Court Opinion

ID: 9704607
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 00:41:06.07722+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:22:03.576555
License: Public Domain

NIX, Justice,
concurring.
I agree with the majority that appellant’s claim for Post Conviction Relief was properly denied. The basis offered was ineffective assistance of trial counsel. The cited instances of asserted ineffectiveness were: (a) failure to object to the court’s allowance of the jury’s consideration of the indictments charging conspiracy, aggravated robbery, and burglary; and (b) failure to object to court’s charge as to the voluntary manslaughter bill of indictment.
Appellant contends that the non-homicide indictments and the voluntary manslaughter charge were defective because appellant was not properly arraigned on these indictments. From this premise, he proceeds to argue that counsel was ineffective in not attempting to exclude these charges from the jury’s consideration. In the direct appeal we determined that the arraignment procedures did not invalidate these charges. It therefore now must follow that counsel was not ineffective for pursuing a meritless claim.