Opinion ID: 1604539
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: ineffective assistance in failing to provide competency experts with sweet's background information

Text: In Sweet's fourth claim, he contends that Adams rendered ineffective assistance in failing to provide Dr. Miller and Maritza Cabrera with information concerning Sweet's background. The trial court rejected this claim, concluding: This Court appointed two independent mental health professionals to examine the defendant, Dr. Ernest C. Miller, M.D., and Maritza Cabrera, M.A., CRC.... The [professionals'] report shows that the examiners were, in fact, aware of much of the information that the defendant contends his counsel did not provide them with. The information in the report is stated in concise summarizations, as opposed to being recited in the detail that the defendant has stated it in his motion. The defendant did not call Dr. Miller as a witness at the hearing to establish his alleged lack of adequate information; rather, the State called Dr. Miller and established that his opinion would not have been different even when specifically considering the facts not specifically noted in his report. Therefore, this Court finds that the evidence failed to establish any prejudice to the defendant's mental health examination. (Emphasis supplied.) The trial court's factual conclusions are supported by competent substantial evidence and we likewise conclude that Sweet has failed to demonstrate any prejudice. See Patton v. State, 784 So.2d 380, 393 (Fla.2000) (holding that defendant failed to demonstrate actual prejudice where competency expert testified that his opinion would not have changed even after considering additional information). In a related claim, Sweet asserts that the mental health professionals who examined him failed to render adequate mental health assistance. Sweet contends that the professionals relied almost exclusively on what Adams provided, which was inadequate, and did not conduct an independent investigation into Sweet's family history. Sweet contends that the professionals might have reached a different conclusion as to Sweet's competency if they had engaged in a more thorough investigation of Sweet's background. However, because there is no evidence to support the conclusion that either of the experts' opinions would have changed regarding competency, we reject this claim.