Opinion ID: 1706565
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 24

Heading: was willie denied his right to counsel and a fair trial when the trial court allowed a state psychologist to testify to the results of a psychiatric evaluation during the sentencing phase?

Text: A state psychologist was allowed to testify over Willie's objection at the sentencing phase that in her opinion Willie was not psychotic or mentally ill. Willie contends that the introduction of this testimony violated his right to counsel in violation of the Sixth Amendment and that use of the evaluation by the State to rebut mitigating evidence was improper. If Willie had been compelled to consent to the psychiatric evaluation, his claim that he was denied his right to counsel during the examination would have merit. See Estelle v. Smith, 451 U.S. 454, 468-71, 101 S.Ct. 1866, 1876-77, 68 L.Ed.2d 359 (1981). Estelle is not controlling in this case because Willie was not compelled; rather under the advice of counsel, Willie sought the examination. In Buchanan v. Kentucky, 483 U.S. 402, 107 S.Ct. 2906, 97 L.Ed.2d 336 (1987), the U.S. Supreme Court found no Sixth Amendment violation where petitioner's counsel had himself requested the psychiatric examination, had presumably consulted with the petitioner about the nature of the examination, and had pursued a mental status defense. Buchanan, 483 U.S. at 424-25, 107 S.Ct. at 2918-19. Buchanan is analogous to the instant case. Willie's counsel requested the psychiatric examination, Willie testified that he would like to have a psychiatric evaluation to determine whether he knew right from wrong, and presumably Willie had consulted with his attorney about the nature of the psychiatric examination. We find no violation of Willie's right to counsel. Willie next argues that the state psychiatrist's testimony was improper because the psychiatrist's testimony was allowed although Willie put on no evidence showing that he was mentally ill as a mitigating defense. We agree that the psychiatrist should not have been allowed to testify if Willie did not raise his sanity as a mitigating factor. Willie did not claim to be insane, but he did proffer evidence showing that he had family members who had some mental instability and that he had socialization problems. Because Willie made such inferences, we defer to the trial judge's discretion in allowing the psychiatrist to give her opinion that Willie was not psychotic. Furthermore, the testimony was harmless because Willie was not asserting insanity as a mitigating factor. Cf. Satterwhite v. Texas, 486 U.S. 249, 257, 108 S.Ct. 1792, 1798, 100 L.Ed.2d 284 (1984).