Opinion ID: 1516216
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Miscellaneous Failures of Trial Counsel During Guilt Phase[13]

Text: Appellant broadly argues that trial counsel did not properly impeach Edgar Clarke, Ramon Burton, and Ruth Beverly, making direct appeal counsel ineffective for not raising trial counsel's missed impeachment opportunities. The Commonwealth, of course, denies that any of appellant's impeachment claims have merit. In respect to each of these witnesses, the PCRA court, without specifically addressing any particular argument appellant advanced, found that appellant's complaints merely implicated the depth and angle of impeachment areas already explored by defense counsel at trial. PCRA ct. slip op. at 12. Due to the' nature of the proposed failures, the PCRA court held that appellant could not demonstrate prejudice such that there was a reasonable probability that the verdict would have been different without the alleged errors. The PCRA court was correct, as consideration of appellant's specific claims in respect to each witness demonstrates.
Appellant claims that counsel was ineffective in his impeachment of Mr. Clarke, in that counsel did not (1) elicit that Mr. Clarke was never charged for selling drugs on the day that William Lloyd was murdered and (2) establish that Mr. Clarke failed to appear for an August 1994 court date for a theft charged under another name. The Commonwealth characterizes appellant's claims as baseless and frivolous. The Commonwealth points out that appellant never offered any proof by way of supporting documentary evidence that Mr. Clarke evaded drug charges in exchange for his testimony against appellant. As to the theft charge, the Commonwealth notes that Mr. Clarke did testify about the charge. Moreover, the only proof appellant cites as to particular aspects of Mr. Clarke's theft case comes from a hearing dated after appellant's trial and in an unrelated case. As we noted earlier, Criminal Rule 902(D) requires a PCRA petitioner to attach supporting documentary evidence for his claims or an explanation as to why such evidence was unavailable. When evidence is easily obtainable and would provide necessary support for a petitioner's claim, we have rejected claims that were unsupported by documentary evidence. See Commonwealth v. Begley, 566 Pa. 239, 780 A.2d 605, 630-31 (2001) (rejecting claim due to absence of affidavit stating witness would have been available to testify at trial); Commonwealth v. Collins, 546 Pa. 616, 687 A.2d 1112, 1115 (1996) (claim fails in absence of document showing petitioner requested appeal). Here, appellant never offered to prove that the Commonwealth bargained with Mr. Clarke in exchange for his testimony. Moreover, Mr. Clarke expressly denied at appellant's trial that he was promised any benefit from the Commonwealth in exchange for his testimony. N.T. 7/7/1995 at 76. On this record, appellant has failed to prove that defense counsel had a basis in fact to impeach Mr. Clarke's testimony in relation to the alleged lack of drug charges. Nor does appellant prove prejudice. Regarding the circumstances of Mr. Clarke's theft charge, appellant has not begun to establish that he was prejudiced by trial counsel's alleged failure to extract further details. At appellant's trial, Mr. Clarke admitted that he had an open theft charge pending against him. Id. We are unconvinced that Mr. Clarke's credibility would have been undermined to a materially greater degree if only trial counsel had also proven Mr. Clarke failed to attend a hearing in the case or that he had an alias. Neither of appellant's impeachment claims involving Mr. Clarke succeeds.
Appellant next argues that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to impeach Mr. Burton, listing virtually the same evidence appellant claimed earlier in his Brief the Commonwealth was guilty of withholding from defense counsel. See supra at Section B(4)(c). Specifically, appellant argues that trial counsel should have impeached Mr. Burton with evidence that: (1) he was carrying an unregistered handgun on the night of the murder, yet faced no criminal charges for the act; (2) he operated a narcotics business out of his store and escaped prosecution in relation to that illegal business; (3) he failed to file IRS business records; (4) he entered the country illegally as a Minister of Religion; and (5) he used aliases. The Commonwealth revives its arguments from appellant's Brady claim. It notes that the jury would not be surprised that Mr. Burton had an unregistered weapon or did not file business records with the IRS. Additionally, the Commonwealth argues appellant never offered to prove that Mr. Burton's gun was unregistered or that Mr. Burton had not filed IRS records. As for the INS file, the Commonwealth again contends that it would not have been available to trial counsel since it did not exist at the time of appellant's trial. Finally, the Commonwealth notes that appellant never demonstrates how any of this information, if presented at trial, would have altered his verdict. We agree that appellant has not shown that he was prejudiced by trial counsel's alleged impeachment lapses. Establishing that Mr. Burton was involved in other illegal activities would not ineluctably alter the jury's opinion of him, much less lead to a different verdict. The INS record appellant cites did not exist at the time of trial; any accusation against counsel on that basis is frivolous. To the extent that appellant implies that Mr. Burton provided testimony in exchange for a promise of favorable treatment from the Commonwealth, appellant's allegations are unsupported by proof. These claims are baseless.
