Opinion ID: 2053901
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Sentencing Stage

Text: Defendant next argues that trial counsel was ineffective at the sentencing stage. Defendant first argues that counsel should have asked the State to disclose what it intended to introduce in aggravation. Defendant is not constitutionally entitled to discovery of the State's aggravating evidence. ( People v. Foster (1987), 119 Ill.2d 69, 101-03, 115 Ill.Dec. 557, 518 N.E.2d 82.) In addition, defendant has not indicated what counsel should have done differently to challenge the aggravating evidence. Defendant also argues that counsel should have conducted further investigation into the bullets that injured the security guard and killed the victim. We have already discussed trial counsel's performance during the guilt-innocence phase with respect to these bullets. Defendant has not introduced affidavits to suggest that further investigation of these bullets would have been productive. Defendant's primary argument is that counsel failed to investigate possible mitigation witnesses who would have testified favorably for defendant. In support of this argument, defendant has attached affidavits from numerous character witnesses. Defendant argues that, if counsel had presented testimony from these witnesses, defendant would not have been sentenced to death. At the sentencing hearing, counsel first challenged defendant's eligibility for the death penalty. The State argued that defendant was eligible for the death penalty pursuant to the multiple-murder aggravating factor. The State introduced defendant's earlier second degree murder conviction in California for support. Counsel argued that defendant was not eligible for the death penalty based on the California murder conviction. Counsel argued that the California murder scheme was not substantially similar to the Illinois first degree murder scheme, as required by statute. (See Ill.Rev.Stat.1987, ch. 38, par. 91(b)(3).) The trial judge rejected the argument and determined that defendant was eligible under the multiple-murder aggravating factor. Counsel's eligibility argument was reasonable and discussed extensively on direct appeal. Guest, 115 Ill.2d at 91-103, 104 Ill.Dec. 698, 503 N.E.2d 255. The State then presented evidence in aggravation. The State introduced numerous armed robbery, burglary, and theft convictions to show defendant's extensive criminal history. Defendant committed most of his criminal acts in Missouri and Tennessee from 1964 to 1981. Initially, defendant committed crimes of a less serious and nonviolent nature. Defendant gradually started to commit more serious crimes, especially armed robberies. Defendant was apprehended by the police several times during this period but was able to avoid long-term imprisonment through the use of numerous aliases, bond forfeiture, and an ability to escape from custody. We now discuss some of defendant's more serious offenses. In August of 1973, defendant was convicted of first degree robbery with a deadly weapon and first degree attempted robbery and was sentenced concurrently to eight years' imprisonment. In August of 1978, defendant was convicted of first degree robbery of a bank and received a life sentence. In November of 1978, defendant tried to escape from jail but was unsuccessful. In January of 1979, while in custody, defendant was convicted of an earlier robbery and received 35 years. At that time, defendant escaped from the courthouse where he was convicted. In May and August of 1979, defendant was twice arrested in connection with armed robberies but avoided long-term custody by forfeiting his bond. On August 26, 1979, defendant was again arrested in St. Louis. On September 9, 1979, defendant complained of chest pains while in custody, was taken to a hospital, and escaped. On December 27, 1979, defendant was arrested in Missouri and transferred to Tennessee for trial. In 1980, in Tennessee, defendant was twice convicted of robbery with a deadly weapon and was sentenced consecutively to a 20-year term and a 30- to 35-year term. In December of 1980, defendant complained of pains in his shoulder while in custody, was taken to a hospital, and again escaped. On February 5, 1981, defendant shot and killed the victim in the instant case in Chicago. On March 24, 1981, defendant shot another individual three times in California, killing him. Defendant was arrested in Missouri on April 8, 1981, and was tried in this case in 1983. Counsel then presented evidence in mitigation. Counsel first called defendant's sister as a mitigation witness. Defendant's sister testified about defendant's murder of an individual in California. She stated that the victim was carrying a handgun at the time of the shooting. Counsel again attempted to show that the second degree murder in California was not substantially similar to first degree murder in Illinois. Defendant's mother testified next. She stated that defendant had been a good provider for the family and had helped family members. She also stated that defendant had told his younger brothers and sisters to lead a life free of crime. Defendant did not cooperate in the preparation of a presentence investigation report which could have elicited further mitigating evidence. In closing argument, counsel made a plea for mercy, argued that the shooting was spontaneous and not planned, and again argued that defendant was not eligible for the death penalty based on the California second degree murder conviction. After the aggravating and mitigating evidence was presented, the trial judge found no mitigating circumstances sufficient to preclude imposition of the death penalty. The court was influenced primarily by defendant's extensive criminal history and disregard for human life. The court stated: All of us are players, in a manner of speaking, in