Court Opinion

ID: 9473416
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 04:29:24.794363+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:43:31.240588
License: Public Domain

ENGEL, Circuit Judge,
dissenting.
I respectfully dissent.
In our original opinion we stated “the issue presented is whether the petitioner was deprived of effective assistance of counsel when the trial judge denied petitioner’s repeated requests for substitute counsel.” Wilson v. Mintzes, 733 F.2d 424, 425 (6th Cir.1984). When the Supreme Court vacated that judgment and remanded for our consideration in light of Strickland v. Washington, — U.S. -, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984), the majority shifted ground away from the effective assistance issue and moved toward the Sixth Amendment denial of an accused’s right to counsel of his choice. The majority now asserts that “Wilson has not claimed that, and the parties have not argued whether, counsel was constitutionally ineffective. The [state] trial judge, however, apparently believed that counsel’s competency was implicated.” Actually, the issue as presented to the Michigan Court of Appeals was whether the trial court erred in “not granting a mistrial or holding a full hearing on the competency issue.” The same issue was stated in Wilson’s petition filed in the district court as “whether the trial court erred in failing to hold a full evidentiary hearing on the matter of competency of defense counsel.” Wilson’s brief to this court reflects a similar shift in emphasis from that in the state court and in his habeas petition in the district court:
*288Did the trial court err in failing to make further inquiry when the defendant expressed dissatisfaction with his retained counsel because of counsel’s extremely inappropriate behavior during trial and in failing to declare a mistrial so.that defendant could obtain counsel of his own choosing?
A careful reading of the record convinces me that the issue presented to us is best analyzed in terms of ineffective assistance of counsel rather than deprivation of the right to counsel. Although both rights are part and parcel of the guarantee of the Sixth Amendment, they address different concerns.
It must be remembered that counsel defending Wilson at the state trial was retained counsel, and until the intemperate outburst of the trial judge questioned counsel’s competence, there had not been one suggestion by the defendant of his dissatisfaction with his attorney. The suggestion that Mr. Wilson might want other counsel was initiated by the trial court in a fit of pique when it apparently misunderstood the state of preparation of Mr. Patterson, Wilson’s attorney. The trial court took Patterson’s statement that he had not examined the court record as meaning that he was not familiar with the court record. It later appeared that the court record had been fully copied by his office and that he had twice carefully examined all parts of that record and those documents so copied even though he had not done so by examining the original documents. It is evident that the trial court was rankled by the reversal of two trials recently held before him on the grounds of incompetence of counsel, and was highly sensitive to any suggestion that defense counsel was not prepared. Defense counsel, Mr. Patterson, was equally rankled by what he considered unjustified accusations and challenges to his competency. This triggered the outburst which has been so thoroughly spread upon the record in the majority opinion, and I certainly share in the observation that the outburst was unseemly, although most of it was out of the hearing of the jury.
It is evident to me, also, that while Mr. Wilson did express himself, after being prodded by the trial judge, as not being satisfied with trial counsel, his dissatisfaction was not so much with Patterson as with the events which had occurred the previous day and his concern about whether he would have a fair trial as a result of it. Thus the following colloquy:
THE COURT: And you’re satisfied with your lawyer, Mr. Wilson?
MR. PATTERSON: Let me make one last statement. I want to get this in the record—
DEFENDANT WILSON: No. I made a statement that I wasn’t satisfied.
THE COURT: You’re what?
DEFENDANT WILSON: I am not satisfied with the events that took place yesterday.
THE COURT: You may not be satisfied — I’m trying to protect your rights, Mr. Wilson. When I found out your lawyer, one, had never read the court file; two—
MR. PATTERSON: Upstairs.
THE COURT: Upstairs, although he may have a complete copy in his office; he probably does have but I’m not sure.
MR. PATTERSON: The Court’s calling me a liar?
THE COURT: No, I’m not calling you a liar; Í said you have never read the original court file. You made that statement on the record.
MR. PATTERSON: That’s right.
THE COURT: And at that time I wanted to bring that to Mr. Wilson’s attention because I think the minimum of any lawyer’s preparation is to look at the court file.
