wa s re q u ire d to we a r h is ja il ju m p su it th ro u g h o u t h is tria l, a n d th e re wa s n o

ju stific a tio n , d isc ip lin a ry o r o th e rwise

, fo r d o in g so

. Bu t, th e tria l c o u rt d id n o t

re q u ire it; F u n c k

c h o se to d o so o n th e a d v ic e o f h is a tto rn e y

.

At th e m o tio n -fo r-n e w-tria l h e a rin g , Fu n c k te stifie d th a t his tria l c o u n se l

to ld him to we a r th e ja il ju m p su it b e c a use “ sh e w a n te d e v e ry b o d y to k n o w [h e ]

h a d b e e n in c a

rc e ra te d a n d wa s still in c a rc e ra te d ,” a n d t h a t h e fo llo we d th e

a d v ic e

. Tria l c o u n se l p ro v i d e d a n a ffid a vit sta tin g th a t b y th e tim e o f tria l,

F u n c k h a d b e e n in ja il fo r o v e r a y e a r, a nd th a t a fte r d isc u ssio n with F u n c k

, th e

two d e c id e d th a t a s p a rt o f th e ir tria l stra te g y , th e y wa n te d F u n c k to re m a in in

h i s ja il c lo th in g fo r tria l ra th e r th a n c h a n ge to “ stre e t c lo th e s” so th a t th e ju ry

wo u ld b e a wa re o f th e tim e th a t h e h a d a lre a d y se rv e d in c o n fin e m e n t.

10Th u s, th e re wa s e v id e n c e th a t F u nc k wa s n o t o nly a wa re o f t h e stra te g y

p rio r to tria l b u t to o k p a rt in d e v e lo p in g it. An d

, th e n h e c h o se to p ur s u e th a t

stra te g ic d e c isio n a t tria l. S e e T o wn e s v

. S ta te

, 2 9 8 Ga

. A p p

. 1 8 5

, 1 8 7 (6 7 9

S E2 d 77 2 ) (2 0 0 9 ). A c rim in a l d e fe n d a n t m a y wa iv e th e p ro c e d ura l rig h t to we a r

c i v i l i an c lo th in g d u rin g tria l. Ch o i v

. S ta te

, 2 6 9 Ga

. 3 7 6

, 3 7 7 (4 ) (4 9 7 S E 2 d

5 6 3 ) (1 99 8 ); Ga

y v

. S ta te

, 2 5 8 Ga

. Ap p

. 8 5 4

, 8 5 7 -8 5 8 (4 ) (b ) (5 7 5 S E2 d 7 4 0 )

(2 0 0 2 ). A s F u n c k c h o se to we a r priso n g a rb

, th e re wa s n o o b je c tio n a t tria l, a n d

in a sm uc h a s th e re wa s no o b

je c tio n , th e tria l c o u rt wa s n o t g iv e n th e o p p o rtu n ity

to ru le o n th is issu e , a n d ta k e a n y a c tio n

. S e e , e .g ., Mc Cla rin v

. S ta te

, 2 8 9 Ga

.

1 8 0

, 1 8 3 (b ) (7 1 0 S E2 d 1 2 0 ) (2 0 1 1 ).

In so fa r a s F u n c k ’ s a rg um e n t ra ise s th e sp e c te r o f a c la im o f in e ffe c tiv e

a ssista n c e o f tria l c o u n se l

, h e h a s fa ile d to sa tisfy th e re q u ire m e n ts o f

S tric k la n d

. G iv e n th e stre n g th o f th e e v id e n c e a g a in st h im

, F u n c k c a n no t sh o w

a re a so n a b le p ro b a b ility th a t bu t fo r th e a lle ge d e rro r o f c o u n se l, th e o utc o m e o f

h is tria l wo u ld h a v e b e e n d iffe re n t. S e e J o h n so n v

. S ta te

, 2 4 3 G a

. Ap p

. 8 9 1

, 8 9 3

(2 ) (5 3 4 S E2 d 5 6 3 ) (2 0 0 0 ).

F u n c k h a s fa ile d to p ro v id e a n y b a sis fo r re v e rsa l o f h is c o n v ic tio n

.

Ju d g m e n ts a ffirm e d . All th e Ju stic e s c o n c u r.

11