Atkinson v. Schmidt ( 2012 )

FILED
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS June 28, 2012
Elisabeth A. Shumaker
TENTH CIRCUIT Clerk of Court
SHAWN ATKINSON,
Petitioner-Appellant,
No. 12-3039
v. (D.C. No. 5:10-CV-0317-SAC)
(D. of Kan.)
DEREK SCHMIDT, Attorney General
of State of Kansas,
Respondent-Appellee.
ORDER DENYING CERTIFICATE OF APPEALABILITY *
Before KELLY, TYMKOVICH, and GORSUCH, Circuit Judges. **
Shawn Atkinson, a Kansas state prisoner, seeks a certificate of
appealability (COA) to enable him to appeal the district court’s dismissal of his
28 U.S.C. § 2254 petition. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1291 and
2253(a), and we construe Atkinson’s filing liberally because he is proceeding pro
se. See Hall v. Bellmon, 935 F.2d 1106, 1110 & n.3 (10th Cir. 1991).
*
This order is not binding precedent except under the doctrines of law of
the case, res judicata and collateral estoppel. It may be cited, however, for its
persuasive value consistent with Fed. R. App. P. 32.1 and 10th Cir. R. 32.1.
**
After examining the briefs and the appellate record, this three-judge
panel has determined unanimously that oral argument would not be of material
assistance in the determination of this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a); 10th
Cir. R. 34.1(G). The cause is therefore ordered submitted without oral argument.
Nonetheless, no reasonable jurist could conclude the district court’s
dismissal was incorrect. See Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473, 484 (2000).
Accordingly, we DENY the application for a COA and DISMISS the appeal.
I. Facts
Atkinson was convicted of one count of rape in Kansas state court and
sentenced to 155 months’ imprisonment. The Kansas Court of Appeals affirmed
the conviction and sentence. State v. Atkinson, 92 P.3d 1147 (Kan. Ct. App.
2004) (unpublished table decision) (Atkinson I). The state district court denied
Atkinson’s motion for post-conviction relief pursuant to K.S.A. § 60-1507, and
the Kansas Court of Appeals affirmed the denial. Atkinson v. State, 195 P.3d 291(Kan. Ct. App. 2008) (unpublished table decision) (Atkinson II). Atkinson then
sought federal habeas relief on the basis of ineffective assistance of counsel in his
state criminal case.
Atkinson argued that his counsel was ineffective for two reasons, (1)
failing to advise him of the potential sentence for a rape conviction, causing him
to reject a plea offer; and (2) failing to object to the admission of a rape kit as
evidence in his criminal trial. The Kansas Court of Appeals previously reviewed
both claims on the merits, and the district court below denied Atkinson’s motion
for relief. Atkinson’s petition for a COA raises only the first issue, whether
counsel provided ineffective assistance during a plea negotiation.
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II. Discussion
The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) conditions a
petitioner’s right to appeal a denial of habeas relief under § 2254 upon a grant of
a COA. 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(1)(A). To receive a COA, the applicant must
demonstrate a “substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right.” Id. at
§ 2253(c)(2). When the district court denies a habeas petition on procedural
grounds, a COA should issue only when the prisoner shows that “jurists of reason
would find it debatable whether the petition states a valid claim of the denial of a
constitutional right and that jurists of reason would find it debatable whether the
district court was correct in its procedural ruling.” Slack, 529 U.S. at 484.
When a state court has adjudicated a claim on the merits, as here, a federal
court may grant habeas relief only if the state court’s adjudication “(1) resulted in
a decision that was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of,
clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court,” or (2)
“resulted in a decision that was based on an unreasonable determination of facts
in light of the evidence presented in the state court proceeding.” 28 U.S.C.
§ 2254(d); Williams v. Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 404–05 (2000). A state court’s
factual findings are presumed to be correct, absent clear and convincing evidence
to the contrary. 28 U.S.C. § 2254(e)(1).
Atkinson claims that his retained defense counsel was ineffective for failing
to advise him of the potential sentence for a rape conviction, and encouraging him
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to reject the state’s offer, which would have reduced the charge to a Class B
misdemeanor for battery and a one-year term of unsupervised probation, in
exchange for a guilty plea.
The Sixth Amendment guarantees the right of a state criminal defendant to
effective assistance of counsel. Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 685-86
(1984). To demonstrate a constitutional violation, the petitioner must show that
counsel’s performance was deficient, and that the defendant was prejudiced by the
deficient performance. Id. at 687. This two-pronged approach also applies to the
plea bargaining process. Hill v. Lockhart, 474 U.S. 52, 57 (1985); Williams v.
Jones, 571 F.3d 1086, 1091 (10th Cir. 2009). But “[i]f it is easier to dispose of
an ineffectiveness claim on the ground of lack of sufficient prejudice . . . that
course should be followed,” and counsel’s performance does not need to be
assessed. Strickland, 466 U.S. at 697.
