Opinion ID: 2581010
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Asserted ineffective assistance of defense counsel

Text: Defendant asserts trial counsel performed deficiently by (i) failing to object earlier than he did to references to a contract or plan to kill Guillory; (ii) failing to challenge the admissibility of Pat's statement to establish Guillory's state of mind; (iii) failing to object to the reference to Pat's statement to Guillory as being unduly prejudicial under Evidence Code section 352; (iv) eliciting, on recross-examination, additional details concerning the asserted plan to kill Guillory; and (v) failing to object to instructions concerning other crimes evidence and to request additional limiting instructions concerning other crimes. As to most if not all of these five areas, it is questionable whether defendant can establish deficient performance under an objective standard of professional reasonableness. ( Strickland, supra, 466 U.S. 668, 687-691, 104 S.Ct. 2052; Ledesma, supra, 43 Cal.3d 171, 216-217, 233 Cal.Rptr. 404, 729 P.2d 839.) First, as noted above, when the appellate record does not preclude a satisfactory explanation for counsel's actions, we will not find that trial counsel acted deficiently. (See People v. Mendoza Tello, supra, 15 Cal.4th 264, 266, 62 Cal.Rptr.2d 437, 933 P.2d 1134; Pope, supra, 23 Cal.3d 412, 425-426, 152 Cal.Rptr. 732, 590 P.2d 859.) But we need not dwell on the question whether defendant can establish deficient performance by his trial counsel, because in any event, for the reasons set out above, defendant has not established prejudice, that is, a reasonable probability of a more favorable outcome in the absence of the assertedly deficient performance. ( Strickland, supra, 466 U.S. at pp. 691-696, 104 S.Ct. 2052; Ledesma, supra, 43 Cal.3d at pp. 217-218, 233 Cal.Rptr. 404, 729 P.2d 839.) On the record before us, any assumed failings by defense counsel in this regard would be insufficient to undermine confidence in the judgment of guilt or the special circumstance finding.