Opinion ID: 1795741
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 10

Heading: Suicide Attempt

Text: Sixth, Henyard contends that trial counsel was ineffective for not presenting evidence to the jury during the penalty phase of the trial of his mental state as characterized by his suicidal ideations. Although Jacqueline Turner, Henyard's godmother, testified that Henyard told her he did not want to live after he had been arrested, the primary evidence related to suicidal tendencies that came out at the evidentiary hearing centered on an alleged suicide attempt in the Lake County Jail after Henyard had been arrested for the murders. Trial counsel was made aware of Henyard's suicide attempt by the medical department supervisor from the Lake County Jail, Dan Pincus. Pincus also advised trial counsel that Henyard was placed on suicide watch because it was possible that Henyard would try to commit suicide again. However, Pincus also informed Henyard's trial counsel that he did not believe the suicide attempt to be legitimate because Henyard was purposely keeping his eyes shut as Pincus was trying to examine him. [12] Additionally, although Henyard was placed on suicide watch, the standard procedure when there was any threat of suicide, whether legitimate or not, was to place the prisoner on suicide watch. When trial counsel, T. Michael Johnson, asked Henyard about the suicide attempt, Henyard indicated that he wanted to go back in the medical wing of the jail. The circuit court found that Henyard's suicide attempt could have potentially been viewed as manipulative. We agree with the trial court's finding that trial counsel was not deficient in not introducing this evidence. Rather, the decision not to present evidence of this suicide attempt to the jury was a reasonable strategic decision by Henyard's counsel given what counsel knew about the attempt, and therefore Henyard's claim does not satisfy the first prong of Strickland.