MR. PATTERSON: And I also indicated on the record yesterday, I had read our file and that I had read our file twice.
THE COURT: All right. This all took place outside the presence of the jury. The jury was not tainted in any way by the statements.
*289DEFENDANT WILSON: The jury saw what happened, what went on—
THE COURT: The record will show— the jury heard some statements made by your lawyer, not by the Court.
A fair reading of the record would indicate that it was the continuation of the trial itself in view of the circumstances, rather than unhappiness with Mr. Patterson, which evoked Wilson’s response. It is significant that when the trial resumed the next day Patterson was still there to represent Wilson. As far as I know, after this final outburst between Mr. Patterson and the trial judge, which was out of the hearing of the jury, the trial settled down. Thereafter, Mr. Patterson is not charged with any dereliction of his duty nor do I find any allegation that he was guilty of any misconduct. As the Michigan Court of Appeals observed, Mr. Wilson was still represented by the same firm at the time the appeal was perfected to the Michigan Court of Appeals.
Other than the outburst recited in the majority opinion, Mr. Patterson’s representation of Mr. Wilson throughout the trial was skilled and aggressive and did not evidence any neglect or incompetence. Aside from the one witness whom he refused to cross-examine, Patterson appears to have examined the other government witnesses, to have called some witnesses of his own, and to have made a competent closing argument to the jury. Even at the height of his outbursts, Patterson was careful to move for a mistrial because of the court’s perceived misconduct.
The Michigan Court of Appeals carefully considered the precise issue presented to it and now to us — whether the trial court erred in failing to declare a mistrial or to hold a full hearing on the question of the competence of counsel. Because the court’s analysis is instructivo, I quote it in full:
Defendant next maintains that after the court raised the issue of defense counsel’s competency and defendant indicated that he was not satisfied with his lawyer, it erred in not granting a mistrial or holding a full hearing on the competency issue.
The granting of a mistrial is within the sound discretion of the trial court, People v. Talaga, 37 Mich.App. 100, 102, 194 N.W.2d 462 (1971), and the court’s discretionary decision will not be set aside unless resulting prejudice to the defendant is demonstrated. A careful reading of this record demonstrates no prejudice to the defendant arising out of the court’s refusal to grant a mistrial. The inflammatory exchange between the court and counsel occurred in substantial [sic] was resolved when counsel continued with the trial the following morning.
However, the troublesome issue remains. The trial court asked the defendant twice if he was satisfied with counsel and both times received a negative answer. In People v. Wilson, 397 Mich. 76, 243 N.W.2d 257 (1976), the Court held that a defendant was entitled to substitution of appointed counsel for “good cause” and where the judicial process would not be disrupted. While counsel in the instant case was retained, no less a standard would seem to apply. Further, Wilson also indicated that the application of this substitution standard was left to the discretion of the court. Here, although the judge raised the competency issue and the defendant indicated his agreement with the court’s seeming dissatisfaction with counsel, the following day the trial continued without either the court or defendant pursuing the concerns raised earlier in the proceedings. Thus, it would appear that both the court and the defendant had resolved their doubts in favor of counsel. We have reviewed the record and find that a skillful defense was conducted. It is noted that defendant is still represented by the same firm, proper briefs have been filed for his appeal, and oral argument was exceedingly well presented in the matter.
Considering the lack of demonstrable prejudice to defendant’s case by the court’s failure to hold a hearing on the issue of competency, we decline to set *290aside the jury’s decision where there was sufficient evidence to support their findings. We do so acknowledging that the court, in general, was abrasive, but noting that its conduct was not reserved for defendant and his attorney alone.
People v. Wilson, No. 77-613, slip op. at 2-3 (Mich.App. Nov. 8, 1978).
