Court Opinion

ID: 9640541
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 17:07:54.716857+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:10:30.649581
License: Public Domain

John I. Purtle, Justice, dissenting. The United States Constitution requires that an accused be convicted only upon evidence which goes beyond a reasonable doubt. The Constitution further requires that an accused be furnished effective assistance of counsel. In the present case the issue of the sufficiency of the evidence to support a conviction for rape was not brought to the attention of the trial court. It was the duty of defense counsel to have done so. The Court of Appeals did not reach the issue due to the defense attorney’s failure to question the sufficiency before the trial court. In the present decision this court does not reach the issue — this time on the basis that there is no constitutional right to a post-conviction proceeding. Even though the opinion pretends not to reach the issue of the sufficiency of the evidence, the majority points out in much detail the evidence to support the verdict without allowing petitioner to challenge the sufficiency of the evidence. What is the purpose of reciting the facts if we are not going to review them? It seems to me that the opinion is doing exactly what it states cannot be done in this case. The opinion states that “there is evidence to support both convictions.” What do these words mean if they do not mean the evidence was sufficient to sustain the conviction? Likewise, the ineffective assistance claim is evaded by holding that it cannot be included in a claim challenging the sufficiency of the evidence. A claim of ineffective assistance of counsel usually cannot be made until after trial. The vast majority of our Rule 37 petitions claim ineffective assistance ,of counsel. The petitioner is consequently denied a hearing on the merits of either issue. We ought not to cover up the denial of a constitutional right under the guise that there is no constitutional right to a post-conviction proceeding. We should allow the petitioner to argue the ineffective assistance issue to the trial court pursuant to his Rule 37 petition as that is the normal procedure. After all, he has already been denied a direct appeal concerning the sufficiency of the evidence. This is a real “Catch 22.” The opinion appears to have ruled on both issues without considering the merits of either. Not one court — not the trial court, not the Court of Appeals, nor this court — has directly addressed the issue of whether petitioner’s rape conviction was supported by evidence proving the state’s case beyond a reasonable doubt. Not one court has reached the issue of ineffective assistance of counsel on its merits. I believe that the petitioner has been denied due process of law. I would grant the petition for Rule 37 relief and allow him to proceed in the trial court.