the game of life   . In the game of life, Mr. Guest, if you had played by the rules and by law, instead of in your teens dedicating your life to that of a professional criminal, you would not be here today. Your actions in this case    cries out that you believe human life is cheap, in fact, worth only in this case, a mere tube of toothpaste and a toothbrush. In this post-conviction proceeding, defendant has offered the character affidavits of numerous proposed mitigation witnesses and argues that these witnesses should have been presented at sentencing. Many of the proposed mitigation witnesses are friends and family of defendant. According to the affidavits, these witnesses would testify that defendant ran errands for them, helped people in times of illness, helped people financially, and coached a little league baseball team. Defendant also told children to stay in school, not to use drugs, and not to lead a life of crime as he had. One proposed witness is a drug counselor who would testify that defendant has tried to deter children from using drugs and has referred drug addicts to a drug rehabilitation center. The State argues that trial counsel did investigate potential mitigation witnesses and offers an affidavit from trial counsel in support. Counsel states that he did search for mitigating witnesses but many of the individuals he interviewed would not have testified favorably. We need not determine whether counsel failed to adequately investigate mitigation evidence. We find that, even if counsel did fail to investigate, defendant has not made a substantial showing of prejudice. In this case, the aggravating evidence presented at sentencing convincingly established defendant's violent criminal history and ability to escape law enforcement officials. In contrast, given the nature of the proposed mitigation testimony, it is not reasonably likely the testimony would have changed the outcome of the sentencing hearing. Much of the proposed mitigation is either patently untrue or not helpful. For example, one proposed witness claims that defendant watched her daughter and ran errands for her in 1983 and 1984. At that time, however, defendant was in custody for this murder conviction and death sentence. Several other proposed witnesses claim that defendant was useful because they would use defendant's criminal life as an example of how not to live when explaining to children why the children should stay in school, avoid crime, and avoid using drugs. This is not inherently mitigating testimony. Several witnesses also state that defendant provided financial help to them but the record does not show that defendant was ever employed. Based on his numerous felony convictions, defendant was in jail for much of the time between 1971 and 1983. Defendant escaped from custody several times during this period. As he avoided the police and jail and committed more crimes, defendant allegedly performed numerous good deeds for relatives and friends. Defendant argues that the affidavits bolster defendant's character, but the aggravating evidence presented at sentencing establishes defendant's character much more persuasively. See Strickland, 466 U.S. at 699-700, 104 S.Ct. at 2071, 80 L.Ed.2d at 701 (aggravating evidence outweighed potential psychiatric evidence and potential character evidence showing that numerous individuals thought the defendant was generally a good person); Jackson v. Roth (7th Cir. 1994), 24 F.3d 1002 (the predictable testimony of relatives and friends receives little weight at sentencing and would not offset the aggravating evidence which showed that the defendant was a repeat offender). Defendant relies on Caballero, 126 Ill.2d 248, 128 Ill.Dec. 1, 533 N.E.2d 1089, in support of his argument. In Caballero, the defendant was convicted of the murder of three individuals and sentenced to death. During the post-conviction proceeding, the defendant offered character evidence not introduced at sentencing, and this court determined that the potential mitigating evidence would have bolstered the amount of mitigation substantially. Defendant was relatively young, lacked a significant prior criminal history, and had been a model student until about two years before the killings. The record suggested that the defendant was caught up in the tragic circumstances that led to the killings and acted under the guidance of others. The proposed mitigating evidence would have supported these arguments, and the defendant was entitled to an evidentiary hearing. Caballero, 126 Ill.2d at 280, 128 Ill.Dec. 1, 533 N.E.2d 1089. The facts in this case are clearly distinguishable. In this case, defendant has a significant prior criminal history, defendant was not caught up in tragic circumstances, and defendant was not coerced by others. The nature of the aggravating and mitigating evidence in this case is different from that in Caballero. See also People v. Mahaffey (1995), 165 Ill.2d 445, 466-67, 209 Ill.Dec. 246, 651 N.E.2d 174 (character evidence, consisting of the testimony of the defendant's family and friends, was cumulative and would not have outweighed the defendant's extensive criminal history); People v. Owens (1989), 129 Ill.2d 303, 314, 135 Ill.Dec. 780, 544 N.E.2d 276 (aggravating evidence was overwhelming because it showed the defendant's history of violence and his brutal murder of three victims); cf. People v. Ruiz (1989), 132 Ill.2d 1, 24-26, 138 Ill.Dec. 201, 547 N.E.2d 170 (evidentiary hearing required because proposed mitigation testimony would suggest that the defendant was not an active or willing participant in the offenses but acted because of gang pressure); Thompkins, 161 Ill.2d at 165-68, 204 Ill.Dec. 147, 641 N.E.2d 371 (evidentiary hearing required because character testimony would suggest that the defendant's role in the offenses was subject to doubt).