In Beasley v. United States, 491 F.2d 687 (6th Cir.1974), our court abandoned the “farce and mockery” standard as a meaningful test of the Sixth Amendment right to effective assistance of counsel in favor of the right to “counsel reasonably likely to render and rendering reasonably effective assistance.” Id. at 696. The court then stated that “[djefense counsel must perform at least as well as a lawyer with ordinary training and skill in the criminal law and must conscientiously protect his client’s interest, undeflected by conflicting considerations.” Id. Judge Celebrezze went on to hold that under the facts, petitioner Beasley had not received effective assistance of counsel before and during trial because potentially exonerating defenses were not explored and were not developed. “Because Petitioner was represented by incompetent and ineffective counsel, his conviction cannot stand. Harmless error tests do not apply in regard to the deprivation of a procedural right so fundamental as the effective assistance of counsel.” Id.
In applying the test of Beasley to the present case, the performance of defense counsel during the unseemly outburst did not, in my opinion, conform to Beasley’s standards. It was true that the record showed Patterson to have been generally competent and in fact to have been prepared for trial, and we are pointed to no defense which was neglected. On the other hand, his conduct during the outburst which extended even to comments in front of the jury, cannot be justified and in my opinion, and that of the rest of the panel, did not conform to that which would be expected of a “lawyer with ordinary training and skill in the criminal law” and who “must conscientiously protect his client’s interest, undeflected by conflicting considerations.” Having said as much, however, it is apparent that the remainder of the test in Beasley with respect to harmless error, has been considerably modified by Strickland. It is at this point where I disagree with the majority, although much of its comment is indeed well taken and is juris-prudentially sound.
The majority seems to analyze the conduct complained of as amounting to the attorney’s abandonment, for his own interest, of the interest of his client. Once this is shown, the majority concludes that “[t]he prejudice prong of Strickland, therefore, has no applicability to counsel of choice cases since, unlike the right to counsel of choice, ‘the right to the effective assistance of counsel is recognized not for its own sake, but because of the effect it has on the ability of the accused to receive a fair trial.’ [United States v. ] Cronic, 104 S.Ct. [2039, 2046 (1984)]”
Because counsel for the defendant was privately retained, because the question of a change of counsel was first suggested not by the defendant but by the court in a fit of pique, and because it is apparent upon the record that the defendant’s unhappiness was not with his counsel but with the event itself and particularly with the court’s outburst and its effect upon the jury, I believe that this case is best analyzed in terms of ineffective assistance. The outburst of Mr. Patterson was just that — ineffective assistance. The outburst amounted to attorney misconduct. It was not directed in anger at his client; indeed in the course of it, Mr. Patterson was careful to make motion for a mistrial.
The majority found as it did earlier that “[fit is clear that counsel’s loyalty to its own interest rather than those of his client adversely affected his performance in terms of appearance before the jury as well as his tactical conduct of the case.” This is true only in the sense that any misconduct of defense counsel would be adverse to his client’s best interest. There was no real conflict of interest apparent between the interest of Mr. Patterson and the interest *291of Mr. Wilson. He possessed no loyalty to some other client. His ego had simply been bruised by the comments of the trial judge and he responded vehemently. At no time did he suggest that he was disaffected from the interest of his client or that his loyalty was otherwise directed. In fact, after court resumed the following day matters improved considerably.
It seems to me that this aspect of the appeal is very carefully addressed by Justice O’Connor in Strickland. After observing that “[a]n error by counsel, even if professionally unreasonable, does not warrant setting aside the judgment of a criminal proceeding if the error had no effect on the judgment,” 104 S.Ct. at 2067, Justice O’Connor then goes on to discuss the question of presumption of prejudice:
One type of actual ineffectiveness claim warrants a similar, though more limited, presumption of prejudice. In Cuyler v. Sullivan, 446 U.S., at 345-350, 90 S.Ct., at 1716-1719, the Court held that prejudice is presumed when counsel is burdened by an actual conflict of interest. In those circumstances, counsel breaches the duty of loyalty, perhaps the most basic of counsel’s duties. Moreover, it is difficult to measure the precise effect on the defense of representation corrupted by conflicting interests. Given the obligation of counsel to avoid conflicts of interest and the ability of trial courts to make early inquiry in certain situations likely to give rise to conflicts, see, e.g., Fed.Rule Crim.Proc. 44(c), it is reasonable for the criminal justice system to maintain a fairly rigid rule of presumed prejudice for conflicts of interest. Even so, the rule is not quite the per se rule of prejudice that exists for the Sixth Amendment claims mentioned above. Prejudice is presumed only if the defendant demonstrates that counsel “actively represented conflicting interests” and “that an actual conflict of interest adversely affected his lawyer’s performance.” Cuyler v. Sullivan, supra, 446 U.S., at 350, 348, 90 S.Ct., at 1719, 1718 (footnote omitted).
