Opinion ID: 1699092
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Background Investigation

Text: Hodges argues that his penalty phase counsel was ineffective in failing to conduct a reasonable background investigation that, but for counsel's ineffectiveness, would have unearthed substantial mitigating evidence. Hodges contends that the insufficient background investigation also resulted in inadequate mental health evaluations at trial, thereby depriving him of the benefit of substantial mental mitigating evidence. In advancing this argument, Hodges relies heavily on the fact that one of the experts who evaluated Hodges prior to trial amended his evaluation for the postconviction proceeding, finding substantial mental mitigation. To prevail on a claim of ineffective assistance of trial counsel, a defendant must demonstrate, first, that counsel's performance was deficient and, second, that the deficient performance prejudiced the defense. See Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984); see also Maxwell v. Wainwright, 490 So.2d 927, 932 (Fla.1986). The first inquiry requires the demonstration of errors so serious that counsel was not functioning as the `counsel' guaranteed the defendant by the Sixth Amendment. Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687, 104 S.Ct. 2052. The second prong requires the defendant to show that there is a reasonable probability that, but for counsel's unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been different. Id. at 694, 104 S.Ct. 2052. The U.S. Supreme Court has determined that a reasonable probability is a probability sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome. Id. To fairly assess counsel's performance, the reviewing court must make every effort to eliminate the distorting effects of hindsight and to evaluate the conduct from counsel's perspective at the time. Id. at 689, 104 S.Ct. 2052. The Supreme Court recently reiterated and applied these standards in Wiggins v. Smith, 539 U.S. 510, 123 S.Ct. 2527, 156 L.Ed.2d 471 (2003). The trial court here determined that penalty phase counsel conducted a reasonable background investigation, and that the deficient results of that investigation were attributable to an uncooperative defendant and unwilling, absent, or recalcitrant witnesses. [2] Ineffective assistance of counsel claims are mixed questions of law and fact, and are thus subject to plenary review based on the Strickland test. See Gaskin v. State, 822 So.2d 1243, 1246-47 (Fla.2002). Under this standard, the Court conducts an independent review of the trial court's legal conclusions, while giving deference to the trial court's factual findings. See id.; see also Ragsdale v. State, 798 So.2d 713, 715 (Fla.2001). Employing that standard, we affirm the trial court's determination that Hodges' penalty phase counsel conducted a reasonable background investigation, and confirm that Hodges indeed had the benefit of counsel as constitutionally guaranteed. Moreover, even if we assume that counsel performed deficiently, we cannot agree that there is a reasonable probability that, but for such deficiency, Hodges would have received a life sentence. The mitigating evidence presented during the postconviction proceeding did exceed the quality and quantity of that presented at trial. Trial counsel presented two witnesses in mitigation, Hodges' mother and brother-in-law, who provided testimony regarding Hodges' character and dedication to his family. Postconviction counsel obtained and presented both lay and expert witnesses. During the postconviction proceeding, two of Hodges' siblings and one neighbor provided testimony regarding his impoverished and abusive upbringing. A toxicologist testified that the general area in which Hodges grew up was polluted, and that a river from which Hodges' family reported that Hodges caught and consumed fish contained lead. A sociologist testified that Hodges' hometown constituted a classic example of social disorganization characterized, in part, by a distrust of outsiders. The opinion testimony of Dr. Michael Scott Maher, a psychiatrist, changed sharply between the time of trial and the postconviction proceeding. Prior to trial, Dr. Maher evaluated Hodges and found that he suffered from depression related to his then-current circumstances, but found no evidence in mitigation. Dr. Maher later changed his testimony to suggest that Hodges suffers from a chronic depressive disorder, and now believes he was likely under the influence of an extreme emotional disturbance at the time of the crime. Dr. Maher now also believes that Hodges has brain damage in the form of frontal lobe impairment, which, combined with his depression, would have prevented him from exhibiting the detached, logical decisionmaking process that characterizes the cold, calculated, and premeditated aggravator. [3] Dr. Maher attributed his change in opinion to the ability to review additional background materials provided by postconviction counsel. Despite this contention, Dr. Maher testified that he rendered an opinion at the time of trial, and did not in any way indicate that he needed or required additional information to reach his conclusions at that time. [4] The presentation of changed opinions and additional mitigating evidence in the postconviction proceeding does not, however, establish ineffective assistance of counsel. See Asay v. State, 769 So.2d 974, 987 (Fla.2000); Rutherford v. State, 727 So.2d 216, 224 (Fla.1998). The pertinent inquiry remains whether counsel's efforts fell outside the broad range of reasonably competent performance under prevailing professional standards. See Maxwell, 490 So.2d at 932. Upon review of the trial court's order and record, we conclude that Hodges' penalty phase counsel performed in accordance with such standards. Our analysis of this case turns on the distinction between the after-the-fact analysis of the results of a reasonable investigation, and an investigation that is itself deficient. Only the latter gives rise to