Opinion ID: 1969802
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: 14, a.75, a.80, a.82, a.99-101, b.6, b.10, b.41, b.74-77, b.84-88, e.15, f.6, f.23-24)

Text: Defendant raises a myriad of other claims alleging that various errors precluded the effective impeachment of McKinnon's credibility. The twenty-three claims in this subcategory include seven alleged discovery violations, one claim of prosecutorial misconduct, twelve allegations of ineffective assistance of counsel, and three miscellaneous claims. We determine that all of the claims lack merit. Defendant's Brady claims include an allegation that the State failed to disclose information in its possession concerning McKinnon's cooperation with federal law-enforcement authorities in connection with unrelated criminal investigations in other jurisdictions. Defendant argues that the fact of McKinnon's cooperation with federal authorities, whether or not based on charges filed against him, was discoverable and improperly suppressed. We disagree. We conclude that such information, if it existed, would have been immaterial to the outcome of the trial. We also note that Lieutenant James Churchill, who supervised the investigation into the murder of Maria Marshall, stated in an affidavit prepared at the direction of the PCR court that he was not aware that there were any charges or criminal investigations pending against McKinnon at the time of his cooperation with the FBI, or at the time of his entry into the federal witness program. We are satisfied, therefore, that the State did not suppress other-crimes evidence that could have been used to impeach McKinnon. We therefore reject defendant's claim and related request for an evidentiary hearing. We also reject as speculative defendant's claim that the State suppressed evidence that McKinnon was dangerous, and we observe that such evidence would not have affected the outcome of the trial in view of the jury's knowledge that McKinnon was a co-conspirator in a plot to commit murder. Defendant also alleges that the State failed to produce the original notes prepared by Lieutenant Churchill and Detective John Petracca during their interrogations of McKinnon in December 1984. In view of the State's certification to the PCR court that Churchill and Petracca did not take contemporaneous notes while interrogating McKinnon and that such notes therefore do not exist, we dismiss defendant's claim as wholly without merit. We likewise reject defendant's suggestion that trial counsel was remiss in not seeking production of the original interrogation notes prior to cross-examining McKinnon, because defendant cannot have been prejudiced by a failure of counsel to request what did not exist. Defendant's remaining discovery claims in this subcategory relate to the State's investigation of other co-conspirators and suspected co-conspirators. Defendant alleges that the State failed to disclose the Louisiana criminal records of co-defendant Larry Thompson's brother, Steven Thompson; its request to the FBI in October 1984 to compare the fingerprints of Steven Thompson and one James Otis Howard with latent fingerprints lifted from Marshall's car; and other information in the State's possession in October 1984 causing it to suspect the involvement of James Otis Howard in the Marshall murder. The essence of those claims is that the State allegedly suppressed information casting doubt on McKinnon's testimony that Larry Thompson was the triggerman, and that if defendant had possessed such information at trial, he could have demonstrated that McKinnon lied about Thompson's involvement in the murder, which would have cast doubt on McKinnon's testimony against Marshall. We determine that defendant's claims are patently without merit. The jury's acquittal of Thompson reveals that it did not accept McKinnon's account of Thompson's involvement in the murder. That disbelief, however, apparently did not lead the jury to reject McKinnon's account of Marshall's involvement. We are satisfied that further impeachment of McKinnon on the subject of Thompson's involvement would have been immaterial to the outcome of the trial. We likewise dismiss defendant's claims of ineffective assistance of counsel relating to counsel's failure to move for severance of defendant's trial from that of co-defendant Larry Thompson, his failure to request full discovery from the State concerning Steven Thompson, his failure to conduct his own investigation into Steven Thompson, and his failure to elicit evidence concerning Steven Thompson's presence in New Jersey. We regard as meritless defendant's speculation that counsel's failure to move for severance was based on a desire not to interfere with Larry Thompson's defense strategy. We also find meritless defendant's argument that severance would have facilitated cross-examination of McKinnon concerning his relationship with other law-enforcement agencies and his information about Steven Thompson. Defendant also claims that the State's suppression of the complete report of its interviews with Larry Thompson's alibi witnesses deprived defendant of information critical to his defense. Specifically, defendant