Court Opinion

ID: 9762966
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 02:34:31.638526+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:29:38.810416
License: Public Domain

KERN, Senior Judge,
concurring in the result:
A jury acquitted appellant, who was represented by retained counsel, of felony murder and convicted him of robbery. He launched a collateral attack on his conviction, as well as appealing such conviction on the merits, with the allegations that his trial attorney had been constitutionally ineffective and the judge during trial had made rulings prejudicial to him out of spite toward his attorney based upon an event occurring some years before. The trial judge in a memorandum opinion addressed and rejected appellant’s allegations quite persuasively in my view. Appellant renewed his allegations through appointed counsel who replaced the attorney appellant had retained for his trial. These allegations were based in part upon events occurring subsequent to the trial and “outside the four corners of the courtroom,” see In re Evans, 411 A.2d 984, 995 (D.C.1980). The unusual circumstances here reflect an undue focus on the trial judge rather than upon the trial itself. Accordingly, I agree that another attorney and judge are needed in order that the present proceedings may proceed to final determination with appropriate focus.