a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel. As stated by the trial court, Hodges' penalty phase counsel was experienced with capital cases, and keenly aware of his responsibility to find and introduce mitigating evidence. During the postconviction proceeding, counsel testified that he would have introduced any available evidence that would have illuminated mitigating factors from Hodges' background or possible mental health issues. While not conclusive, counsel's experience in trying capital cases and appreciation of the necessity to enter mitigating evidence into the record distinguishes this case from others in which counsel rendered constitutionally ineffective assistance. See Ragsdale, 798 So.2d at 718; Rose v. State, 675 So.2d 567, 572 (Fla.1996). More importantly, the record in the instant case shows that penalty phase counsel conducted a comprehensive investigation in an attempt to uncover mitigating evidence. The record in this case directly contravenes the assertion propounded in the dissenting opinion that Hodges' trial counsel flatly failed to investigate Hodges' medical or psychological history, failed to investigate Hodges' educational history, and failed to investigate Hodges' military history. Dissenting op. at 362. Counsel engaged an investigator who made inquiries of more than one dozen potential witnesses, including both of Hodges' sisters, his parents, Hodges' best friend, and former employers. While counsel did not contact Hodges' brother, who would have been less than a good witness having been released from prison just shortly before Hodges' trial, record evidence shows that Hodges' sister, Karen Sue Tucker, was indeed contacted. Penalty phase counsel testified that Hodges' family members were not at all cooperative with the defense, that his best friend refused to become involved in the matter or to provide any information, and that his former employers could not even remember him. The sufficiency of the investigational activity is validated by evidence demonstrating that Hodges' sister, Karen Sue Tucker, was contacted and imposed impossible parameters of availability that effectively removed her from the list of witnesses available to testify, and that Hodges' other sister simply failed to appear at trial despite assurances that she would attend. Hodges' mother did indeed testify during the penalty phase, but did not come forward at that time with any information concerning his upbringing that provided substantial mitigation. The record also shows, as highlighted by the trial court, that Hodges himself became uncooperative with counsel during the penalty phase, refusing to testify on his own behalf. [5] The scope and nature of counsel's investigative effort and family contact distinguish this case from those in which this Court has made a determination of ineffective assistance of counsel. See, e.g., Ventura v. State, 794 So.2d 553, 570 (Fla.2001) (deeming background investigation deficient where defendant served as counsel's sole source for mitigating evidence); Stevens v. State, 552 So.2d 1082, 1086 n. 7 (Fla.1989) (deeming assistance ineffective where counsel, among other failures, made no attempt to contact potential witnesses to obtain mitigating evidence). In addition to contacting numerous lay witnesses, penalty phase counsel engaged the assistance of two mental health professionals. Dr. Maher testified that at the time of trial, counsel asked him to evaluate Hodges' competency to proceed, and his state of mind at the time of the offense, and to provide any and all other information that might be relevant to his medical or psychiatric condition and mitigation issues. Given that mandate, Dr. Maher, who testified that he is familiar with what constitutes mitigating evidence under Florida law, found absolutely none to present at that time. A second mental health professional also failed to find any helpful mitigating evidence and, in fact, recommended that his name not even appear on the witness list because his findings may have been more useful to the State than the defense. Trial counsel testified that he made a strategic decision not to present the experts' findings to the jury. In light of evidence demonstrating that counsel pursued mental health mitigation and received unusable or unfavorable reports, the decision not to present the experts' findings does not constitute ineffective assistance of counsel. See Occhicone v. State, 768 So.2d 1037, 1048 (Fla.2000); see also Asay, 769 So.2d at 986 (no ineffective assistance of counsel in deciding against pursuing additional mental health mitigation after receiving an unfavorable diagnosis); State v. Sireci, 502 So.2d 1221, 1223 (Fla.1987) (not ineffective assistance of counsel to rely on psychiatric evaluations that may have been less than complete). While the record does show that counsel did not obtain all of Hodges' background materials until after the mental health experts had made their reports, there is absolutely no indication in any of the school, military, or medical records referenced by postconviction counsel that Hodges had been diagnosed with, or even suspected of suffering from, the existence of brain damage or mental health problems. [6] Contrary to postconviction arguments, Hodges' military records show that he was discharged due to a defective attitude, his inability to adjust to a disciplined environment, and repeated training infractions. Additionally, with regard to the abstract environmental and sociological reports and testimony offered during postconviction, there is no nexus between the testimony regarding the general social dysfunction of Hodges' hometown area, or the alleged general area environmental pollution, and a connection with Hodges. The environmental and sociological status of St. Albans, West Virginia in the abstract has never been connected to anything related to Hodges, other than that he lived in the area at one time. Based on the record in this case, and despite the assertion of new additional postconviction arguments, we