Opinion ID: 1520697
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 17

Heading: Gross Incompetence of Trial Counsel

Text: The right to effective assistance of counsel attaches before trial, McMann v. Richardson, 397 U.S. 759, 771, 90 S.Ct. 1441, 1449, 25 L.Ed.2d 763 n.14 (1970), and extends through the post-trial proceedings. Oesby v. United States, supra, 398 A.2d at 4. The record before the Court indicates that throughout his representation of the defendant, trial counsel failed to take a number of important actions. The Court finds as a fact that: 1. Trial counsel failed to conduct a full interview with the defendant to determine all relevant facts known to the defendant. 2. Trial counsel failed to keep the defendant informed of his case or prepare him adequately for trial. 3. Trial counsel failed to conduct a prompt investigation of the case and failed to interview any of the witnesses called by the government. 4. Trial counsel failed to engage in any meaningful discovery with the government with regard to the facts of this case. 5. Trial counsel failed to engage in any meaningful plea discussions with the prosecutor. 6. Following the verdict, trial counsel did not submit favorable information to the court for purposes of sentencing. 7. Trial counsel apparently has not retained any records with regard to this case. The sum total of the facts recited above amounts to gross incompetence on the part of defendant's trial counsel. See Oesby v. United States, supra, 398 A.2d at 7; United States v. Sweet, Criminal No. 9994-75, 106 D.W.L.R. 1677, 1684, Stewart, J. (September 15, 1978).