Opinion ID: 1927414
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Failure to Call Witnesses Penalty Phase

Text: Appellant next contends that he should be awarded a new penalty hearing because his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to call five witnesses to testify about appellant's good character in order to establish the mitigating circumstance of any other evidence of mitigation. As noted above, in order to make a claim of ineffectiveness for failure to interview and/or present a witness, appellant must prove: (1) the existence and availability of the witness; (2) counsel's awareness of, or duty to know of the witness; (3) the witness' willingness and ability to cooperate and appear on behalf of appellant; and (4) the necessity of the proposed testimony in order to avoid prejudice. Stanley, 534 Pa. at 300, 632 A.2d at 872. The first witness appellant claims trial counsel should have interviewed and presented at his penalty hearing was Wanda Turner. Turner was an ex-girlfriend of appellant who stated that she would have testified for appellant if requested. If Turner had been called as a witness, she would have testified about her relationship with appellant, her observations of his relationship with his children and mother, and appellant's general good character. However, the trial court found that at the time of trial, appellant had lost touch with Turner and that he did not know where she was living. Thus, trial counsel cannot be deemed ineffective if the witness was unavailable and appellant could not provide him with information on how to locate the witness. See Commonwealth v. Clemmons, 505 Pa. 356, 365, 479 A.2d 955, 959 (1984) (trial counsel not ineffective when defendant did not provide him with the whereabouts of the witness); Commonwealth v. Walker, 540 Pa. 80, 96, 656 A.2d 90, 98 (1995) (reasonableness of counsel's investigative actions and actions during trial depends on the information supplied by the accused). Moreover, the evidence which Turner provided regarding appellant's relationship with his mother, children and other women was essentially the same evidence that was elicited at the penalty hearing from appellant's mother and the mother of one of appellant's children. [15] Trial counsel cannot be deemed ineffective for failing to pursue cumulative evidence of appellant's background. See Cross, 535 Pa. at 46, 634 A.2d at 177 (counsel cannot be deemed ineffective for failing to contact defendant's siblings when they would have added only cumulative evidence of defendant's childhood and background). Accordingly, trial counsel was not ineffective for failing to interview and call Wanda Turner as a witness at his penalty hearing. The next witness that appellant claims trial counsel should have interviewed and presented at his penalty hearing was Jamal Tyson. Tyson had known appellant for approximately nine years before the penalty hearing and he would have testified about appellant's good character in the form of the help appellant gave to Tyson and other members of the community. However, if Tyson had testified, it would have been revealed that Tyson moved from the neighborhood in which appellant lived in 1990 and that from the time Tyson moved until the date of the murder in 1993, Tyson had little or no contact with appellant. Also, trial counsel met with Tyson briefly on the morning of the penalty hearing and decided not to call Tyson or any of appellant's male friends to testify about appellant's character since he was of the opinion that none of appellant's male friends would make a good impression on the jury. Instead, trial counsel believed that evidence of appellant's good character would be most effectively conveyed to the jury through the females in appellant's life such as his mother or the mother of one of his children since they were the most knowledgeable witnesses who were least likely to be impeached by the Commonwealth. We find that such a strategy was reasonable. See Commonwealth v. Peterkin, 538 Pa. 455, 461-62, 649 A.2d 121, 124 (1994) (trial counsel not ineffective for not presenting certain mitigating character evidence since trial counsel had legitimate concerns that harmful effect of witnesses outweighed value of proposed character evidence). Accordingly, trial counsel was not ineffective for not calling Tyson as a character witness during the penalty phase of appellant's trial. Appellant next claims that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to interview and present Jamal Price at his penalty hearing. Price would have offered testimony that appellant treated Price as a brother and that appellant had a good reputation in the community. As noted above, trial counsel employed a reasonable trial strategy in deciding not to present any of appellant's male friends to testify about appellant's good character since he was of the opinion that none of appellant's male friends would make a good impression on the jury. As for Price specifically, we previously noted that trial counsel was aware that Price was willing to commit perjury in order to support appellant's initial claim that he had an alibi defense for the murder. [16] Also, if Price had testified, the Commonwealth would have been able to impeach Price with his previous conviction for retail theft. See Commonwealth v. Randall, 515 Pa. 410, 415, 528 A.2d 1326, 1329 (1987) (witnesses can be impeached with evidence of prior convictions if crime involved dishonesty or false statements). Based on this possible impeachment evidence, trial counsel employed a reasonable strategy in not calling Price as a witness. Accordingly, this claim of ineffectiveness must fail. Appellant next claims that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to call Alfonso Leak as a witness at his penalty hearing. Leak, appellant's half-brother, would have testified about his relationship with appellant and appellant's good relationship with his family. However, as previously noted, trial counsel's strategy not to present any testimony about appellant's character from appellant's male friends was reasonable. Also, at the time of trial, Leak was incarcerated at a federal prison in Allenwood for a federal conviction of making false statements in connection with purchasing a firearm and that conviction could have been used to impeach Leak's credibility if he had testified. See Randall, supra . Moreover, the testimony Leak would have offered about appellant's good character and family relationships would have been cumulative of that offered by appellant's mother and the mother of one of his children. Thus, appellant was not prejudiced by the failure to have Leak testify since counsel cannot be deemed ineffective for failing to pursue cumulative evidence. See Cross, 535 Pa. at 46, 634 A.2d at 177 (counsel cannot be deemed ineffective for failing to contact defendant's siblings when they would have added only cumulative evidence of defendant's childhood and background). Accordingly, this claim of ineffectiveness must fail. The final witness appellant claims his trial counsel should have interviewed and presented at his penalty hearing was Arnelle Howard. Howard was also the mother of one of appellant's children and she would have testified about appellant's good relationship with their child and her. Such testimony again would have been cumulative of the previous testimony offered at the penalty hearing by the mother of one of appellant's other children and counsel cannot be ineffective for failing to pursue cumulative evidence. See Cross, supra . Thus, trial counsel was not ineffective for failing to interview and present Howard as a character witness at his penalty hearing.