Opinion ID: 1190406
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: the district court erred in dismissing matthews' ineffective assistance of counsel claims without holding an evidentiary hearing.

Text: The sixth and ninth issues (that he was deprived of his right to effective assistance of counsel both at trial and on appeal) were considered but rejected by the district court. The State argues on appeal that we need not reach the merits of the ineffective assistance of counsel issues because they, like the other issues, have been waived because they were not raised on appeal. We disagree. A special rule applies in these cases. A defendant may raise the issue of ineffective assistance of counsel at trial either on direct appeal or in a petition for post-conviction relief, but not both. Thirteen years ago in another case this Court explained: Hence having raised the issue of competence of counsel on direct appeal, the appellant cannot again have the same matter considered further by this Court on appeal from the denial of a post-conviction application. If he chooses to raise the issue on direct appeal and the matter is considered, it becomes res judicata. However, he may reserve this issue more properly for a post-conviction hearing. This comports with the purpose of the Uniform Post-Conviction Procedure Act as set forth in I.C. § 19-4901(b): This remedy is not a substitute for nor does it affect any remedy incident to the proceeding in the trial court, or of an appeal from the sentence or conviction.  Hence, it is conceivable that the appellant may have a direct appeal pending on the purported errors that arose during the trial, as shown on the record, and at the same time pursue the question of whether he was denied effective assistance of counsel in a post-conviction hearing as to matters arising outside of the record. Kraft v. State, 100 Idaho 671, 674, 603 P.2d 1005, 1008 (1979) (emphasis in original). In the Kraft direct appeal in a specially concurring opinion, Justice Bakes had earlier stated that a petition for post-conviction relief is the preferred forum for bringing claims of ineffective assistance of counsel: The question of competency of counsel is an extremely complex factual determination which, in all but the most unusual cases, requires an evidentiary hearing for determination.    The resolution of those factual issues for the first time on appeal, based upon a trial record in which the competency of counsel was not an issue, is at best conjectural. State v. Kraft, 96 Idaho 901, 906, 539 P.2d 254, 259 (1975) (Bakes, J. specially concurring). The rule of Kraft v. State was recently applied in Parrott v. State, 117 Idaho 272, 274, 787 P.2d 258, 260 (1990). See also Paradis v. State, 110 Idaho 534, 543, 716 P.2d 1306, 1315 (1986) (the Court considers ineffective assistance of counsel issue raised for the first time in a petition for post-conviction relief) and Gibson v. State, 110 Idaho 631, 634, 718 P.2d 283, 286 (1986) (same). The foregoing was sufficient authority to activate the district court into a review of Matthews's claim of ineffective assistance of trial counsel. It is equally clear that the district court should have considered and ruled on the same issue with regards to appellate counsel. That claim is not one which could be raised on direct appeal and accordingly is not barred. See Garasha v. State, 393 N.W.2d 20, 22-23 (Minn.App. 1986) (claim of ineffective assistance of counsel may be raised for the first time in a post-conviction petition because it could not have been raised previously). We begin our substantive analysis by recognizing that an accused has a constitutional right to assistance of counsel. U.S. Const. amend. VI. Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335, 344, 83 S.Ct. 792, 796-97, 9 L.Ed.2d 799 (1963). This right is fundamental and is not a luxury. Stuart v. State, 118 Idaho 932, 934, 801 P.2d 1283, 1285 (1990) citing United States v. Cronic, 466 U.S. 648, 104 S.Ct. 2039, 80 L.Ed.2d 657 (1984). The right to counsel necessarily includes the right to effective assistance of counsel. McMann v. Richardson, 397 U.S. 759, 771, 90 S.Ct. 1441, 1448, 25 L.Ed.2d 763 (1970). The right to effective assistance of counsel extends to the defendant's first appeal as a matter of right. Evitts v. Lucey, 469 U.S. 387, 396, 105 S.Ct. 830, 837, 83 L.Ed.2d 821 (1985). The district court's dismissal of Matthews's petition without an evidentiary hearing was based upon I.C. § 19-4906(b), which reads: When a court is satisfied, on the basis of the application, the answer or motion, and the record, that the applicant is not entitled to post-conviction relief and no purpose would be served by any further proceedings, it may indicate to the parties its intention to dismiss the petition and its reasons for so doing. The applicant shall be given an opportunity to reply within 20 days to the proposed dismissal. In light of the reply, or on default thereof, the court may order the application dismissed or grant leave to file an amended application, or direct that the proceedings otherwise continue. Disposition on the pleadings is not proper if there exists a material issue of fact. Similar to the procedure on a summary judgment motion, all facts and reasonable inferences properly drawn from those facts must be construed in favor of the applicant when considering an I.C. § 19-4906(b) dismissal. Parrott v. State, 117 Idaho 272, 274, 787 P.2d 258, 260 (1990). Until allegations in a post-conviction petition are controverted they are deemed to be true. Clark v. State, 92 Idaho 827, 830, 452 P.2d 54, 57 (1969). The issue on appeal from a dismissal is whether the petition alleges facts which, if true, would entitle the petitioner to relief. Smith v. State, 94 Idaho 469, 472, 491 P.2d 733, 736 (1971). Matthews alleged in his petition that both his trial counsel and his counsel on appeal were ineffective because they failed to raise certain issues, to which, the district court stated: The court takes judicial notice of the proceedings which took place before it and determines that the defendant received competent representation at trial. The case was vigorously defended and the issues appropriate for consideration were raised. The effectiveness of appellate counsel is more