alleges that the State improperly withheld information pertaining to the credibility of Thompson's alibi witness Angela Gallien. Defendant argues that he was entitled to such information on the theory that evidence discrediting Thompson's alibi witnesses had the effect of bolstering McKinnon's credibility, while evidence enhancing the credibility of alibi witnesses had the effect of discrediting McKinnon. Defendant therefore argues that the failure to provide such information deprived him of the ability to prepare his defense. We are satisfied that defendant's claim is without merit. As noted, the jury apparently rejected McKinnon's testimony against Thompson and accepted Thompson's alibi defense while convicting Marshall. Thus, the nondisclosure of additional information pertaining to the credibility of Angela Gallien or Thompson's other alibi witnesses would not have affected the outcome of the trial in respect of Marshall. For the same reasons, we dismiss defendant's related claims of prosecutorial misconduct and trial error in connection with the State's impeachment of Gallien. Defendant asserts two claims of ineffective assistance of counsel alleging that counsel failed to cross-examine McKinnon adequately concerning McKinnon's preparation for trial and the length of McKinnon's interrogation prior to giving a taped statement to investigators. Defendant argues that those areas of inquiry would have demonstrated that McKinnon's taped statement to investigators and his trial testimony consisted of coached and rehearsed statements tailored to the State's theory of the case. We conclude that both claims should be dismissed on the merits without an evidentiary hearing. Direct and cross-examination of McKinnon established that McKinnon had met with State investigators on three or four separate occasions prior to giving his taped statement, and counsel for both defendant and Thompson cross-examined McKinnon at length concerning the circumstances leading up to his formal statement. In addition, Thompson's counsel questioned McKinnon specifically about the amount of time he had spen[t] with the law enforcement people going over the story and smoothing it out before it was finally reduced to the form of a formal statement, and repeatedly suggested that the investigators had tailored McKinnon's statement by asking him leading questions. Concerning the extent of McKinnon's pretrial preparation, Marshall's counsel elicited that McKinnon had reviewed his plea agreement, taped statement, and grand jury testimony prior to testifying, and Thompson's counsel insinuated that McKinnon's testimony was well-rehearsed. Thus, the jury was informed of the circumstances of McKinnon's taped statement and the nature of his pretrial preparation. Defendant also alleges that counsel's failure to request and obtain prior to trial the tape recording of McKinnon's taped statement, to compare it with the written version supplied in discovery, and to interview McKinnon prior to trial concerning his taped statement, demonstrate a lack of adequate preparation for trial. Defendant argues that had counsel listened to the nuances of speech on the tape recording, he would have been better prepared to cross-examine McKinnon and the State's investigators concerning whether McKinnon's statement was the product of prompting by the investigators. We are satisfied that any alleged ineffectiveness of counsel in that regard was immaterial to the outcome of the trial and we therefore dismiss the claims without an evidentiary hearing. As noted, counsel for both defendant and Thompson cross-examined McKinnon at length about his statement. Both lawyers inquired whether the State's investigators had supplied McKinnon with information prior to taking his statement or had coached or prompted him during that statement. Four of defendant's claims concern the admission into evidence of the transcripts of McKinnon's taped statement and grand jury testimony. Defendant asserts that neither item of evidence was admissible and that counsel's failure to object to their admission prejudiced defendant because the transcripts improperly bolstered McKinnon's testimony and credibility. Defendant also asserts that he is entitled to an evidentiary hearing to establish that counsel had no strategic reason for failing to object to the admission of those items. Defendant's claims are without merit. As we have noted, at various times throughout McKinnon's cross-examination counsel for both defendant and Thompson attempted to establish that McKinnon's taped statement, grand jury testimony, and trial testimony were coached. During questioning by Thompson's counsel, the prosecutor objected, arguing that if counsel sought to introduce portions of McKinnon's taped statement to demonstrate the leading nature of the investigators' questions, then the whole statement should be admitted. Although counsel for both Thompson and defendant objected to the statement being admitted into evidence as a defense exhibit, neither objected to admitting the statement into evidence at that time as a State exhibit. Similarly, when Thompson's counsel cross-examined McKinnon concerning his grand