Appellant next claims that trial counsel should have impeached Ms. Beverly on the basis of false statements she gave to the police on the night of the murder. Since Ms. Beverly gave false statements to the police, appellant argues, she had a motive to lie at appellant's trial to avoid prosecution for her crime, contrary to the prosecutor's contentions at trial. Appellant also argues that his trial counsel should have elicited testimony from Ms. Beverly concerning the coercive pressure the police applied to produce her eventual statement against him. Appellant's Brief at 36. The Commonwealth argues that the record does not reflect that the police applied undue pressure on Ms. Beverly to force her to give a statement. Moreover, the Commonwealth notes, Ms. Beverly's displeasure with the police enhances her credibility because she cooperated with them despite that displeasure. As for appellant's charge that Ms. Beverly gave a false statement to police on the night of the murder, the Commonwealth notes that this is another of appellant's unsupported accusations. However, even if Ms. Beverly did give such a false statement, the Commonwealth asserts, such would be understandable given her frightened state. The Commonwealth notes that Ms. Beverly moved out of Philadelphia because she was threatened by appellant's friends to stay silent, which thoroughly undercuts appellant's speculation that she testified against him to escape criminal sanction. Appellant's trial counsel attempted to impeach Ms. Beverly on several counts, most notably, accusing her of having sexual relations with appellant for drugs and uncovering Ms. Beverly's former drug addiction. E.g., N.T. 7/11/1995 at 141-43; 160-61. Despite Ms. Beverly's admitted drug use, appellant was convicted of murdering William Lloyd. The additional impeachment evidence that appellant now argues should have been used at trial would not have changed that outcome. Indeed, the alleged impeachment evidence may well have bolstered Ms. Beverly's credibility. Ms. Beverly testified that she feared for her life after witnessing the crime and, after receiving threats not to talk to police, she decided to move her family away from Philadelphia. N.T. 7/10/1995 at 148, 180. Her fear would explain appellant's accusation, if only it were true, that Ms. Beverly lied to the police on the night of the murder about her identity. There is no evidence, however, that Ms. Beverly was threatened with or feared being prosecuted for making false statements to the police. Furthermore, had defense counsel established that Ms. Beverly gave a false statement to the police at the scene of the murder, this testimony would have undermined defense witness, Mr. Powell, who asserted that Ms. Beverly was not in the location where the murder occurred. Addressing appellant's accusation that the police coercively obtained a statement from Ms. Beverly, the record of the hearing that appellant cites to support his argument does not reflect that she was so compelled by the police. N.T. 2/22/1994 at 52-53. Instead, it illustrates that Ms. Beverly was angry with the police for bringing her to the police station when she had not eaten or bathed, but she nevertheless told the police what she observed. Once again, even if appellant's fictitious allegations were accepted as true, he has not proven that there is reasonable probability that the verdict would have been different had counsel presented these accusations to the jury.
