Opinion ID: 2756888
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Zena’s testimony

Text: {¶ 52} Zena had been co-counsel at Herring’s trial and had the primary responsibility for preparing mitigation. Zena testified that the defense initially was prepared to engage a different mitigation specialist, but after that person could not take the job, trial counsel hired Hrdy. Zena did not believe that they developed a theory of mitigation with Hrdy. Zena stated, “I think we said let’s see what we have and try to put the best foot forward to save [Herring], whatever that might be.” As to Hrdy’s role, Zena said that although “it’s the lawyer’s responsibility to present the mitigation,” people in Hrdy’s position are called mitigation specialists because it is their job to “go out and find and give ideas on how they think something should be presented.” 15 SUPREME COURT OF OHIO {¶ 53} Zena stated that he and Van Brocklin had talked to Hrdy on the phone as Hrdy’s mitigation investigation progressed. Counsel did not have a timetable for getting information from Hrdy. Zena testified: [I]t was like if you need anything, call us, and we had our normal discussions. If there’s anything you’re having trouble with or need, call us. And I don’t think there was ever a time when we weren’t accessible to him. I know every time he tried to reach me, I was. Likewise, he was accessible. {¶ 54} Zena testified that he had met Herring’s mother on a few occasions and got to know Herring’s sister. Zena stated that he spoke to Herring’s mother about “arranging a meeting with anybody she thought would be helpful with mitigation, and we met at their home.” Herring’s mother never told Zena that she had been a drug addict during a large part of Herring’s life. {¶ 55} Zena also had spoken to Herring about mitigation. He stated that Herring told him nothing negative about the family, because Herring “is a person that did not accent the negative about any family member or himself.” Zena stated, “When we got to the mitigation phase, he was cooperative in the sense of knowing we—what we were going to do, but he was not forthcoming with any information.” But Herring did not put any restrictions on trial counsel’s presentation of mitigation evidence. {¶ 56} Zena stated that he and Van Brocklin made a “conscious choice to    put on good things about him” and to emphasize that Herring was not a principal offender. Zena explained that this was “an awful case as cases go.    This was mayhem in a bar where people wound up dead, people wound up shot, bullets all over the floor.” Moreover, the victims were innocent bystanders who 16 January Term, 2014 were not “involved in any transgressions with any of the individuals who came in.” Thus, Zena said that the goal was “separating [Herring] out as a non principal offender, not responsible for the death of anyone, and showing whatever I could of the other side of him.”