Opinion ID: 63763
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Anxiety and concern

Text: According to Goodrum, the state court unreasonably discounted the relevance of evidence that he was generally worried and concerned about the pending charges, evidence that was not challenged by the State. The State responds that Goodrum's imprisonment for a life term on a separate charge undercuts his assertions of anxiety and concern stemming from the later indictments. The state appeals court acknowledged Goodrum's asserted anxiety or depression but, citing a case from the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, construed Goodrum's status as an individual incarcerated on another offense to shift the focus primarily to whether the delay affected his defense. [68] In doing so, the court impliedly viewed Goodrum's anxiety and concern as irrelevant to its prejudice analysis. Without directly addressing this aspect of the state court's opinion, the district court impliedly viewed Goodrum's uncontroverted anxiety or concern as some prejudice but ultimately deemed it inadequate to sustain his speedy trial claim. [69] The most serious form of prejudice occurs when the delay undermines a defendant's ability adequately to prepare his case. [70] But we have already noted Barker 's recognition of anxiety and concern of the accused as a type of cognizable harm that may result from a delayed trial, and other cases stress its independence from whatever impact the delay may or may not have on the defense. [71] It is equally established that one who is already in prison may nonetheless suffer the same degree of anxiety and concern accompanying public accusation as someone at large. Smith v. Hooey. [72] Accordingly, the state court's rejection of Goodrum's anxiety and concern as probative of prejudice was unreasonable. Nonetheless, we think Goodrum's generalized expressions of anxiety and concern amount to little more than a nominal showing of prejudice. Hooey described the most corrosive effect a detainer may have on an incarcerated individual as the strain of having to serve a sentence with the uncertain prospect of being taken into the custody of another [entity] at the conclusion [that] interferes with the prisoner's ability to take maximum advantage of his institutional opportunities. [73] Goodrum at oral argument attempted to associate the distress he felt with the added burden of having to defend himself against new charges when he was in the process of appealing the Brazoria County conviction. We find nothing in the record indicating anxiety and concern of this nature. There is likewise no evidence that Goodrum's anxiety interfered with his participation in rehabilitative activities or undermined his efforts toward self-improvement. We also take into account the fact that Goodrum was already serving a life sentence, itself a grim prospect, which renders it unlikely that the detainers caused him severe anxiety or concern. [74] In short, Goodrum has not demonstrated that the anxiety he felt was of such an extreme degree that it differed in any way from that which would naturally be expected to accompany a defendant's awareness of pending charges. Given this minimal showing, the state court did not unreasonably view Goodrum's generalized anxiety and concern as insufficient to sustain his speedy trial claim.