Opinion ID: 1212322
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: General Matters Regarding the Evidence

Text: As a preliminary matter, we note that much of Whatley's arguments rely upon the description and interpretation of his background in the affidavit testimony of a psychologist and a psychiatrist. Although an expert witness may rely on the statements of others in forming his or her expert opinions, those opinions should be given weight only to the extent that the statements upon which they rely are themselves found to have been proven reliable. [27] An expert witness must not be permitted to serve merely as a conduit for hearsay. Therefore, in considering whether a jury in reasonable probability would have been swayed by additional testimony not presented by counsel, we do not assume the correctness of the facts alleged in the experts' affidavits but, instead, we consider the experts' testimony in light of the weaker [28] affidavit testimony upon which that testimony, in part, relied. [29] Accordingly, we give significant weight to the habeas court's finding that Whatley's new experts' affidavits were of questionable credibility and value 2008 Miss. LEXIS at. Also as a preliminary matter, we note that Whatley consistently exaggerates the record by stating that trial counsel did not do certain things but neglecting to note that the defense investigator did those things. For example, the defense investigator testified that he met 16 times with Whatley and worked with Whatley to obtain a list of potential witnesses, including witnesses in the District of Columbia. It is entirely reasonable for trial counsel to have delegated an investigation into potential witness testimony to his investigator and to follow up with his own interviews of witnesses when it appeared prudent to do so, which the record shows counsel did. We also note that, because Whatley's trial counsel had passed away before Whatley's habeas proceedings, much of what counsel did must be reconstructed through his files and through the testimony of others involved in the case, and we note that trial counsel's passing does not relieve Whatley of his burden to show counsel's ineffectiveness. [30]