Appellant next claims that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to call Penny Hairston to testify that he did not see appellant on the night of the murder and, instead, saw Ike Jones with a .22 caliber gun, a gun capable of firing the bullets that killed William Lloyd. [14] Appellant argues that Mr. Hairston's testimony would have supported his claim that he did not commit the murder, especially since Mr. Hairston did not tell the police that he saw appellant on the street once the shooting began. To support this claim, appellant cites separate statements that Mr. Hairston gave the police. Appellant asserts that Mr. Hairston was available to testify, but was never called. The Commonwealth responds that the testimony from Mr. Hairston would merely have been cumulative evidence of the gun battle that occurred outside of Mr. Hairston's home and which involved several individuals. Testimony from Mr. Hairston, the Commonwealth states, would not have been exculpatory given the number of people involved in the shootout and given that an eyewitness saw appellant murder William Lloyd. The PCRA court found that Mr. Hairston could not have provided significant impeachment evidence relevant to appellant's guilt. As such, the court ruled that appellant did not show a reasonable probability that if the evidence had been presented, the verdict would have been different. Mr. Hairston's testimony would have only validated the testimony of Mr. Clarke and would not have been exculpatory. The jury heard testimony that several men were involved in the initial gun battle prior to the murder. Also, proof that Mr. Jones had been carrying a .22 caliber handgun does not prove that appellant did not have a similar gun. Therefore, appellant's claim is without merit.
Appellant next assails his trial counsel for failing to object to Officer Glenn Keenan's testimony concerning what Monique Wylie told him about the robbery at Mr. Hairston's on the night of the murder and for failing to object to the prosecutor's use of Officer Keenan's statement during his summation. Specifically, appellant notes that Ms. Wylie testified to being asked by Mr. Jones on the night of the murder to help him rob Mr. Hairston's home, but did not name any other individuals who would be involved. Appellant objects to Officer Keenan's contrary testimony that Ms. Wylie told him that appellant was going to be involved in the robbery with Mr. Jones. Appellant contends that Officer Keenan's account of Ms. Wylie's oral statement to police was inadmissible for its substantive purpose. Officer Keenan's testimony was highly prejudicial, appellant argues, because the prosecutor utilized it in his closing. Moreover, appellant claims that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to introduce the portion of Ms. Wylie's official police statement that contradicted Officer Keenan's recollection. The Commonwealth disputes that Ms. Wylie's oral statement to Officer Keenan was offered as substantive evidence and, instead, argues that the statement was introduced to impeach Ms. Wylie's testimony. During direct examination, the Commonwealth notes that Ms. Wylie denied that Mr. Jones had told her that appellant and a third man would also rob Mr. Hairston's home. According to the Commonwealth, Ms. Wylie's testimony was contrary to what she had told the prosecutor before testifying, namely, that Mr. Jones told her appellant would participate in the robbery. The Commonwealth further notes that the prosecutor's purpose for introducing the statement is supported by his closing, where he remarked that Ms. Wylie had not been completely truthful on the witness stand. Furthermore, the Commonwealth argues that appellant cannot show prejudice by the admission of the statement, because there was substantial other evidence to tie him to the robbery. Appellant also makes an additional layered ineffectiveness argument related to Ms. Wylie's statement, claiming that the jury should not have found the sentencing aggravator under 42 Pa.C.S.  9711(d)(6) (murder committed in the perpetration of a felony) because it was based on the improper admission of Ms. Wylie's statement to Office Keenan. The credibility of a witness may be impeached by the party calling that witness. Pa.R.E. 607(a); see Commonwealth v. Kimbell, 563 Pa. 256, 759 A.2d 1273, 1276-77 (2000). Any evidence relevant to the impeachment issue may be used against a witness, except that which is prohibited by the rules of evidence. Pa.R.E. 607(b). Hearsay, which is a statement made by someone other than the declarant while testifying at trial and is offered into evidence to prove the truth of the matter asserted, is normally inadmissible at trial. Pa.R.E. 801(c) & 802. Impeaching a witness through the introduction of an inconsistent out-of-court statement will not be considered hearsay if the statement is: (1) under oath subject to the penalty of perjury at a trial, hearing, other proceeding, or deposition; (2) in writing and adopted by the declarant; and (3) a verbatim contemporaneous recording of the oral statement. Pa.R.E. 803.1(1). [15] We agree with appellant that there was a basis to object to Officer Keenan's recollection of Ms. Wylie's statement, as it was an oral recollection of what Ms. Wylie told him and did not comport with the requirements of Rule 803.1(1). However, appellant has not shown prejudice because there was ample independent evidence that appellant was a co-conspirator in the robbery that occurred before William Lloyd's murder. Mr. Burton testified that appellant was shooting at his car shortly after Mr. Hairston's house had been robbed. Mr. Clarke recalled appellant being present at Mr. Hairston's house earlier in the day with the two men who robbed him at that location a short time later. Additionally, Ms. Wylie testified that appellant was with Mr. Jones at a local bar when Mr. Jones asked her to participate in the robbery on the day of the murder. This evidence alone would have been sufficient to convict appellant of conspiracy to commit robbery and, therefore, has not proven Strickland prejudice.
