Opinion ID: 76034
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Prejudice Prong of the Strickland Analysis

Text: 163 Even if we were to find that the state court acted unreasonably in not holding that Siemon's performance during the penalty phase was deficient, we must still consider whether Crawford has shown that he was prejudiced — i.e., that there is a reasonable probability that but for his counsel's deficient performance, the result of the penalty proceedings would have been different. Strickland, 466 U.S. at 694, 104 S.Ct. at 2052. Unless Crawford can demonstrate such a reasonable probability, he is not entitled to relief. See, e.g., Fortenberry, 297 F.3d at 1227. The state habeas court concluded that Crawford could not satisfy the prejudice prong of the Strickland test, stating: [C]onsidering the facts of this case, it is doubtful that the evidence would cause the jury to sentence petitioner to life rather than death. State Habeas Order at 12. 3 Although our consideration of the totality of the aggravating and mitigating evidence, including the additional mitigating evidence adduced at the state habeas hearing, persuades us that the prejudice prong also presents a close question in this case, we ultimately conclude that Crawford has not established that any deficient performance by his attorney prejudiced him, and that the state habeas court did not unreasonably apply Strickland in so holding. 164 Despite any questions we may have concerning the adequacy of Crawford's counsel's performance during the penalty phase, we conclude that Crawford failed to establish the necessary prejudice to be entitled to relief from his death sentence. In reaching this conclusion, we are influenced by the strength of the evidence both of Crawford's guilt and of the aggravating circumstances relied upon by the prosecution. See Williams, 529 U.S. at 398, 120 S.Ct. at 1515 (noting that it is proper for a court to consider the strength of the prosecution evidence supporting the future dangerousness aggravating circumstance). In this case, the jury found three aggravating circumstances: that the murder occurred during a kidnapping with bodily injury; that the murder occurred in the course of a rape; and that the murder was wantonly vile, horrible or inhumane, in that it involved torture, depravity of mind or an aggravated battery to the victim. Moreover, the facts of the case were particularly abhorrent — that Crawford raped and murdered his 29-month-old niece in order to get even with his sister-in-law for rejecting his sexual advances. None of the mitigating evidence that might have been presented would have detracted significantly from these strong aggravating circumstances or from the gruesome crime of which the jury found Crawford guilty. 165 Crawford argues that the jury should have been informed about his experiences in Vietnam, and the effect of those experiences on Crawford's subsequent life. Although mitigating evidence concerning a defendant's combat experiences while in the military may be significant, see Jackson v. Dugger, 931 F.2d 712, 717-18 (11th Cir.1991), the evidence presented by Crawford during his state habeas proceedings provided little insight into his combat experiences in Vietnam. Moreover, the mitigating value of this evidence is weakened because its introduction might have allowed the prosecution to present evidence that Crawford went AWOL while serving in the military after returning from Vietnam. 166 Crawford also relies heavily on the allegedly mitigating evidence concerning his alcohol abuse after returning from Vietnam. But, as we have previously recognized when considering such claims concerning evidence of alcohol or drug abuse, such evidence often has little mitigating value and can do as much or more harm than good in the eyes of the jury. See Housel v. Head, 238 F.3d 1289, 1296 (11th Cir.2001) (Evidence of drug and alcohol abuse is `a two-edged sword,' ... and a lawyer may reasonably decide that it could hurt as much as help the defense.). Therefore, we are not persuaded that the alcohol abuse evidence that Siemon was allegedly concerned with presenting would have done much to make Crawford sympathetic to the jury. 167 With respect to the evidence presented by Crawford from the mental health expert — opining that Crawford suffered from PTSD and describing some common effects of that condition — the evidence from that witness at the state habeas proceeding did nothing to show that PTSD or any other mental impairment had any causal connection with Crawford's actions on the night of the crime. We cannot conclude that Crawford has shown that the proffered testimony from the mental health expert would have provided any substantial mitigation, in light of the aggravating factors involved in this case. 4 168 As for the remaining mitigating evidence concerning Crawford's alcoholic father and disadvantaged childhood, while such evidence would have been mitigating, we conclude that there is no reasonable probability that it would have convinced the jury to impose life rather than death in light of the extremely aggravated nature of the crime involved. 169 Finally, we note that Crawford relies heavily on the jury's question to the judge during its deliberations about the availability of a sentence of life without parole. While it is true that this question might reveal that the jury was not invariably set on sentencing Crawford to death, the most plausible interpretation is that the jury was concerned about Crawford's future dangerousness, and the available mitigating evidence would have done nothing to alleviate this concern. Indeed, the most likely effect of testimony that Crawford suffered from PTSD, conducive to alcohol abuse and aggressive behavior, would have been to exacerbate the jury's concern about future dangerousness. 170 Therefore, in light of all of the circumstances of this case, we conclude that Crawford has not shown that there is a reasonable probability that the jury would have sentenced him to life rather than death, but for the deficiencies in his counsel's performance during the penalty phase of his trial. Thus, there has been no unreasonable application of Strickland, and Crawford is not entitled to habeas relief from his sentence on this ground.