Opinion ID: 1800634
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Failure to subpoena an expert witness from Whitfield

Text: ¶ 28. Hodges next argues that his trial counsel should have called a witness from Whitfield as an expert in mitigation. Hodges states that trial counsel was having some communication with psychiatrist Dr. Phillip Meredith during the trial. Hodges specifically argues that mental health experts could have provided helpful testimony concerning his youth, his prior escape from county jail, his history of drug abuse, his limited education and his difficult relationship with Cora Johnson. When considered on direct appeal this Court found that this evidence was presented to the jury through other witnesses except for evidence of drug abuse, which this Court found was not so compelling that there is a reasonable probability at least one juror could reasonably have determined that death was not an appropriate sentence. Hodges, 912 So.2d at 766. ¶ 29. Hodges now supplies additional opinions from mental health experts. Dr. Karen S. Wiviott, a psychiatrist, evaluated Hodges in June 2006 and found that Hodges was an immature and impulsive 18-year-old who came from a background of poverty and emotional deprivation. Disruption in both of his parental relationships during his early years left him with rejection sensitivity and vulnerability to abandonment. Only three weeks out of prison, he was especially vulnerable to rejection by Cora Johnson, who was central to his hopes for the future. Her inconsistency in the preceding months and weeks and her betrayal on the night of July 20, 1999 had a profound effect on Mr. Hodges that contributed significantly to his actions on that night. ¶ 30. Dr. Wiviott's psychiatric evaluation is also interesting for what it does not include. Unlike so many capital cases, there is no allegation of child abuse endured by Hodges; Hodges's father did not live with Quintez and his mother but did have a relationship with Hodges when Hodges was growing up. Hodges's mother reportedly was an alcoholic, but she stopped drinking when Quintez was young and he did not remember these episodes. Quintez used marijuana regularly, and alcohol less so in his teenage years, but nothing tied this use to any of his problems with the law. There is no allegation of retardation or insanity. Hodges's witnesses agree that Hodges's behavior worsened when his family moved from Columbus to Caledonia when he was thirteen. ¶ 31. Dr. Marc Zimmerman, a psychologist, also performed a psychological evaluation of Hodges in June 2006. Dr. Zimmerman found that Hodges was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. We find that even if counsel had been able to produce these evaluations at the time of trial, the evaluations are not that compelling, particularly in the context of a death penalty case.