Opinion ID: 788575
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Jury Instruction Regarding Flight

Text: 70 Burton's third procedurally defaulted claim is that his counsel on direct appeal was constitutionally ineffective in failing to appeal the trial judge's instruction to the jury regarding flight: 71 Now, there's been some evidence that this defendant tried to run away or tried to hide or did run away or did hide after these alleged events. And even after he was accused of this crime and in this case. Now, this evidence does not prove guilt. A person may run or hide for innocent reasons such as panic, mistake or fear. However, a person may also run or hide because of a consciousness of guilt. You must decide whether the evidence is true. And if true, whether it shows that this defendant had a guilty state of mind. 72 Trial Tr. Vol IV. at 58. 5 Because the jury instruction directed jurors to make their own determinations as to whether Burton did in fact flee and if so, what state of mind such flight evinced, the trial judge's instruction regarding flight was not so prejudicial as to render the entire trial fundamentally unfair. See Mitzel v. Tate, 267 F.3d 524, 536 (6th Cir.2001) , cert. denied, 535 U.S. 966, 122 S.Ct. 1384, 152 L.Ed.2d 375 (2002) ([T]o warrant habeas relief [i.e., to state a constitutional due process claim] because of incorrect jury instructions, Petitioner must show that the instructions, as a whole, were so infirm that they rendered the entire trial fundamentally unfair. Allegations of `trial error' raised in challenges to jury instructions are also reviewed under Brecht's harmless error standard.) (internal quotation marks and citations omitted). Moreover, the trial judge's decision to include an instruction regarding flight does seem to be based on evidence adduced at trial. Trial Tr. Vol. II at 413-14 (Test. of Jackie Robinson Harris) (noting Burton's statement that he planned to leave Lansing after a television news report identified Burton as a suspect in McClayton's murder). Thus, Burton's counsel on appeal could have reasoned that this argument lacked merit, and Burton has failed to show a reasonable probability that his conviction would have been reversed if this argument had been raised on direct appeal. As a result, Burton has not demonstrated constitutionally ineffective assistance of appellate counsel as cause to excuse procedural default. 73