Opinion ID: 1696723
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: history of drug use

Text: Rivera alleged that counsel was ineffective during the penalty phase of his trial for failing to investigate and present mitigating evidence of a history of drug use, including Rivera's drug use around the time of the murder. Rivera argues that his history of drug use would support a finding of the statutory mitigator that at the time of the murder he had a substantially impaired capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of law. After the evidentiary hearing, the trial court rejected this claim and concluded: Defense counsel ... made a strong effort to present to the jury the mitigating factor that the Defendant was not able to appreciate the criminality of his conduct, presenting evidence of the Defendant's drug usage and his cognitive decline. In support of Rivera's IAC claim that trial counsel should have put on more evidence of his drug use history, addiction, and dependence, several lay witnesses testified at the evidentiary hearing that Rivera began drug use at an early age, that he experimented with many types of drugs, and that he may have abused drugs. However, the trial court found in its order denying postconviction relief that the evidence presented by appellate counsel during the evidentiary hearing was practically identical to the evidence presented by [trial counsel] during trial. The trial court essentially concluded that the fact that some lay witnesses could have given slightly more detail about Rivera's history of drug use than the defense expert actually presented in this case was insufficient to meet the Strickland standard that counsel made errors so serious that counsel was not functioning as the counsel guaranteed the defendant by the Sixth Amendment. [4] We must determine whether the record supports this factual finding. The record reflects that Dr. Patsy Ceros-Livingston, the defense expert who evaluated Rivera for trial, spent some seven and one-half hours interviewing Rivera. She then testified during the penalty phase before the jury and trial court that Rivera began using marijuana, LSD, quaaludes, and beer in 1996 and that as an adult he used base rock and marijuana. She opined at trial that there was some indication that Rivera might have problems in the area of drug abuse. As reflected in the direct appeal opinion in this case, Dr. Ceros-Livingston also testified in front of the penalty phase jury that Rivera's capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of law was impaired. Rivera, 561 So.2d at 538. [5] The record also reflects that Dr. Ceros-Livingston's expert opinions about Rivera's mental health constituted the only expert opinions presented to the penalty phase jury because the State did not offer its own mental health expert to challenge her findings. The trial court pointed out in its order that at the original penalty phase, defense counsel presented a plethora of mitigating evidence similar to that presented at the postconviction hearing, through Dr. Ceros-Livingston's testimony, and, in addition, the trial court noted, Dr. Ceros-Livingston testified at the evidentiary hearing that even in light of additional information given to her recently, she would not now change her original opinions of Rivera's mental health offered at trial. See Brown v. State, 755 So.2d 616, 636 (Fla.2000) (finding that trial counsel's performance was not deficient for failing to give a mental health expert additional information because the expert testified at the evidentiary hearing that the collateral data would not have changed his testimony); Breedlove v. State, 692 So.2d 874, 877 (Fla.1997) (finding that there was not a reasonable probability that the result of the penalty phase would have been different because the psychologists who testified at the penalty phase stated that additional information, while helpful, did not change their initial opinions). We conclude that the record supports the trial court findings that while perhaps not presented in the same detail, defense counsel did present substantial evidence of mitigation at the original penalty phase. We further find no error in the trial court's denial of relief as it relates to Rivera's sub-claim that trial counsel should have put on evidence that he was under the influence of cocaine at the time of the murder. At the evidentiary hearing expert witness Dr. Faye Sultan, a clinical psychologist with a specialty in sexual child abuse and disorder, testified that she thought Rivera was under the influence of cocaine and other drugs at the time of the murder in this case. In addition, expert witness Dr. Milton Burglass, a psychiatrist with a specialty in addictive disorders, testified at the evidentiary hearing that someone who experiences withdrawal symptoms from cocaine would go into what is very much like a depressive state. In Dr. Burglass's opinion, Rivera's capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of law was substantially impaired due to his cocaine use. Dr. Burglass further stated that cocaine use would have increased Rivera's already deviant sexual behaviors. However, in rejecting this claim, the trial court held the fact that defense counsel has found experts that can offer more favorable testimony twelve years later does not establish a basis for relief nor does it establish that the presentation was deficient. As noted above, Dr. Ceros-Livingston testified as to the existence of the substantially impaired mitigator at the penalty phase. This Court has held that counsel's reasonable mental health investigation and presentation of evidence is not rendered