conclude that penalty phase counsel conducted a reasonable background investigation. This case is analogous to Asay v. State , in which this Court rejected an ineffective assistance of counsel claim where defense counsel presented mitigating evidence bearing on the defendant's character, but did not discover evidence regarding the defendant's poverty-stricken and abusive childhood. See Asay, 769 So.2d at 987-88. In determining that trial counsel did not provide unconstitutionally ineffective assistance of counsel, this Court highlighted the reasonableness of counsel's efforts coupled with the difficulty counsel encountered in obtaining information from the defendant's mother. See id. at 988. Likewise, counsel's reasonable efforts to conduct a background investigation in the instant case were significantly hampered by the failure of the defendant, his relatives, and his friends to either participate in the process or provide useful information. See Rutherford, 727 So.2d at 222. Contrary to the conclusion reached in the dissenting opinion, defense counsel's performance in the instant matter is entirely distinguishable from that deemed constitutionally deficient in Wiggins. Based on the facts presented in Wiggins, the High Court determined that trial counsel's decision to end the background investigation after review of the presentence investigation report and records kept by the Baltimore City Department of Social Services (DSS) did not reflect reasonable professional judgment, and did not comport with the professional standards that prevailed in Maryland in 1989, which called for the preparation of a social history report. See Wiggins, 539 U.S. at 522-23, 533-34, 123 S.Ct. 2527. [7] The Wiggins Court noted that the DSS records revealed that Wiggins' mother was an alcoholic, that he resided in numerous foster homes, had emotional difficulties, was frequently absent from school for long periods, and was left alone with his siblings without food. The Supreme Court concluded that such information should have reasonably led to further investigation. See id. at 534, 123 S.Ct. 2527. In the same vein, Hodges contends that further research into the St. Albans area of West Virginia would have led trial counsel to discover a wealth of mitigating information, from extreme privation and physical, emotional, and sexual abuse suffered by Hodges, to the effects of pollution and social disorganization of his community. The dissenting opinion wholeheartedly endorses that argument, stating that despite the fact that trial counsel knew Hodges grew up in one of the poorest and most polluted communities in the nation, counsel failed to visit the area in order to develop a meaningful understanding of Hodges' cultural and environmental influences. Dissenting op. at 361. While it may be true that counsel did not travel to St. Albans, West Virginia to assess the community conditions, such a decision can hardly be deemed deficient when counsel consulted numerous  and arguably better  resources in an attempt to obtain background information. Counsel made inquiries of more than a dozen potential mitigation witnesses, including Hodges' parents, two sisters, and his best friend  all of whom were intimately familiar with Hodges' family life, childhood experiences, and the conditions in St. Albans. If related in any way to Hodges, each of these persons had the opportunity to know and alert trial counsel to any problems in Hodges' background, but none came forward with helpful information during the investigation and conversations. It was simply not unreasonable for counsel to expect the people who surrounded Hodges throughout his formative years, and who had first-hand knowledge of the family and community in which he had lived, to bring out during interviews whatever mitigating evidence was available. Indeed, without assistance from these valuable resources in supplying the context for Hodges' background, it is unclear what value would have redounded from merely a visit to St. Albans or environmental and social conditions in the abstract. Trial counsel also elicited the help of two mental health experts whose direct interviews with Hodges failed to yield mitigating evidence. This is simply not a case, like Wiggins, in which trial counsel unreasonably narrowed the scope of the background investigation to records and reports which facially indicated the need for further investigation. Even if we could conclude that penalty phase counsel conducted a deficient background investigation, Hodges' ineffective assistance of counsel claim would still fail because he cannot establish that he was prejudiced by such deficiency. See Maxwell, 490 So.2d at 932. As a threshold matter, Hodges' position overstates the mitigative value of the postconviction testimony regarding the social dysfunction of his community and the environmental toxins in the area where he previously lived. The environmental expert who testified during the postconviction proceeding admitted that she did not even know whether Hodges was actually exposed to the toxins present in the area in which he previously lived, and never even examined him for signs of lead exposure, the alleged river toxin. The sociologist who testified as to the dysfunctional nature of St. Albans could never connect the social commentary to Hodges because he admitted that he had never spoken with Hodges, and conceded that Hodges successfully extricated himself from whatever conditions existed in the town when he moved to Florida, and apparently into functioning normally in a normal Florida environment. In assessing the prejudice prong of the Strickland standard, the Wiggins Court reweighed the evidence in aggravation against the totality of the mitigating evidence, and determined the evidence of severe privation, physical and sexual abuse and rape, periods of homelessness and diminished mental capacities, comprised the kind of troubled history we have declared relevant to assessing a defendant's moral culpability. Wiggins, 539 U.S. at 535, 