Opinion ID: 1380225
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Failure to Disqualify Judges Schneider and Nichols.

Text: Judge Nichols. Mr. Worthington alleges that counsel were ineffective because counsel did not check with him before waiving a potential conflict of interest on the part of Judge Nichols. The issue did not arise until Charlotte Peroti stated in the course of her testimony that her son was named Anthony Hansen. At that point, Judge Nichols informed counsel that when she heard that name she realized that she had been appointed guardian ad litem for Anthony some 10 to 12 years earlier, when he was about six years old and had received burns in a hot bath. She had not recognized Ms. Peroti until then. She asked whether either party had a concern about her continuing as judge in this circumstance. Counsel for Mr. Worthington specifically testified that he had no concern and waived any conflict. Mr. Worthington now says that his counsel was ineffective in waiving this potential conflict since Mr. Worthington had identified Anthony Hansen as a co-participant in the crime and his mother was a witness for the State. Trial counsel was not required to consult with his client before waiving the conflict. Defense counsel has wide discretion in determining what strategy to use in defending his or her client. A client is bound by the decisions of counsel as to the management of the trial and as to stipulations which give effect to that strategy. State v. Hurt, 931 S.W.2d 213, 214 (Mo.App. W.D.1996). The accused has the right to make certain fundamental decisions, such as whether to plead guilty, waive a jury, testify or appeal; other decisions are for the attorney alone, even without consultation with the client. Id. Waiving the disqualification of a judge is not one of these fundamental decisions that must be personally made by the accused. See State v. Baller, 949 S.W.2d 269, 274 (Mo.App. E.D.1997). Neither was the decision not to seek disqualification unreasonable. At the post-conviction hearing, Mr. Green testified that he and Mr. Rosenblum decided after consultation to waive the conflict as a matter of trial strategy. Mr. Green had conducted an extensive background investigation on Judge Nichols prior to advising Mr. Worthington to plead guilty. Mr. Green further testified that he spoke with other attorneys in the community about Judge Nichols, that he determined that she was fair and a person of integrity, and that he had not found any negative information about her. Counsel were not ineffective in failing to object to Judge Nichols remaining on the case despite her prior representation of Anthony in an unrelated matter. Perhaps aware of the discretion accorded defense counsel in a circumstance such as this, Mr. Worthington also alleges that Judge Nichols should have recused herself sua sponte when she became aware of her prior representation of Anthony because it created the appearance of impropriety. There is a presumption that a judge acts with honesty and integrity and will not preside over a trial in which he or she cannot be impartial. Smulls v. State, 10 S.W.3d 497, 499 (Mo. banc 2000). A judge should only be disqualified if a reasonable person would find an appearance of impropriety and question the impartiality of the court. Id. Whether a fact requires recusal depends on the factual context, which: gives meaning to the kind of bias that requires disqualification of a judge. Specifically, a disqualifying bias or prejudice is one that has an extrajudicial source and results in an opinion on the merits on some basis other than what the judge learned from the judge's participation in a case. In cases requiring recusal, the common thread is either a fact from which prejudgment of some evidentiary issue in the case by the judge may be inferred or facts indicating the judge considered some evidence properly in the case for an illegitimate purpose. Id. (internal quotation marks omitted). Mr. Worthington has not met this standard here. This Court held on direct appeal that Mr. Worthington's claim that two friends, including Anthony Hansen, helped him with the burglary was inconsistent with the physical evidence and with later statements made by Mr. Worthington. There is also no evidence that Judge Nichols' representation gave her any extrajudicial source of information about the present case or caused her to prejudge any issue or to look favorably upon Ms. Peroti. Finally, Mr. Worthington alleges that counsel was ineffective for not moving to disqualify Judge Nichols on the basis that she was biased in favor of the death penalty because members of the public called upon her, through the press and in letters, to impose the death penalty and because her opponent in a judicial election stated that a judge's view on the death penalty is a legitimate election issue. But, he cites to no cases holding that public pressure requires a judge to recuse solely on that basis. Such an argument must be rejected. Were it otherwise, persons could improperly force the recusal of an impartial judge merely by creating a public controversy about the judge. In the absence of evidence showing that the publicity and calls for the death penalty affected Judge Nichols' impartiality, the mere existence of publicity did not require her recusal. The record further reveals that Judge Nichols took reasonable measures to limit any perceived public pressure to impose the death penalty by delaying sentencing until the day after the election, an election that she lost. Mr. Worthington asks this Court to speculate that she might have imposed the death penalty because she wanted favorable publicity in the event she decided to seek public office at some point in the future, but such speculation has no foundation in the record. Judge Schneider. Judge Schneider won Judge Nichols' seat in the election and presided over the post-conviction motion hearing. Mr. Worthington argues that Judge Schneider's campaign comments on the death penalty created the appearance that she had prejudged his case and counsel should have demanded her recusal. But the prosecutor, not Judge Schneider, made many of the statements Mr. Worthington refers to, and in any event the prosecutor lost his bid for reelection. The only statements attributed to Judge Schneider are that the death penalty and life in prison is an issue all citizens are concerned about ... The judge can take the place of the jury, so it is important that public officials share their values and beliefs and it's very important for a judge to reflect the values of the community. These statements were about the death penalty in general, not Mr. Worthington. Judge Schneider had not been elected at the time and, thus, was not even the judge assigned to his case. These statements do not indicate that Judge Schneider would rule based on improper motive or not fairly consider the claims made by Mr. Worthington in his post-conviction motion.