jury testimony, the State offered the transcript of that proceeding into evidence without objection by either defense counsel. In our view, admitting into evidence McKinnon's grand jury testimony and taped statement was entirely proper because of the extent to which counsel for both defendants sought to elicit McKinnon's testimony at trial concerning parts of both of those documents. See State v. James, 144 N.J. 538, 554, 677 A. 2d 734 (1996) (When a witness testifies on cross-examination as to part of a conversation, statement, transaction or occurrence, under the doctrine of `completeness' the party calling the witness is allowed to elicit on redirect examination `the whole thereof, to the extent it relates to the same subject matter and concerns the specific matter opened up.') (quoting Virgin Islands v. Archibald, 987 F. 2d 180, 188 (3d Cir.1993)); United States v. Walker, 421 F. 2d 1298, 1299 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, 399 U.S. 931, 90 S.Ct. 2261, 26 L.Ed. 2d 799 (1970). We are therefore satisfied that defendant's claims of ineffective assistance of counsel in that regard are without merit and we also reject defendant's related claims that the admission of the documents constituted reversible error. The last set of claims in this subcategory includes four allegations of ineffective assistance of counsel arising from counsel's alleged failure to investigate and obtain independent evidence impeaching McKinnon's testimony or credibility. We determine that all four claims are without merit. One claim involves counsel's failure to produce at trial evidence demonstrating that McKinnon could not have purchased rubber gloves from a hardware store in the Atlantic City area late in the evening on the night of the murder, because such stores closed by 5:00 or 5:30 p.m. We note that McKinnon's testimony concerning the time and place of purchase of the gloves was vague. Thus, it is unlikely that investigation by counsel in that regard would have been useful. We also note that counsel for Thompson effectively cross-examined McKinnon regarding his purchase of the gloves and remarked in summation that McKinnon's story about the gloves was not believable. We are therefore satisfied that defendant has failed to establish a prima facie case of ineffective assistance in view of the clear lack of prejudice of any failure of counsel in regard to the gloves. Defendant's second claim involves counsel's failure to present the testimony of James Rikeman, who had told State Police investigators that he observed a car bearing an out-of-state license tag exit the Oyster Creek Picnic Area at a high rate of speed on the night of the murder. Rikeman's statement to investigators contradicted McKinnon's testimony that McKinnon had pulled out of the picnic area slowly and then had proceeded onto the Garden State Parkway at normal speed, 55 miles per hour. Had Rikeman testified at trial, however, his testimony would have been merely cumulative, in view of the testimony of State's witness Christine Hilton indicating that she had observed a white Cadillac come flying out of the rest area at about 1:00 a.m. on September 7th. We note also that trial counsel relied on Hilton's testimony in summation to argue that McKinnon had lied, not only about the significant events in his story, but also about the less important facts. Thus, defendant's claim of ineffective assistance is without merit. We also reject defendant's claim of ineffective assistance concerning counsel's attempt to cross-examine McKinnon about his alleged involvement in unrelated fraudulent acts. On direct appeal, we determined that the trial court properly had excluded counsel's cross-examination of McKinnon in that regard. See Marshall I, supra, 123 N.J. at 105, 586 A. 2d 85. Defendant now argues that counsel's failure to establish an adequate foundation for the proposed cross-examination and his failure to provide discovery to the State concerning McKinnon's involvement in the alleged fraud constitutes ineffective assistance of counsel. We disagree. The proposed cross-examination was not excluded because of a failure of discovery or a failure of foundation; it was excluded because the alleged fraud was neither the subject of a criminal conviction nor part of a common plan or scheme involving the murder of Mrs. Marshall, and also because that line of questioning had the capacity to mislead the jury. See ibid. Defendant has presented no new information that would change our earlier determination. Defendant's final claim in this subcategory alleges that counsel was ineffective for failing to obtain a statement from Ransdell Keene, attorney for co-conspirator Robert Cumber, concerning an alleged discussion between Keene and McKinnon about immunity. Other than the fact that counsel elicited during cross-examination of McKinnon that McKinnon had met with Keene while in jail in Louisiana, defendant fails to present any documentation, such as a statement from Keene, to support defendant's claim. Thus, we conclude that defendant has failed to establish a prima facie case of ineffective assistance of counsel. 3. McKinnon's Telephone Call to Robert Cumber