Opinion ID: 1643011
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: bryant's habeas corpus petition

Text: In his petition for habeas corpus, Bryant argues that appellate counsel was ineffective for (1) failing to challenge the denial of trial counsel's attempt to suppress Bryant's confession at trial, and (2) failing to challenge the avoid arrest aggravator. Bryant also reargues the Ring arguments made in his 3.851 motion. [7] We find no merit in Bryant's claims. The standard for judging claims of ineffective assistance of appellate counsel parallels the standard for ineffective assistance of trial counsel set out in Strickland, 466 U.S. at 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052. Rutherford v. Moore, 774 So.2d 637 (Fla. 2000). This Court has stated: [T]his Court's ability to grant habeas relief on the basis of appellate counsel's ineffectiveness is limited to those situations where the petitioner establishes first, that appellate counsel's performance was deficient because the alleged omissions are of such magnitude as to constitute a serious error or substantial deficiency falling measurably outside the range of professionally acceptable performance and second, that the petitioner was prejudiced because appellate counsel's deficiency compromised the appellate process to such a degree as to undermine confidence in the correctness of the result. Id. at 643 (second and third alterations in original) (quoting Thompson v. State, 759 So.2d 650, 660 (Fla.2000)). A defendant alleging ineffective assistance must allege a specific, serious omission or overt act by counsel that prejudiced him. Freeman v. State, 761 So.2d 1055, 1069 (Fla.2000). Also, appellate counsel is not required to raise all possible claims. Id. (noting that from a tactical standpoint it is more advantageous to raise only the strongest points on appeal and that the assertion of every conceivable argument often has the effect of diluting the impact of the stronger points) (quoting Atkins v. Dugger, 541 So.2d 1165, 1167 (Fla.1989)). To succeed in his habeas petition, Bryant must demonstrate that appellate counsel committed serious errors in his representation and that those errors prejudiced his defense.
Bryant asserts three claims of ineffective assistance of appellate counsel related to his confession: (1) failing to challenge the trial court's denial of the motion to suppress his confession; (2) failing to argue on appeal that Bryant's confession was given in exchange for a promise that he would be allowed to see his mother; and (3) failing to challenge his confession on the grounds that it was obtained through threats of violence. We address each in turn.
Bryant claims that appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to challenge the trial court's denial of Bryant's motion to suppress his confession. Bryant argues that counsel should have argued that the confession was obtained pursuant to an arrest for which there was no probable cause. We conclude that the police had probable cause to arrest him. Police arrested Bryant pursuant to statements given by four individuals: Mary Williams, Betty Bueie, Tara Bueie, and Damien Remy. On January 16, 1992, Betty Bueie contacted Detective Hartman, the lead investigating officer in the case. Mary Williams accompanied her to the police station. Betty and Williams spoke to Hartman in person and each told him in separate taped statements that they had heard Bryant say he had committed the murder. Betty said that she was upset because Bryant, who was dating Betty's sister Tara Bueie, had beaten Tara earlier that day and that Betty wanted to tell the police what she knew about the homicide. According to Hartman's testimony, Betty said that Bryant had told her ... about the homicide, that he shot and killed the man in a robbery attempt, that he didn't mean to shoot and kill him but it happened. Both women also indicated that the gun Bryant used belonged to Cheryl Evans, another of his girlfriends, and that the gun was given back to her and that she had in turn given it to a man known to them as Big D who, at the time these statements were given, was incarcerated on narcotics charges. After taking these statements, Hartman went to Bethesda Memorial Hospital to question Tara. Tara told him she had found out about the crime through Evans and that when she confronted Bryant, he had told her essentially the same story that Betty and Williams had told him. Hartman also indicated that he believed all three women mentioned a ski mask. A ski mask was found at the crime scene. The police were able to ascertain the identity of Big D as a man named Damien Remy. He was being held in Martin County Jail under federal narcotics charges. The police then interviewed Remy and obtained a taped statement from him. Remy had been dating Evans and had recently found out that Evans was also dating Bryant, whom Remy thought was Evans's cousin. Remy said that Evans had told him about how Bryant had confessed to her about committing the crime. Evans also told Remy that it was her gun that was used in the robbery attempt and murder. Soon after this conversation between Remy and Evans, Remy discovered Evans's gun on the floorboard of his car and threw it out the window while driving on the highway. In addition to these statements, police had certain knowledge