123 S.Ct. 2527. Noting that in Maryland, the death recommendation must be unanimous, the High Court determined, Had the jury been able to place petitioner's excruciating life history on the mitigating side of the scale, there is a reasonable probability that one juror would have struck a different balance. Id. at 537, 123 S.Ct. 2527. A similar analysis in the instant matter fails to yield a similar result. Certainly, the absence of generalized evidence pertaining to the asserted social dysfunction of Hodges' entire hometown, and his exposure to environmental toxins in the general area, even when coupled with more specific evidence regarding his abusive and impoverished upbringing, would not have rendered the sentencing proceeding unreliable. The jury recommended a death sentence by a ten-to-two majority, and the trial court found that the State had established two serious aggravators: commission of murder to disrupt or hinder law enforcement and that the act was committed in a cold, calculated, and premeditated manner. See Hodges I, 595 So.2d at 934. Even with the postconviction allegations regarding Hodges' upbringing, it is highly unlikely that the admission of that evidence would have led four additional jurors to cast a vote recommending life in prison. See Asay, 769 So.2d at 988 (determining that there was no reasonable probability that evidence of the defendant's abusive childhood and history of substance abuse would have led to a recommendation of life where the State had established three aggravating factors, including CCP); see also Breedlove v. State, 692 So.2d 874, 878 (Fla.1997). Furthermore, we determine that Hodges was not prejudiced by penalty phase counsel's failure to present mitigating evidence pertaining to Hodges' mental health. The strongest mitigating factor presented during postconviction was that Hodges was likely under the influence of an extreme emotional disturbance at the time of the crime. However, on cross-examination both mental health experts retreated from and softened their conclusions in this regard. In fact, Dr. Maher could not opine with any specificity that Hodges was under the influence of an extreme emotional disturbance at the time of the crime, but came to a general conclusion that at that time in his life, Hodges' mental state more likely than not would have satisfied the statutory requirement for mitigation. Additional cross-examination revealed that the test used by Dr. Beaver to evaluate Hodges' symptoms of depression in April of 2000 may not serve as a reliable indicator of Hodges' mental state at the time of the crime. Moreover, their conclusions regarding Hodges' mental state were totally rebutted by the State's expert, who characterized Hodges as suffering from a dysthymic disorder, a form of long-term depression marked by symptoms less profound than major depression. Based on the marginal nature of the evidence, we do not agree with the dissent that, but for trial counsel's failure to present such mental mitigation, there is a reasonable probability, which has been defined as a probability sufficient to undermine our confidence in the outcome, that Hodges would have received a life sentence. See Strickland, 466 U.S. at 694, 104 S.Ct. 2052. In addition, neither defense expert could conclude with any precision that Hodges' depression and purported brain dysfunction would preclude him from engaging in a cold, calculated, and premeditated act. As found by the trial court, the fact that Hodges had been convicted of a premeditated murder involving the act of lying in wait for the victim and the concocting of an intricate cover-up would contravene any such conclusion. [8] According to the State's rebuttal expert, other indicators of Hodges' ability to perform a cold, calculated, and premeditated act included his attempt to talk the victim out of prosecuting the indecent exposure charge prior to the murder, the advanced planning required to commit suicide while in jail, and his success in extricating himself from the impoverished area where he grew up. The fact that these mental health professionals provided such tepid and inconclusive diagnoses after reviewing the background materials provided by postconviction counsel undermines the contention that trial counsel's failure to provide like information resulted in deficient mental evaluations at trial. Indeed, as previously discussed, the content of Hodges' school, medical, and military records, as judged by the postconviction conclusions drawn from them, simply does not support the assertion that trial counsel's failure to provide such information to Hodges' evaluators constituted deficiency resulting in prejudice. This case is distinguishable from Phillips v. State, 608 So.2d 778 (Fla.1992), in which we determined that the defendant was prejudiced by counsel's failure to present strong mental mitigation at trial. Id. at 783. In that case, two experts opined in the postconviction proceeding that the defendant was suffering from an extreme emotional disturbance at the time of the crime, was unable to conform his conduct to the requirements of law, and could not form the requisite intent to fall under the aggravating factors of CCP or heinous, atrocious, or cruel. See id. Also important to our analysis of that case was the fact that the mental mitigation was essentially unrebutted and that the jury had recommended the death sentence by the slim majority of seven to five. See id. Based on those factors, we concluded that there was a reasonable probability that but for counsel's deficient performance ... the vote of one juror would have been different, ... resulting in a recommendation of life. Id. The comparatively weak mental mitigation offered in Hodges' postconviction proceeding coupled with the State's rebuttal of that evidence and the wide margin by which the jury recommended the death penalty distinguish this case from Phillips, and undermine any reasonable probability that presentation of the evidence would have resulted in a life recommendation.