Opinion ID: 1490004
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Brown's Daughter's Testimony

Text: After discussing Dr. Tanguay's testimony in detail, the hearing justice said that John Brown inexplicably called Brown's daughter, Angela, as a witness. Angela testified that Emily told her that Brown molested her. The hearing justice said that [i]t is inconceivable to this Court that any competent counsel would employ such a strategy. But during the proceedings for postconviction relief, neither the parties nor the hearing justice elicited any evidence about this issue because Brown did not include it in his application as an issue in which he alleged that John Brown was ineffective. However, after reviewing the record, we are comfortable that even if he had included this issue in his application, the claim lacks merit because John Brown made a tactical decision to call Angela as a witness. Because [i]t is well established that tactical decisions by trial counsel, even if ill-advised, do not by themselves constitute ineffective assistance of counsel, Vorgvongsa v. State, 785 A.2d 542, 549 (R.I.2001) (citing Toole v. State, 748 A.2d 806, 809 (R.I.2000)), even if we agreed with the hearing justice's declaration that it was unthinkable to elicit testimony from Brown's daughter that she did not believe Emily, we cannot agree that such a decision justified a finding of ineffective assistance of counsel. First, Angela testified only after Emily had testified that she told Angela about the abuse. Second, Angela testified that she did not believe Emily's testimony and that Emily had displayed no facial expression when she disclosed the abuse. Brown maintains that [o]ne is hard pressed to imagine that a jury would place much weight on a statement that a daughter did not believe her father's accuser. However, the testimony indicates to us that the attorney attempted to cast doubt on the victim's credibility by offering Angela's testimony. In his closing argument he said: You heard Angela. Angela came and spoke before you, Danny Brown's daughter. She stated that she had a good, reasonably good relationship with Danny. She had been in Danny's presence alone and always felt it was a safe environment. She also stated as to the circumstances under which [Emily] had informed her. If you recall, she said [Emily] said this, without showing emotion. The hearing justice criticized Brown's strategy concerning Angela's testimony; however, even if this strategy was ill-advised (about which we express no opinion), the hearing justice nonetheless erred when she found that this tactical decision contributed to Brown's deprivation of his right to effective assistance of counsel. 5