about the crime from investigation of the crime scene and interviews of witnesses. The deceased's wife witnessed the shooting and told police the assailant was a black male. An autopsy indicated that the victim was killed by gunshot wounds, and the lack of shell casings at the scene indicated the murder weapon was a revolver. Based on this information and the statements of Betty, Tara, Williams, and Remy, the police determined that they had probable cause to arrest Bryant. On January 19, 1992, Evans arrived at the police station on an unrelated matter. Hartman noticed that she was the passenger of the vehicle and asked her who was driving. She replied it was Bryant. Hartman, with the assistance of other officers, approached the car and arrested him. Bryant argues that Betty, Tara, Williams, and Remy should be considered anonymous informants and that their statements needed independent verification to establish probable cause. See Cunningham v. State, 591 So.2d 1058, 1060 (Fla. 2d DCA 1991) (holding that an anonymous tip cannot be used to effectuate an arrest unless the officer develops independent evidence of criminal activity). Cunningham, however, deals with a truly anonymous informant. [8] Police officers personally interviewed all four persons who gave information against Bryant. Each has been identified by name and none has tried to hide his or her identity. It is difficult to conceive how Remy could be anonymous when he was in jail when his statement was taken. See State v. Evans, 692 So.2d 216, 218 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997) (where a restaurant employee called 911, identified herself, and said she thought one of the restaurant's patrons was drunk in the drive-thru line, the court noted that it is difficult to see how [the employee] can be deemed an `anonymous' caller: she provided her name, location, and occupation to the police). The informants in this case are much closer to the definition of citizen-informants whose information is at the high end of the tip-reliability scale ... [and is] `motivated not by pecuniary gain, but by the desire to further justice.' Evans, 692 So.2d at 219 (quoting State v. Talbott, 425 So.2d 600, 602 n. 1 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982)). Although any one of the four informants may have had personal reasons to denounce Bryant, none came forward for pecuniary gain. Betty and Williams voluntarily approached the police with the stated intent of aiding the police investigation, and Tara and Remy also gave their statements voluntarily. Because all four informants were identified and gave their statements without the desire for pecuniary gain, they are citizen-informants whose statements can be relied upon by police when deciding if probable cause exists. See Kearse v. State, 662 So.2d 677, 684 (Fla.1995) (probable cause found where police had independent information coupled with citizens' statements at the arrest site); Krawczuk v. State, 634 So.2d 1070, 1071-73 (Fla.1994) (probable cause found where witness informed police that he may have purchased stolen items from defendant). That the informants in Bryant's case did not witness the crime and were not victims does not render their statements irrelevant or unreliable. We have previously explained the standard for probable cause: Probable cause for arrest exists where an officer has reasonable grounds to believe that the suspect has committed a felony. The standard of conclusiveness and probability is less than that required to support a conviction. Blanco v. State, 452 So.2d 520, 523 (Fla.1984). The question of probable cause is viewed from the perspective of a police officer with specialized training and takes into account the factual and practical considerations of everyday life on which reasonable and prudent men, not legal technicians, act. Schmitt v. State, 563 So.2d 1095, 1098 (Fla. 4th DCA 1990). Walker v. State, 707 So.2d 300, 312 (Fla. 1998). In Bryant's case, four separate identified persons gave recorded statements indicating that Bryant was involved in the homicide. Each also provided similar details, such as the existence of a ski mask and the nature of the weapon used in the crime. The police also had an ongoing investigation of the crime which gave them independent knowledge with which to verify some of the statements made by the informants, such as the type of weapon used and the existence of a ski mask. These facts indicate that the police had the requisite reasonable grounds to believe that the suspect has committed a felony when they arrested Bryant. Id. Bryant claims that police should have obtained search warrants for Bryant's home, initiated wiretaps, and employed other investigatory measures to gather more evidence on Bryant before making an arrest. However, the standard for probable cause is not proof beyond a reasonable doubt but reasonable grounds to believe that the suspect has committed a felony. Walker, 707 So.2d at 312. Based on the statements of Betty, Tara, Williams, and Remy and the information the police already had through their investigation of the crime, police had sufficient probable cause to arrest Bryant. Counsel was not ineffective for failing to challenge the trial court's denial of the motion to suppress his confession based on an unlawful arrest effectuated without probable cause.