Appellant next accuses trial counsel of ineffectiveness for failing to object to the reasonable doubt instruction given at both the guilt and penalty phases. Specifically, appellant says that the trial court improperly instructed the jury that a reasonable doubt is a a doubt that would restrain a reasonably careful and sensible person from acting upon [a] matter of importance in his or her own affairs. N.T. 7/13/1995 at 6. Instead of using the word restrain, appellant argues that the trial court was required to use the word hesitate, which is employed in the non-binding Pennsylvania Standard Criminal Jury Instruction  7.01(3). The Commonwealth argues that trial counsel did not err when he failed to object to the use of the word restrain in the reasonable doubt instruction, since this Court has repeatedly approved the use of the word in such instructions. The PCRA court agreed. When evaluating jury instructions, this Court must consider whether the instructions as a whole were prejudicial. Commonwealth v. Hawkins, 567 Pa. 310, 787 A.2d 292, 301 (2001). A trial court is not required to use any particular jury instructions, or particular forms of expression, so long as those instructions clearly and accurately characterize relevant law. Id. (citing Commonwealth v. Prosdocimo, 525 Pa. 147, 578 A.2d 1273, 1274 (1990)). We have previously approved of jury instructions that describe a reasonable doubt as something that would restrain a reasonably careful and sensible person from acting. Commonwealth v. Ragan, 560 Pa. 106, 743 A.2d 390, 401 (1999); see also Commonwealth v. Young, 456 Pa. 102, 317 A.2d 258, 263 (1974); Commonwealth v. Donough, 377 Pa. 46, 103 A.2d 694, 697 (1954). In Commonwealth v. Porter, we held that the distinction between `hesitate before acting' and `restrain before acting' is de minimis and clearly such a subtle variation in phrasing would not be an abuse of the trial court's discretion. 556 Pa. 301, 728 A.2d 890, 900 (1999). In light of this existing authority, the notion that counsel was ineffective is frivolous.
Appellant's final claim under this category is that trial counsel and appellant counsel were ineffective for not challenging the testimony of the ballistics expert concerning the .38 caliber handgun found with appellant at the time of his arrest, which the expert noted could have fired some of the bullets found in Mr. Burton's car. Appellant argues that the probative value of this testimony was outweighed by its prejudicial effect, because: (1) the gun is akin to bad acts evidence; (2) the gun was not the same caliber as the .22 caliber bullets that killed the victim; (3) there was a distinct time interval between the bullets that were fired at Mr. Burton's car and at the victim; and (4) bullets that could be attributed to a .38 caliber handgun were found where Mr. Burton was fired at and not at the murder scene. Moreover, appellant notes that the jury had no basis to judge the importance of the testimony from the ballistics expert and should have been told how may other guns were capable of firing the bullets that killed the victim. The Commonwealth devotes little argument in response, claiming in a single paragraph that appellant's argument is baseless because the .38 caliber gun found at the time of appellant's arrest could have been the source of several bullet fragments found in Mr. Burton's car. Agreeing with the Commonwealth, the PCRA court found that the factual circumstances surrounding the gun made testimony concerning it admissible. The ballistics expert testified that the gun recovered from appellant on the day he was arrested could have fired a bullet fragment found in Mr. Burton's car. N.T. 7/11/1995 at 74. On cross-examination, however, appellant's trial counsel clarified that the bullet fragments found near William Lloyd's body did not match any of the weapons recovered by the police in their investigation. Id. The recovered gun certainly was relevant to establish a possible link between appellant and the vicinity of the murder scene and, as such, was admissible. Appellant's argument goes to the weight of the evidence. Moreover, appellant has not proved prejudice resulting from its admission, particularly because trial counsel, far from being incompetent, established that the gun recovered on appellant at the time of his arrest did not match the murder weapon.