Conflict of interest claims aside, actual ineffectiveness claims alleging a deficiency in attorney performance are subject to a general requirement that the defendant affirmatively prove prejudice. The government is not responsible for, and hence not able to prevent, attorney errors that will result in reversal of a conviction or sentence. Attorney errors come in an infinite variety and are as likely to be utterly harmless in a particular case as they are to be prejudicial. They cannot be classified according to likelihood of causing prejudice. Nor can they be defined with sufficient precision to inform defense attorneys correctly just what conduct to avoid. Representation is an art, and an act or omission that is unprofessional in one case may be sound or even brilliant in another. Even if a defendant shows that particular errors of counsel were unreasonable, therefore, the defendant must show that they actually had an adverse effect on the defense.
104 S.Ct. at 2067 (emphasis added). I, therefore, conclude that Strickland requires us to examine the record of the state proceedings in terms of whether the defendant has carried his burden of showing “that there is a reasonable probability that, but for counsel’s unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been different. A reasonable probability is a probability sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome.” Id. at 2068. So viewing the case, I find myself more in accord with the conclusions of the Michigan Court of Appeals and of Judge Joiner in the District Court. By the time the trial had resumed and additional witnesses had been put on, the court and counsel had considerably cooled down. Mr. Patterson resumed his vigorous cross-examination of the witnesses, and he participated fully and aggressively in the remainder of the trial. There was nothing in the outburst which in fact reflected upon the guilt or innocence of Mr. Wilson. The outburst might even have produced considerable sympathy in the jury for the plight of Mr. Wilson. Certainly nothing the trial judge said was di*292rected to the question of Mr. Wilson’s guilt or innocence or even implied his involvement or fault in the fracas. Adequate precautionary instructions were given. The trial judge instructed the jury as follows:
Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I previously instructed you that the questions that the attorneys ask are not evidence, and the evidence is the answers supplied by the witnesses. Likewise, pri- or to starting this trial, I told you that an attorney had a duty to make objections, and then it is the duty of the Court to rule on the objections, and I wish to emphasize the conduct of the attorney for the other side should not reflect upon the client.
You should decide this case not on what that attorney asks, what the attorney says, the attorneys’ arguments, and questions, but, the case should be decided solely upon the testimony of the witnesses, and the six exhibits that have been admitted into the case, or seven exhibits that have been admitted into this case.
Have any members of the jury been prejudiced or biased because of the conduct, in any way, of the attorneys, during the course of this trial, either one side or the other, anything that the attorneys have done, that would effect your decision?
Would you all reach and decide this case solely upon the evidence, the testimony of the witnesses, not the arguments of the attorneys, and, certainly, the arguments are to direct your attention to the evidence, but the evidence, itself, that is what you are concerned with, and not the arguments.
The defense made on behalf of Mr. Wilson although not successful was a logical one. It was his position that the complaining witness was a prostitute, that Mr. Wilson had purchased her favors, that she had voluntarily dispensed them but became perturbed when Mr. Wilson turned out to be $5.00 short of the specified fee. A competent witness was put on in support of that defense and a good argument was made. Under these circumstances, therefore, I would conclude that the defendant has not shown nor does the record show a reasonable probability that but for the unprofessional conduct of Mr. Patterson, the result of the proceeding would have been different. Although they did not possess at the time the standards articulated in Strickland, the Michigan Court of Appeals and the district court in their opinion clearly reflect substantially the same judgment. I would therefore affirm the judgment of the district court.