Bryant also claims that appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to argue on appeal that Bryant's confession was given in exchange for a promise that he would be allowed to see his mother. Bryant cannot show prejudice on this issue because the trial court properly denied the claim. Appellate counsel is under no duty to assert a meritless claim. See Freeman v. State, 761 So.2d 1055, 1070 (Fla.2000) (Appellate counsel cannot be ineffective for failing to raise an issue which is without merit.). Although Bryant claims that he confessed in exchange for the promise of seeing his mother, he cites nothing in the record except the following excerpt from the testimony of Sergeant Robert Brand: [Brand]: After his rights were read to him, Mr. Bryant denied the allegation because we told him he was under arrest for murder and robbery. He denied it. We then confronted him with a statement that we have from one of our witnesses.... He requested to listen to a portion of the taped statement that we had mentioned to him, which we honored that request. We went in and played it for him. That at that point basically he paused for a second, he turned around and looked at me, he said, so do you think I did it? Said yes. He then asked Detective Hartman, he said, Craig, do you think I did it? He said, yes. He then said that he would go ahead and tell us, actually give us a statement but he wanted to talk to his mother first. [Attorney for State]: Did he condition the giving of a statement upon seeing his parents, seeing his mother? [Brand]: No. He said he would go ahead and tell us, go ahead and give us a statement but he wanted to talk to his mother. I went ahead and honored that request. Hartman recalled the same moment as follows: [Bryant] was quiet for maybe a minute or so, in thatsomewhere in that area, and then said to us, I want to see my mom and then I will tell you exactly what happened. Based on this testimony, the trial judge found that there was no promise in exchange for a confession and that allowing Bryant to see his family was an accommodation and an act of courtesy and kindness on the part of the police. Nothing in the record contradicts this conclusion. The police never demanded a statement in exchange for Bryant seeing his family. Bryant himself is the one who requested that his mother be brought in to see him. See Anderson v. State, 863 So.2d 169, 183 (Fla.2003) (rejecting a similar claim where the police agreed to a request to call the defendant's mother, but the police action could not have given [defendant] the impression that the opportunity to contact his mother was contingent on providing statements). There is further support in the record that Bryant's statement was voluntary and not made in exchange for any promise. In his taped statement, Bryant stated, Yeah, I had a right not to say nothing but what, the speechthe testimony I give was of my own free will, it wasn't no promises or nothing like that. The interrogating officer then asked point blank, We didn't promise you anything? Bryant responded No. This Court has stated the standard for a voluntary confession: It is well established that a confession cannot be obtained through direct or implied promises. In order for a confession to be voluntary, the totality of the circumstances must indicate that such confession is the result of a free and rational choice. Johnson v. State, 696 So.2d 326, 329 (Fla.1997). The totality of the circumstances in this case demonstrates that Bryant's confession was not made in exchange for a promise to see his mother. Because the trial court's decision was correct, Bryant cannot show that appellate counsel was ineffective in failing to present this claim on appeal.
Finally, Bryant makes a cursory claim that appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to challenge his confession on the grounds that it was obtained through threats of violence. This claim is insufficiently pled. The entire argument on this issue is contained in the phrase illegal coercion by police in the opening paragraph of Bryant's argument and in a brief paragraph stating that two police officers had guns in their possession while in the interrogation room and that Bryant had at an earlier time alleged that one of the officers put a gun to Bryant's head during interrogation. Such a cursory argument is insufficient to preserve the issue for consideration. Duest v. Dugger, 555 So.2d 849, 852 (Fla.1990) (The purpose of an appellate brief is to present arguments in support of the points on appeal. Merely making reference to arguments below without further elucidation does not suffice to preserve issues ...). This issue is deemed waived.
