Court Opinion

ID: 9755926
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-28 21:00:20.292142+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:28:12.194517
License: Public Domain

Justice SAYLOR,
concurring.
As the majority emphasizes, Appellant’s appeal is premised upon the alleged failure of PCRA counsel to identify and assert meritorious post-conviction claims. Appellant acknowledges such basis by arguing in the opening section of his brief to this Court that he has a right to effective post-conviction counsel and that the applicable standard for demonstrating ineffectiveness on the part of PCRA counsel is the same as the burden for establishing relief under the PCRA, namely, that the unasserted claims are of arguable merit; that PCRA counsel’s failure to determine the existence of these claims *405constituted deficient performance; and that Appellant suffered prejudice. Appellant then proceeds to argue the strength or merit of the underlying issues and, in this regard, he frames and develops the claim concerning the failure to investigate and present available mitigation evidence by asserting that:
Trial counsel violated Appellant’s right to the effective assistance of counsel at his capital sentencing hearing as guaranteed by the Sixth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution and Article I, Sections 9 and 13 of the Pennsylvania Constitution by failing to investigate and present during (sic) penalty phase as mitigating evidence the readily available evidence of Appellant’s history of organic impairment, child abuse, domestic violence, family dysfunction, history of depression, and emotional trauma that impacted his behavior the night of the offenses. Likewise, Appellant’s PCRA counsel was also ineffective for failing to investigate and present these issues.
Appellant’s Brief at p. 40. Following such assertion, Appellant recites precedent from the United States Supreme Court concerning the importance of mitigating evidence, reiterates the three-part test for establishing a claim of ineffectiveness, and compares counsel’s penalty phase investigation and presentation in the present matter with that deemed deficient by the United States Supreme Court in Williams v. Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 120 S.Ct. 1495, 146 L.Ed.2d 389 (2000).
Appellant then quotes from affidavits provided by family members, specifically, his mother and brother, detailing childhood abuse and emotional trauma, and also from the findings and conclusions of a psychologist, who opines that Appellant suffers from organic impairment affecting his neurological functioning, in arguing that such evidence was readily available, is routinely relied upon by mental health experts in assessing the presence of mitigating factors, and meets the standards for mitigation. Respecting the reasonableness of counsel’s decision making and the resulting prejudice, Appellant maintains that:
*406[I]n this case it was not that such mitigating information could not be found, or that counsel made a reasoned decision to .withhold the information for tactical or strategic reasons. The information was not presented because counsel never took the time to develop it.
[I]n cases where sentencing counsel did not conduct enough investigation to formulate an accurate life profile of a defendant, counsel’s representation has consistently been held beneath professionally competent standards.
In this case, trial counsel and PCRA counsel failed to conduct any investigation into Mr. Clayton’s background, family history or psychiatric health. Accordingly, the jury was left with nothing to weigh against the aggravating factors submitted by the Commonwealth. The resulting sentence of death is thus unreliable and must be reversed. All prior counsel are ineffective for failing to raise this claim.
Appellant’s Brief at pp. 57-58 (quotations omitted). In this case, therefore, I would not conclude that Appellant’s claims are waived because his brief inadequately develops the basis for PCRA counsel’s actions and the existence of prejudice.1 Moreover, particularly where, as here, there has not been a hearing in which the issue of PCRA counsel’s ineffectiveness was presented and, correspondingly, an opportunity to explore counsel’s reasons for his actions, the principal method of demonstrating that counsel’s stewardship was deficient “lies in establishing the strength and obviousness of the underlying claim.” Commonwealth v. Williams, 566 Pa. 553, 567 n. 5, 782 A.2d 517, 526 n. 5 (2001).
*407Nevertheless, I do not believe that Appellant is entitled to relief or an evidentiary hearing, as record evidence belies his assertions. For example, concerning the mitigation claim, trial counsel retained a psychiatrist, Robert Sadoff, M.D., who evaluated Appellant and prepared a report, which was read into the record during the penalty proceeding and, although Dr. Sadoff concluded that Appellant did not suffer from any mental illness, his report included certain aspects of the family history presently emphasized. Notably, trial counsel chose to have the report introduced by stipulation so as to avoid having Dr. Sadoff cross-examined on the underlying premise for his opinion. Furthermore, trial counsel had a valid reason for not contacting Appellant’s mother, as Appellant refused to provide counsel with her telephone number or allow him to contact her. Accord Commonwealth v. Marinelli, 570 Pa. 622, 653-659, 810 A.2d 1257, 1275-77 (2002). Finally, Appellant’s brother testified in the penalty phase of the first trial and, as noted by the Commonwealth, a reasonable strategic basis existed for not presenting testimony from him at the second trial, since in the first trial he acknowledged that he had been robbed by Appellant, advised police where to find Appellant and warned them that Appellant had no respect for authority and might resist arrest, and refused to sign a statement to police and asked for their help because he feared Appellant.

. Parenthetically, I would note that, in the past, the Court has afforded a degree of latitude concerning the degree to which the stewardship of counsel on direct appeal was developed as part of a layered claim of ineffectiveness. See Commonwealth v. Marrero, 561 Pa. 100, 103-04 n. 1, 748 A.2d 202, 203-04 n. 1 (2000). More recently, the Court has cautioned that, to ensure merits review, PCRA counsel must develop in pleadings and briefs each facet of a layered ineffectiveness claim. See Commonwealth v. Williams, 566 Pa. 553, 566-67, 782 A.2d 517, 525-26 (2001). Here, however, Appellant's brief was filed prior to the decision in Williams.