Opinion ID: 749568
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Failure to Investigate Claim

Text: 44 Carrington argues that his counsel was ineffective because he failed to conduct a reasonable investigation of the case before persuading Carrington to plead guilty. Carrington argues that he told his counsel that he was not involved with the other defendants after late 1987, thus raising the viable defense of multiplicity. By this Carrington is arguing that with further investigation his counsel might have been able to establish that there was not one large conspiracy as alleged in the indictment, but several smaller ones. 45 Strickland, itself a guilty plea case, recognized that [j]udicial scrutiny of counsel's performance must be highly deferential. 466 U.S. at 689. Carrington does not overcome the strong presumption that counsel's conduct [fell] within the wide range of reasonable professional assistance. Id. Further, Carrington does not meet the prejudice requirement of Strickland, by demonstrating a reasonable probability that, but for his counsel's alleged unprofessional error, the result of the proceeding would have been different. Id. at 694. Carrington does not show show a reasonable probability that a further or more thorough investigation would have convinced Carrington not to plead guilty, or would have convinced his counsel to recommend against a guilty plea. Further Carrington does not show that he would have fared better by proceeding to trial. He does not show a reasonable probability that there were in fact multiple conspiracies and that he could have prevailed at trial on this theory. On the contrary, Carrington pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count alleged in the indictment. As we noted in the direct appeal, Carrington, in his motion to withdraw his guilty plea, argued that evidence indicating the existence of several smaller conspiracies, rather than one larger conspiracy alleged in the indictment, became available to him prior to sentencing.... Reading all the evidence in the light most favorable to him, the most it indicates is that his involvement in the conspiracy ended sometime in 1987. This is exactly what he admitted to in his plea colloquy. Carrington points to no new evidence that casts even remote doubt on the fact that he was involved in the distribution of 500 grams. United States v. Carrington, No. 90-30437, at 3-4 (9th Cir. April 9, 1992).