Bryant's final claim in his petition for habeas corpus is that appellate counsel failed to challenge the trial court's use of the avoid arrest aggravator in imposing the death penalty. The trial court ruled that Bryant was attempting to avoid a lawful citizen's arrest and was therefore avoiding arrest under the plain meaning of the statute. Bryant claims that this was error and that appellate counsel should have challenged this ruling on direct appeal. To succeed on an ineffective assistance of appellate counsel claim, Bryant must show both substantial errors by appellate counsel and prejudice to his defense. Rutherford, 774 So.2d at 643. Section 921.141(5)(e), Florida Statutes (1997), provides for the aggravating factor of avoiding arrest when a capital felony is committed for the purpose of avoiding or preventing a lawful arrest or effecting an escape from custody. Bryant urges that the avoid arrest aggravator is meant to apply only when the victim was a police officer or when the murder was committed to eliminate a witness. See Urbin v. State, 714 So.2d 411, 415-16 (Fla.1998) (holding that to establish the avoid arrest aggravator witness elimination must be the dominant motive behind the killing); Consalvo v. State, 697 So.2d 805, 819 (Fla.1996) (Typically, th[e] [avoid arrest] aggravator is applied to the murder of law enforcement personnel. However [it] has been applied to the murder of a witness to a crime as well.). The trial court reasoned that under the plain meaning of the statute, a lawful arrest could mean any legal arrest including a citizen's arrest. We find the facts in this case insufficient to support the avoid arrest aggravator. The facts show nothing more than a murder after a struggle over a gun during a store robbery. We have held this aggravator invalid under similar circumstances. See Urbin, 714 So.2d at 416 (striking the avoid arrest aggravator where the defendant shot and killed a victim who resisted a robbery attempt). Although we agree that the avoid arrest aggravator does not apply, however, we nevertheless deny this claim because Bryant fails to demonstrate prejudice. See Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687, 104 S.Ct. 2052 ([T]he defendant must show that the deficient performance prejudiced the defense). We conclude that even without the avoid arrest aggravator, the trial court would have found that the aggravators outweighed the mitigators and imposed a sentence of death. Cf. Geralds v. State, 674 So.2d 96, 104 (Fla.1996) (concluding that even without an invalid aggravating circumstance, the trial court still would have found that the aggravating factors present here substantially outweighed the mitigating evidence). See generally Hill v. State, 643 So.2d 1071, 1074 (Fla.1994) (holding that in undertaking a harmless error analysis after striking an aggravator, the Court must determine whether a reasonable possibility exists that the evidence in mitigation is sufficient to outweigh the remaining aggravating circumstances). Further, the death sentence imposed on Bryant would still be proportional. Bryant, 785 So.2d at 436 (In deciding whether death is a proportionate penalty ... this Court reviews and considers all the circumstances in a case relative to other capital cases.); Johnson v. State, 720 So.2d 232, 238 (Fla. 1998) (In deciding whether death is a proportionate penalty, we must consider the totality of the circumstances of the case and compare the case with other capital cases.). In sentencing Bryant to death, the trial court found three aggravators: (1) the defendant was previously convicted of a felony involving the use or threat of violence to the person, (2) the capital felony was committed while the defendant was engaged in the commission of or in an attempt to commit the crime of robbery, and (3) the crime was committed for the purpose of avoiding or preventing a lawful arrest or effecting an escape from custody. 785 So.2d at 436-37. The trial court found no statutory mitigating factors but did find the existence of the nonstatutory mitigator of remorse; however, because of Bryant's subsequent actions, very little weight was accorded this circumstance. Id. at 437. Our holding on Bryant's direct appeal that the death sentence was proportional applies here: Moreover, this Court has upheld death sentences in other cases based upon only two of the three aggravating factors present in the instant case. See Pope v. State, 679 So.2d 710 (Fla.1996) (holding death penalty proportionate where two aggravating factors of murder committed for pecuniary gain and prior violent felony outweighed two statutory mitigating circumstances of commission while under influence of extreme mental or emotional disturbance and impaired capacity to appreciate criminality of conduct and several nonstatutory mitigating circumstances); Melton v. State, 638 So.2d 927 (Fla.1994) (holding death penalty proportionate where two aggravating factors of murder committed for pecuniary gain and prior violent felony outweighed some nonstatutory mitigation); Heath v. State, 648 So.2d 660 (Fla.1994) (affirming defendant's death sentence based on the presence of two aggravating factors of prior violent felony and murder committed during course of robbery, despite the existence of the statutory mitigator of extreme mental or emotional disturbance). Accordingly, we find that death is a proportionate penalty in this case. Id.; [9] see also Diaz v. State, 860 So.2d 960, 971 (Fla.2003) (finding the death penalty proportionate, despite invalidating an aggravator and the existence of five statutory mitigating circumstances, where two aggravators remained: (1) the capital felony was committed in a cold, calculated, and premeditated manner without any pretense of moral or legal justification; and (2) the defendant was previously convicted of another capital felony or of a felony involving use or threat of violence to the person). The cases we cited all found the death penalty proportionate where the two aggravators of prior violent felony and crime committed for pecuniary gain were involved. Furthermore, two of the sentences were found proportional despite the existence of statutory mitigating circumstances. In Bryant's case, the court found no statutory mitigating circumstances and only a single nonstatutory mitigatorremorse. 785 So.2d at 437. In light of our prior holdings, Bryant's sentence was proportional even without the avoid arrest aggravator. Further, no reasonable possibility exists that the trial court would have found the evidence in mitigation sufficient to outweigh the two remaining aggravating circumstances. Therefore, no prejudice resulted from any error on the part of appellate counsel in not challenging the avoid arrest aggravator on direct appeal.