Opinion ID: 884290
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Was Hanson denied his constitutional right to effective assistance of trial counsel?

Text: Despite Hanson's failure to preserve the previously discussed issues for appeal and despite our refusal to review the merits of his arguments on the basis of plain or cumulative error, he asserts that we should also review these same issues within the context of his ineffective assistance of counsel argument. We evaluate claims of ineffective assistance of counsel using the two-part test as set forth in Strickland v. Washington (1984), 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674. State v. Boyer (1985), 215 Mont. 143, 147, 695 P.2d 829, 831. First, a defendant must demonstrate that counsel's performance was so deficient that it fell below the level of competency reasonably demanded of attorneys under the Sixth Amendment. Second, a defendant must demonstrate that counsel's deficient performance was so prejudicial that he was denied a fair trial. Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687, 104 S.Ct. at 2064. The first prong of the Strickland analysis is based upon an objective standard of reasonableness. Strickland, 466 U.S. at 688, 104 S.Ct. at 2064-65. Moreover, [j]udicial scrutiny of counsel's performance must be highly deferential. Strickland , 466 U.S. at 689, 104 S.Ct. at 2065. Accordingly, the United States Supreme Court warned against second-guessing counsel's assistance: A fair assessment of attorney performance requires that every effort be made to eliminate the distorting effects of hindsight, to reconstruct the circumstances of counsel's challenged conduct, and to evaluate the conduct from counsel's perspective at the time. Because of the difficulties inherent in making the evaluation, a court must indulge a strong presumption that counsel's conduct falls within the wide range of reasonable professional assistance; that is, the defendant must overcome the presumption that, under the circumstances, the challenged action might be considered sound trial strategy. There are countless ways to provide effective assistance in any given case. Even the best criminal defense attorneys would not defend a particular client in the same way. Strickland, 466 U.S. at 689, 104 S.Ct. at 2065 (citations omitted). Hanson first argues that his counsel was ineffective because he did not object to Aaron's testimony and he failed to request a pretrial hearing to assess the reliability of Aaron's testimony to determine its admissibility as required by State v. Michaels (N.J.1994), 136 N.J. 299, 642 A.2d 1372. Yet, as the State points out, Hanson's counsel's trial strategy was to demonstrate that Aaron's testimony was unreliable, which he attempted to do through the testimony of Detective Lamb and Dr. Oakwright. Testing a witness's credibility through the presentation of other witnesses and cross-examination is a traditional and widely accepted method. Furthermore, Hanson's counsel had no duty to rely on Michaels, which is not the law in Montana in any event. Hanson next argues that his counsel was ineffective because he did not object to Detective Lamb's testimony or the testimony of Beatrice Rowe, Aaron's therapist. Again, as previously discussed, Hanson's counsel called Detective Lamb to the stand and he did so in accordance with his trial strategy to show that Aaron's testimony was unreliable because Detective Lamb used suggestive or coercive interviewing techniques during her interview with Aaron. Furthermore, as previously noted, Hanson's counsel did in fact object to Rowe's rebuttal testimony. Additionally, Hanson argues that his counsel was ineffective because he made no objection to the attacks on Hanson's character. Again, because the essence of the defense strategy was to demonstrate that Aaron testified falsely against Hanson due to the bitter and vindictive relationship between Emmy and Hanson, Hanson's original counsel made no objection. Finally, Hanson claims that his counsel was ineffective because his counsel failed to object to the prosecutor's closing remarks. We previously concluded that, in context, the prosecutor was merely comparing and contrasting evidence in her closing arguments. While the one reference to Dr. Oakwright's honesty may have been improper, trial counsel's failure to object does not rise to the level of ineffective assistance of counsel. While Hanson argues that he was denied his constitutional right to effective assistance of counsel, we note that his complaints actually center on his disapproval of his original counsel's trial strategy. Under the circumstances, we will not second guess his counsel's assistance. See Strickland, 466 U.S. at 689, 104 S.Ct. at 2065. While Hanson's trial counsel's strategy was not successful, we are not prepared to hold that as a matter of law it was ineffective for Sixth Amendment purposes. Counsel's strategy might well have prevailed with some other jury; it simply did not persuade the trial jury in this case. We conclude that Hanson has failed to demonstrate that his trial counsel's performance was so deficient that it fell below the level of competency reasonably demanded of attorneys under the Sixth Amendment. See Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687, 104 S.Ct. at 2064. Because we reach this conclusion, there is no need to address the prejudice prong of the Strickland test. Accordingly, we hold that Hanson was not denied his constitutional right to effective assistance of counsel. In summary, we decline to address, under the plain error doctrine or under the cumulative error doctrine, Hanson's arguments that his trial was fundamentally unfair in violation of his rights under the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution and under Article II, Section 24 of the Montana Constitution. Additionally, we hold that Hanson was not denied his constitutional right to effective assistance of trial counsel. Affirmed. TURNAGE, C.J., and REGNIER, GRAY and HUNT, JJ., concur.