Opinion ID: 1846819
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 10

Heading: ineffective assistance of counsel for failing to call witnesses

Text: Finally, Sepulveda claims that he received ineffective assistance of counsel because his trial counsel did not call several individuals to testify on his behalf at trial. A party cannot raise an issue in a postconviction motion if he or she could have raised that same issue on direct appeal. State v. Jackson, 275 Neb. 434, 747 N.W.2d 418 (2008). Sepulveda had different counsel at trial and on direct appeal and could have raised the issue of his trial counsel's failure to call these witnesses at that time. To preserve this claim, Sepulveda needed to allege ineffective assistance of appellate counsel for failing to raise the claim on direct appeal. See State v. Dunster, 278 Neb. 268, 769 N.W.2d 401 (2009). He did not, and accordingly, this assignment of error is barred.