difficult for the trial court to assess. However, taking note of the trial record the court determines that the failure to assert the issues claimed by the petitioner did not deny him the effective assistance of appellate counsel. That is, the record would not support a reversal of the conviction on any ground raised. Our concern, then, is whether the trial court erred in taking judicial notice of the trial proceedings and in turn erred in dismissing the petition without conducting an evidentiary hearing on the ineffective assistance of counsel claims. Under I.C. § 19-4906(b), the court must be satisfied upon review of the application, the answer or motion, and the record that the applicant is not entitled to post-conviction relief. There was no answer or motion whatever by the State. It follows that there is insufficient record and certainly nothing which serves to controvert Matthews' allegations. The record relied upon by the district court consisted only of its judicial notice of the trial proceedings over which, of course, the trial judge had presided. However, there does not appear to be any statutory provision or case law precedent which elevates the taking of judicial notices to the equivalent level of a court record. On the latter, the court may base a sua sponte dismissal, but not where a taking of judicial notice, by recollection, is relied upon. Idaho Rule of Evidence 201 limits the scope of facts which may be judicially noticed to those not subject to reasonable dispute in that [they] are either (1) generally known within the territorial jurisdiction of the trial court or (2) capable of accurate and ready determination by resort to sources whose accuracy cannot be reasonably questioned. We are not apprised that the facts surrounding the representation of petitioner at the trial and on appeal are generally known in the territorial jurisdiction of the court. [1] Facts may not be judicially noticed simply because they are within the personal recollected knowledge of the judge, if those facts are not also generally known in the jurisdiction. Government of Virgin Islands v. Gereau, 523 F.2d 140, 147-148 (3d Cir.1975); Wright and Graham, Federal Practice and Procedure: Evidence § 5105. Additionally, the facts attendant to the trial and in turn the appeal are not capable of accurate and ready determination; for example, the transcribed testimony is comprised of only one day of the thirteen day trial. The absence of a transcript is particularly troublesome because the prosecution in question took place in 1983. In the intervening nine years the memory of the district judge may have become to some extent blurred by the passage of time and the continuous parade of criminal trials over which the judge has presided. Reputable authority suggests that even were we to have a complete transcript, that alone may not be adequate. Discussions and conferences between client and counsel generally take place outside the presence of the court, are unreported as well, and they may be critical on reaching a determination as to whether there is merit in a defendant's assertion that counsel failed in his obligations of providing competent representation. See State v. Kraft, 96 Idaho at 906, 539 P.2d at 259 (Bakes, J., specially concurring). Obviously, this Court has no knowledge of those facts. Judicial notice taken of prior reported but not transcribed testimony cannot be allowed because conclusions drawn from that source are incapable of being reviewed by an appellate court. Holdings which have reached the conclusion that trial judges may not take judicial notice of recollected testimony from a previous trial in a subsequent proceeding include Amco Mesh and Wire Co. v. Stewart, 474 S.W.2d 740, 741-42 (Tex.App.1971); Muller v. Leyendecker, 697 S.W.2d 668, 675 (Tex.App.1985); Dyer v. Ross-Lawhon, 288 Ark. 327, 704 S.W.2d 629, 631 (1986); M/V American Queen v. San Diego Marine Const., 708 F.2d 1483, 1491 (9th Cir. 1983); see also United States v. Christie Industries, Inc., 465 F.2d 1000, 1001-1002 (3d Cir.1971) (appellate court may not take judicial notice of testimony in related civil proceeding). We do not mean to hold that full trial transcripts are required in every case where a petitioner alleges ineffective assistance of counsel. Rather, we hold that prior to dismissing a petition for post-conviction relief, the district court is required to obtain that portion of the trial transcript as is necessary to a determination on the basis of the application, the answer or motion, and the record, that there are no material issues of fact and that the petitioner is not entitled to post-conviction relief. I.C. § 19-4906(b). In some cases, no transcript will be necessary because the petition may be deficient on its face. In other cases, a partial transcript may be all that is required to satisfy the statute. For example, in light of the claims which must be considered upon remand, [2] the trial court may be able to determine from a transcript of the jury instruction conference and the prosecutor's cross-examination of Matthews whether his trial counsel asserted the issues Matthews now argues should have been raised at trial. If such issues were not raised at trial, such partial transcripts may also be sufficient to enable the trial court to determine whether the issues have merit and, if so, whether the failure to raise these issues constitutes deficient performance by counsel that, with reasonable probability, would have changed the outcome of the trial. Parrott v. State, 117 Idaho at 275, 787 P.2d at 261. In view of the limited nature of Matthew's surviving claims, a full transcript of the trial proceedings may not be necessary to the determination of whether the petition is subject to dismissal pursuant to I.C. § 19-4906(b). A similar analysis would apply to the issue of ineffective assistance of counsel on appeal. For the reasons above, the district court's dismissal of Matthews' petition is affirmed in all respects other than as to the issue raised by allegations of ineffective assistance of counsel, as to which we reverse the district court and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. McDEVITT, J. and WINMILL, J. Pro Tem., concur. BOYLE, J. sat, but did not participate due to his resignation on March 31, 1992.