incompetent merely because the defendant has now secured the testimony of a more favorable mental health expert. Asay v. State, 769 So.2d 974, 986 (Fla. 2000). We note that Dr. Sultan and Dr. Burglass relied heavily upon and concurred largely with Dr. Ceros-Livingston's initial report and evaluation presented at trial. [6] Not only were both experts' opinions largely consistent with Dr. Ceros-Livingston's penalty phase testimony, but it is important to note that Dr. Ceros-Livingston's testimony at the penalty phase explicitly supported the statutory mitigator that at the time of the murder he had a substantially impaired capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of law. See Rivera, 561 So.2d at 538. Additionally, the evidentiary hearing record supports the trial court's finding that the lay witness testimony offered at the evidentiary hearing actually failed to support the defense theory now asserted that Rivera was under the influence of drugs at the time of the murder. None of the witnesses were able to testify as to his condition at the time of the crime. We also agree with the trial court's denial of this claim because the claim appears to represent a second-guessing and hindsight view of defense counsel's presentation of penalty phase evidence. See Cherry v. State, 659 So.2d 1069, 1073 (Fla.1995) (stating that [t]he standard is not how present counsel would have proceeded, in hindsight, but rather whether there was both a deficient performance and a reasonable probability of a different result). The trial court pointed out in its order denying postconviction relief that Rivera has consistently maintained his innocence in this casea position that largely contradicts Dr. Sultan's and Dr. Burglass's expert opinions that he committed the crime but was under the influence of drugs at the time. CHILDHOOD TRAUMA, DEVELOPMENTAL AGE, AND LACK OF DRUG OR ALCOHOL TREATMENT PROGRAM At the evidentiary hearing, the defense presented testimony of Rivera's childhood trauma, developmental age, and his failure to receive drug or alcohol treatment earlier in his life. Rivera argues that trial counsel should have presented evidence of these three aspects of his life during the penalty phase in support of nonstatutory mitigation. First, regarding childhood trauma, Danny Franklin, Andy Ramos, and Dr. Sultan testified at the evidentiary hearing about Rivera's sometimes tense relationship with his alcohol-using father. Second, Dr. Sultan testified that Rivera's developmental age may have been younger than his actual age at the time of the murder because she observed him demonstrate impulsivity, emotionality, and a lack of good judgment. Third, Dr. Sultan testified that apparently Rivera never had the benefit of any drug or alcohol treatment. In its order denying relief, the trial court concluded that prejudice had not been established on this claim, and that [e]ven if this `additional' information had been available during the penalty phase, there is no reasonable probability that the balancing of the aggravating factors and mitigating factors would have resulted in a life sentence. The aggravating factors would still far outweigh the mitigation presented. Hence, the trial court concluded that this particular evidence of mitigation was not of such significance as to make a meaningful difference in this case. The trial court noted that although this Court struck the CCP aggravator in this case on direct appeal, several important and weighty aggravators still remain, including prior violent felony, murder committed during commission of an enumerated felony, and HAC. In Tompkins v. Dugger, 549 So.2d 1370, 1373 (Fla.1989), the defendant claimed that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to present mitigating evidence including his abusive childhood and an addiction to drugs and alcohol. This Court agreed that counsel had been deficient, but agreed with the trial court's finding that in light of the three aggravators (prior violent felony, murder committed during commission of a sexual battery, and HAC), that this evidence would not have affected the penalty in light of the crime and the nature of the aggravating circumstances. Id. Similarly, in Breedlove v. State, 692 So.2d 874, 877 (Fla.1997), the defendant alleged that trial counsel should have elicited more mitigating testimony from lay witnesses. This Court held that even if that testimony had been presented, the aggravators of HAC, commission during a felony, and prior violent felonies would have overwhelm[ed] potential mitigating factors presented by witnesses. Id. at 878. We find no error in the trial court's conclusion that the remaining aggravators in this case would have overwhelmed the evidence of Rivera's childhood trauma, developmental age, and his failure to receive drug or alcohol treatment. This issue must also be evaluated in the context of Dr. Ceros-Livingston presenting detailed evidence of defendant's troubled background. Because this case involves a brutal abduction, rape, and child-murder involving strong aggravators that would not have been significantly impacted by the weight of the proposed nonstatutory mitigation, the trial court concluded that prejudice had not been sufficiently demonstrated under this portion of his IAC claim. In other words, the trial court concluded that Rivera failed to show that the additional evidence regarding his childhood trauma, developmental age, and failure to receive drug or alcohol treatment was sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome of his original penalty phase proceeding. See Strickland, 466 U.S. at 694, 104 S.Ct. 2052. We find no error in this conclusion.