Opinion ID: 2576153
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Assertedly excessive appellate delay

Text: Defendant contends that the delay in processing this appeal, particularly the eight years between the time that appellate counsel was appointed in 1991 and the record was certified in 1999, denied him his right to due process of law under the Fourteenth Amendment. In support of a claimed right to a speedy appeal, defendant relies primarily on federal lower court decisions. ( Harris v. Champion (10th Cir.1994) 15 F.3d 1538, 1558; Burkett v. Fulcomer (3d Cir.1991) 951 F.2d 1431, 1445; Coe v. Thurman (9th Cir.1990) 922 F.2d 528, 530-531; United States v. Antoine (9th Cir.1990) 906 F.2d 1379, 1382; Dozie v. Cady (7th Cir.1970) 430 F.2d 637, 638; Snyder v. Kelly (W.D.N.Y.1991) 769 F.Supp. 108, 111, affd. Snyder v. Kelly (2d Cir.1992) 972 F.2d 1328.) As we have explained in rejecting similar claims: None of those decisions address the unique demands of appellate representation in capital cases. [¶] Neither this court, nor the United States Supreme Court, has extended the Sixth Amendment right to speedy trial to appeals in the manner suggested by defendant. Assuming, but not deciding, that such a right exists, defendant fails to demonstrate that the delay inherent in the procedures by which California recruits, screens, and appoints attorneys to represent capital defendants on appeal, is not necessary to ensure that competent representation is available for indigent capital appellants. ( People v. Holt, supra, 15 Cal.4th at p. 709, 63 Cal.Rptr.2d 782, 937 P.2d 213 [three-year delay in appointment of appellate counsel did not deny due process]; accord, People v. Welch, supra, 20 Cal.4th at pp. 775-776, 85 Cal.Rptr.2d 203, 976 P.2d 754 [nearly three-year delay in appointment of appellate counsel did not deny due process].) Defendant asserts that Holt and Welch involved delay in the appointment of counsel, whereas his claim addresses primarily the eight-year delay in certifying the appellate record. But we have rejected the contention that delays in record certification deny due process. ( People v. Seaton, supra, 26 Cal.4th at p. 702, 110 Cal.Rptr.2d 441, 28 P.3d 175 [delays in appointment of counsel and in securing an adequate appellate record did not deny due process in a capital murder case].) A defendant in a criminal case is entitled to an appellate record adequate to permit `meaningful appellate review.' ( Id. at p. 699, 110 Cal.Rptr.2d 441, 28 P.3d 175, quoting People v. Scott (1997) 15 Cal.4th 1188, 1203, 65 Cal.Rptr.2d 240, 939 P.2d 354.) Defendant fails to demonstrate that the process by which California certifies the record on appeal as accurate and complete is not necessary to ensure that each capital appellant receives a thorough and careful review of his or her claims on appeal. Even were we to assume that the delay in this appeal was somehow inordinate (see Harris v. Champion, supra, 15 F.3d at pp. 1559-1560) for a case of this nature, defendant concedes that on the record before this court, prejudice is indeed difficult to specify. As the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has observed in litigation involving this same defendant, a court evaluating a claimed denial of due process due to appellate delay must determine what effect, if any, the delay in processing the defendant's appeal may have had on efforts to overturn his conviction or sentence. ( Blair v. Woodford (9th Cir.2003) 319 F.3d 1087, 1088.) Defendant contends that during his incarceration on death row, his mental health has deteriorated to the point that he is unable to assist appellate or habeas corpus counsel and will be unfit to stand trial should a retrial be ordered. With respect to the appeal, however, which is the only proceeding that concerns us at this juncture, defendant has failed to connect his alleged mental deficiency to any inability of his appellate counsel to present his claims on appeal. [29] (Cf. People v. Kelly (1992) 1 Cal.4th 495, 546, 3 Cal.Rptr.2d 677, 822 P.2d 385 [because the issues on appeal are limited to the appellate record, the appeal may proceed despite defendant's incompetence].) Accordingly, defendant has failed to demonstrate that any delay prejudiced his ability to obtain meaningful appellate review. [30]