Opinion ID: 4103821
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Sufficiency of Counsel’s Assistance

Text: Generally, to prove an IAC claim, the defendant must show that (1) “counsel’s representation fell below an objective standard of reasonableness” and (2) “the deficient performance prejudiced the defense.” Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687–88. With respect deficient performance, there is “a strong presumption that counsel’s conduct falls within the wide range of reasonable professional assistance.” Id. at 689–90. With respect to prejudice, the “defendant must show that there is a reasonable probability that, but for counsel’s unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been 11 Case: 16-70005 Document: 00513780048 Page: 12 Date Filed: 12/01/2016 No. 16-70005 different.” Id. at 694. In federal habeas proceedings, our review of an IAC claim is “doubly deferential.” Knowles v. Mirzayance, 556 U.S. 111, 123 (2009). The state court’s decision will be upheld if the state court had a reasonable basis for concluding that counsel satisfied Strickland’s deferential standard. Harrington v. Richter, 562 U.S. 86, 105 (2011).
In his 2005 state habeas application, Sorto alleged that his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to adequately investigate and present evidence of post-traumatic stress disorder (“PTSD”) and exposure to hazardous chemicals. Sorto provided only an affidavit from himself in support of his IAC claim. In response, Sorto’s trial counsel filed affidavits describing their efforts to develop evidence of Sorto’s PTSD and chemical exposure and explaining why they chose not to raise these issues during the sentencing phase. The state habeas court found that Sorto had failed “to demonstrate that witnesses or evidence were available to support [his] claims regarding PTSD and/or hazardous chemical exposure.” In addition, the state court found that “the defense team conducted extensive research and investigation regarding . . . chemical exposure,” including reviewing documents, consulting with people who knew Sorto, consulting with a university chemistry department, conducting a brain scan that revealed no evidence of organic disruption, and consulting with a psychiatrist. Considering the trial attorneys’ efforts, the evidence they collected, and the lack of evidence Sorto supplied in support of his IAC claim, the state court concluded that “trial counsels’ investigation of [Sorto’s] potential mitigating evidence was objectively reasonable and consistent with a coherent trial strategy.” In reviewing the state court’s decision, the district court aptly noted that “this is not a case where trial counsel ‘failed to pursue known leads’ or ‘ignored . . . useful information.’” See Skinner v. Quarterman, 576 F.3d 214, 12 Case: 16-70005 Document: 00513780048 Page: 13 Date Filed: 12/01/2016 No. 16-70005 220 (5th Cir. 2009). On the contrary, there is extensive evidence that trial counsel sought to develop defenses based on PTSD and chemical exposure but ultimately concluded there was insufficient evidence to support these defenses. Accordingly, we hold that reasonable jurists would agree that the state court had a reasonable basis for concluding that trial counsel’s assistance was sufficient under Wiggins and Strickland.
In his 2010 state habeas application, Sorto claimed his attorneys should have conducted a broader investigation into his background that would have revealed a “wealth of mitigating evidence,” including his PTSD, exposure to warfare, exposure to hazardous chemicals, intellectual disability, extreme poverty and malnutrition, forced child labor, and beatings and severe punishment. In support, Sorto provided affidavits from eight witnesses who were willing to testify in his 2003 trial. Although the TCCA did not reach the merits of Sorto’s 2010 claim, see Ex parte Sorto, 2011 WL 1533377, at , during the federal habeas proceedings, the district court reviewed Sorto’s expanded IAC claim de novo and concluded Sorto had failed to show deficient performance and prejudice. This Court “must be particularly wary of arguments that essentially come down to a matter of degrees. Did counsel investigate enough? Did counsel present enough mitigating evidence?” Skinner, 576 F.3d at 220 (quoting Dowthitt v. Johnson, 230 F.3d 733, 743 (5th Cir. 2000)). When the unpresented evidence is not “shocking and starkly different than that presented at trial,” this Court has held that the IAC claim is not viable. Blanton v. Quarterman, 543 F.3d 230, 239–40 n.1 (5th Cir. 2008); Coble v. Quarterman, 496 F.3d 430, 437 (5th Cir. 2007) (holding that the state court’s decision was not unreasonable where much of the evidence defendant argued should have been developed more effectively was nonetheless presented at trial). 13 Case: 16-70005 Document: 00513780048 Page: 14 Date Filed: 12/01/2016 No. 16-70005 Here, it appears that the evidence presented at trial was not starkly different from the evidence Sorto contends should have been presented. Sorto’s trial counsel called six witnesses who testified on his behalf during the punishment phase. Four family members testified regarding his childhood, including his exposure to the Salvadoran civil war, poverty and malnutrition, beatings and severe punishment, abandonment by his mother, poor academic record, and work fumigating crops. In addition, a forensic psychiatrist testified about Sorto’s background, including the beatings and sexual abuse Sorto experienced as a child, and discussed Sorto’s risk for future dangerousness. The evidence presented at trial touched on the same issues Sorto raised in his 2010 state habeas application, albeit not to the degree Sorto contends was warranted. Thus, it seems that Sorto’s 2010 IAC claim did not make a sufficient showing of deficient performance. In assessing prejudice, a court must “evaluate the totality of the available mitigation evidence—both that adduced at trial, and the evidence adduced in the habeas proceeding—in reweighing it against the evidence in aggravation.” Williams v. Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 397–98 (2000). The district court noted that the evidence suggested Sorto had engaged in a pattern of escalating offenses “from violent robberies, to the rape and murder of one woman, to the rape and murder of two women.” Given the severity of the offense and Sorto’s apparent pattern of criminal activity, we hold that reasonable jurists would agree Sorto has not shown any reasonable probability that the additional mitigating evidence would have swayed the jury to impose a lesser sentence. Thus, we deny a COA with respect to Sorto’s IAC claims.