Opinion ID: 853980
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Merits of the Conflict of Interest Claim

Text: Because Woods did not challenge the adequacy of his trial representation on direct appeal, Woods v. State, 547 N.E.2d 772 (Ind. 1989), aff'd on reh'g, 557 N.E.2d 1325 (Ind. 1990), his ineffective assistance claims are not waived. With respect to the merits, Woods argues that he was denied effective assistance of counsel because his first trial counsel, Charles Rhetts Jr., had a conflict of interest. Woods was charged with murder and robbery on April 9, 1984 and the State soon filed a request for the death penalty. Citing an undeveloped possible conflict of interest because he had previously represented an expected witness for the State in a different matter, Rhetts requested a conference with the court. A meeting in the trial court's chambers was also attended by the prosecutor. Successor counsel Allen Wharry was initially at the meeting but left the room after Rhetts asked that Wharry not be present for the disclosure. In Wharry's absence, Rhetts told the trial court that the witness in question was Woods' mother. Rhetts later explained to the postconviction court that he believed he could not reveal even the fact of his prior representation of the mother to Wharry, much less any details of the representation. On October 25, 1984, the court permitted Rhetts to withdraw. The court did not hold a hearing on the record or otherwise inform Woods or his new lawyers (Wharry and co-counsel Douglas Johnston) of the nature of the conflict. All they knew was that Rhetts had been allowed to withdraw due to a possible conflict. Opening statements in the trial began four months later on February 22, 1985. As expected, the mother testified for the State regarding her son's involvement in the crimes. Woods' argument, although not a model of clarity, appears to consist of four main assertions: (1) Rhetts' disclosure of the nature of the conflict in general terms in the presence of the prosecutor, but not to Woods or his new lawyers, gave the State an unfair tactical advantage in preparing to question Woods' mother; (2) Rhetts, presumably due to the conflict, did little investigation or other preparation for trial; (3) the conflict tainted the rest of the proceedings because the time Rhetts dawdled away before disclosing the conflict was charged to Woods, leaving Wharry and Johnston with only a few months to prepare for trial; and (4) the new lawyers' failure to discover the conflict constituted ineffective assistance. The State responds that Woods received effective assistance because Wharry and Johnston rendered conflict-free representation after Rhetts withdrew and the conflict did not affect Rhetts' or the latter lawyers' performance. [23] The federal constitutional right to effective assistance of counsel necessarily includes representation that is free from conflicts of interest. Wood v. Georgia, 450 U.S. 261, 271, 101 S.Ct. 1097, 67 L.Ed.2d 220 (1981). To establish a violation of the Sixth Amendment due to a conflict, a defendant who failed to raise the objection at trial must demonstrate that trial counsel had an actual conflict of interest and that the conflict adversely affected counsel's performance. Cuyler v. Sullivan, 446 U.S. 335, 348, 100 S.Ct. 1708, 64 L.Ed.2d 333 (1980); Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 692, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984) (discussing Cuyler ). Once the two prongs of Cuyler are metactual conflict and adverse impact prejudice is presumed. Burger v. Kemp, 483 U.S. 776, 783, 107 S.Ct. 3114, 97 L.Ed.2d 638 (1987). An adverse effect on performance caused by counsel's failure to act requires a showing of (1) a plausible strategy or tactic that was not followed but might have been pursued; and (2) an inconsistency between that strategy or tactic and counsel's other loyalties, or that the alternate strategy or tactic was not undertaken due to the conflict. Winkler v. Keane, 7 F.3d 304, 309 (2d Cir. 1993) (adopting test followed by First and Third Circuits). See also Cates v. Superintendent, Indiana Youth Center, 981 F.2d 949, 955 (7th Cir.1992) (The premise of a defendant's claim that he was denied conflict-free assistance ... must be that his lawyer would have done something differently if there was no conflict.). [24] The State asserts that Rhetts' predicament did not rise to the level of an actual conflict because he never questioned Woods' mother under oath. Indeed, Rhetts explained in postconviction that he was aware of the possibility of the conflict months before he withdrew, but did nothing because he believed the conflict would not be a problem until trial approached. Whether the conflict was potential or actual is academic because, even assuming an actual conflict, [25] Woods has not established an adverse effect on his counsel's performance. First, he has not explained what the State could have learned at the meeting in which Rhetts asked to withdraw that so upset the possibility of a fair trial. Rhetts disclosed no details of the prior representation. Second, contrary to Woods' contention, Rhetts did not sit idle for the six months that he was on the case. Although he had not prepared for a possible penalty phase, he investigated Woods' sanity and competency to stand trial, filed a standard discovery request, and secured a change of venue due to adverse pretrial publicity arising out of the trial of co-defendant Greg Sloan. While not perfect representation in a capital case, at the pretrial stages this is not the stuff of adversely affected performance. Cf. Thompkins v. State, 482 N.E.2d 710, 713 (Ind.1985) (counsel's representation was not adversely affected where he conducted thorough discovery and filed numerous motions and objections on defendant's behalf). Third, and not surprisingly, Woods fails to direct our attention to evidence supporting his assertion that the conflict tainted the rest of the proceedings. There is no claim that the new lawyers had a conflict and Woods has not explained how Wharry and Johnston would have handled the case differently if they had been told of or discovered Rhetts' conflict. Any information Rhetts possessed about the mother was presumably privileged. Even if Rhetts' prior representation of the mother precluded him from fully probing her possible involvement in the crime, as Woods contends, Wharry and Johnston deposed her on that subject and had adequate opportunity to investigate that issue. More generally, the trial court granted the new lawyers' request for a continuance to give them more time to prepare, and this Court held on direct appeal that the failure to grant additional continuances was not error: There is no basis in the record upon which to conclude that additional time for preparation and consultation would have better equipped defense counsel to represent their client. Woods, 547 N.E.2d at 788. Thus we cannot accept that the conflict structurally infected the rest of the proceedings. Woods would have us overlook the fact that Rhetts withdrew nearly four months before trial. This is a critical point. Because successor counsel Wharry and Johnston planned and executed their defense strategy after their own discovery, pretrial motions, and consultations with Woods, any claim that Rhetts' inaction likely affected their performanceor, for that matter, the fairness of the trialrequires more than a bald allegation. Woods in effect asks us to presume ineffectiveness and an unfair trial where initial trial counsel withdraws due to a conflict. There is no such presumption. Accordingly, his claim that he was denied effective assistance due to Rhetts' prior representation of his mother fails.