The record confirms that Atkinson was made aware of the state’s offer
immediately prior to trial, and had time to discuss it with counsel and with his
family. Atkinson claims trial counsel suggested he reject the offer—he testified
at an evidentiary hearing that he asked counsel: “Man, take a plea for something I
didn’t do, what would you do? . . . and he [said] . . . stand for what you believe
in. If you’re innocent, stand for your innocence.” R., Vol. III, Case No. 04-CV-
3478, Tr. of Hearing, 108. At the hearing, Atkinson’s counsel recalled that he
advised him to “not plea[d] to something that he didn’t do.” Id. at 70. When
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questioned, Atkinson admitted that he understood rape to be a “serious matter,”
despite not knowing the exact sentencing guidelines, and that even if he had
known that he was facing 155 months’ imprisonment, he was unable to say, with
any certainty, whether he would have accepted any plea, much less the particular
one offered. Id. at 130-31.
Notably, as detailed by the state court, Atkinson maintained his innocence
before, during, and after the trial, steadfastly maintaining that the events in this
case were consensual rather than rape. Atkinson II, at *4-5. 1 On these grounds,
the state court held: “Atkinson repeatedly and firmly claimed his innocence in
this matter and desired a jury trial to obtain an acquittal . . . . Under these
circumstances, Atkinson has not shown a reasonable probability that, but for his
attorney’s failure to inform him of the potential sentence for rape, he would have
accepted the State’s plea offer . . . . [therefore, the] conclusion of law that
Atkinson failed to establish prejudice in this regard was supported by substantial
evidence.” Id. at *7. Since there was no prejudice, the state court stated it was
unnecessary to consider counsel’s performance. The district court below denied
relief on the same grounds, finding that the state court adequately identified the
correct legal standard and applied it reasonably, and we agree.
1
In his brief to this court, Atkinson continues to describe his conviction as
obtained “despite his steadfast assertions of innocence.” Aplt. Br. at 1.
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To satisfy the Strickland prejudice prong, “there must be a reasonable
probability that but for incompetent counsel a defendant would have accepted the
plea offer and pleaded guilty.” United States v. Carter, 130 F.3d 1432, 1442
(10th Cir. 1997) (citing Hill, 474 U.S. at 59). The Supreme Court recently
reexamined the scope of effective assistance of counsel in a pair of cases, Frye v.
Missouri, 132 S. Ct. 1399 (2012), and Lafler v. Cooper, 132 S. Ct. 1376 (2012).
In Frye, the Court held that defense counsel has an affirmative duty to
communicate favorable plea offers to a defendant. 132 S. Ct. at 1408. There is
no question that Atkinson’s counsel communicated the plea offer prior to trial and
that Atkinson had a chance to consider it prior to rejecting the offer. More
relevant here, in Lafler, the Court held that to satisfy the Strickland prejudice
prong, a defendant needs to show that “but for the ineffective advice of counsel
there is a reasonable probability that the plea offer would have been presented to
the court (i.e., that the defendant would have accepted the plea and the
prosecution would not have withdrawn it in light of intervening circumstances),
that the court would have accepted its terms, and that the conviction or sentence,
or both, under the offer’s terms would have been less severe than under the
judgment and sentence that in fact were imposed.” 132 S. Ct. at 1385.
As the district court found, Atkinson’s petition fails at the first step. In
Lafler, in a communication to the court, the defendant “admitted guilt and
expressed a willingness to accept the [plea] offer.” Id. at 1383. Here, Atkinson
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acknowledged his sexual encounter with the victim, but contended before, during,
and after trial that it was consensual. In essence, the case turned on the
credibility of the victim against Atkinson, and the jury found the victim to be
more credible. As a result, this case is easily distinguishable from Lafler on the
grounds that Atkinson was unable to meet the “but for” requirement that he would
have accepted the plea, and so the state court’s determination that he is unable to
demonstrate prejudice under Strickland is not objectively unreasonable. See also
Carter, 130 F.3d at 1437-38 (denying relief when counsel advises defendant to
accept a plea offer and defendant declines to do so); Reynolds v. Hannigan, No.
95-3559-DES, 1999 WL 33177300, at *4 (D. Kan. Mar. 22, 1999) (denying
habeas relief when record is clear that defendant would have proceeded to trial
after maintaining his innocence, despite a very favorable plea offer).
AEDPA requires that we defer to the state court’s application of Strickland
unless no reasonable jurist could agree with that result. We cannot do so based
on our own evaluation of the record and applicable law. Accordingly, Atkinson is
not entitled to federal habeas relief.
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III. Conclusion
Based on the foregoing analysis, we DENY Atkinson’s request for a COA
and DISMISS his appeal.
Entered for the Court,
Timothy M. Tymkovich
Circuit Judge
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