Opinion ID: 6348829
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Ineﬀective Assistance of Counsel on Remand

Text: Next, we consider whether Westray is entitled to habeas relief for his claim of ineﬀective assistance on remand. Westray argues that Lewis, his counsel on remand, did not raise Broeking’s ineﬀectiveness in the amended motion to withdraw guilty plea. Again, we review “a district court’s de‐ nial of a petition for habeas corpus de novo and findings of fact for clear error.” Felton, 926 F.3d at 464 (citation omitted). Both parties agree that this second Strickland claim rises and falls with Westray’s first Strickland claim. The district court rejected this second claim, stating that counsel “did in fact raise the issue” in the amended motion to withdraw guilty plea, which states that Westray “was denied the eﬀec‐ tive assistance of trial counsel, because trial counsel failed to conduct a reasonable investigation into mitigation evidence and circumstances of the Defendant.” The court dismissed this ground for relief because it was factually incorrect and Westray oﬀered no reasoned explanation for his argument. We agree with the district court that Lewis raised Broeking’s alleged ineﬀectiveness in the amended motion to withdraw Westray’s guilty plea. As discussed above, the amended motion’s second claim states that trial counsel “failed to conduct a reasonable investigation into mitigation evidence and circumstances” of Westray. Lewis raised the ex‐ act claim Westray now argues he is ineﬀective for having failed to raise. His argument is thus factually inaccurate. No. 20‐3260 29 Further, the claim that Lewis was ineﬀective on remand necessarily fails because the underlying claim for ineﬀective assistance of trial counsel fails. Simply put, Lewis cannot be ineﬀective for failing to raise what would have been an un‐ successful ineﬀective assistance of counsel claim. We agree with both advocates in this case—the two Strickland claims rise and fall together. Because Broeking was not ineﬀective, Lewis also was not ineﬀective. The district court correctly de‐ nied this second ineﬀective assistance of counsel claim.