Opinion ID: 1697869
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Miscellaneous Evidentiary Rulings

Text: Morton claims that the postconviction court abused its discretion in failing to take judicial notice of the ABA Guidelines for the Appointment and Performance of Counsel in Death Penalty Cases, which he sought to introduce in order to demonstrate counsel's deficient performance. Specifically, Morton alleges that trial counsel failed to meet the minimum ABA guidelines. The United States Supreme Court has referred to the ABA standards as guides to determining what is reasonable. Wiggins v. Smith, 539 U.S. 510, 524, 123 S.Ct. 2527, 156 L.Ed.2d 471 (2003) (quoting Strickland, 466 U.S. at 688, 104 S.Ct. 2052). However, Strickland explains: In any case presenting an ineffectiveness claim, the performance inquiry must be whether counsel's assistance was reasonable considering all the circumstances. Prevailing norms of practice as reflected in American Bar Association standards and the like, e.g., ABA Standards for Criminal Justice 4-1.1 to 4-8.6 (2d ed. 1980) (The Defense Function), are guides to determining what is reasonable, but they are only guides. No particular set of detailed rules for counsel's conduct can satisfactorily take account of the variety of circumstances faced by defense counsel or the range of legitimate decisions regarding how best to represent a criminal defendant. Any such set of rules would interfere with the constitutionally protected independence of counsel and restrict the wide latitude counsel must have in making tactical decisions. Id. at 688-89, 104 S.Ct. 2052. Even if we were to conclude that the trial court erred in its ruling, no reversible error occurred because Morton was still able to introduce expert testimony regarding trial counsel's alleged deficient performance based on prevailing standards for counsel in capital cases. Cf. Schwab v. State, 969 So.2d 318, 322-23 (Fla.2007) (stating that the trial court abused its discretion in failing to take judicial notice of certain evidence but concluding that such error was harmless). During the evidentiary hearing, counsel called attorney Robert Norgard to establish the prevailing standards for counsel in capital cases. Norgard was accepted as an expert in the area of capital criminal defense in Florida. In response to a series of hypothetical questions, Norgard testified that counsel's efforts in Morton's case constituted deficient performance. [19] Accordingly, any claim regarding the postconviction court's ruling on judicial notice does not require reversal for a new evidentiary hearing. [20]