Doyle v. Jones

FILED
United States Court of Appeals
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS Tenth Circuit
December 19, 2011
TENTH CIRCUIT
Elisabeth A. Shumaker
Clerk of Court
TERRY WAYNE DOYLE,
Petitioner - Appellant,
No. 11-5052
v. (D.C. No. 4:07-CV-00507-CVE-TLW)
(N.D. Oklahoma)
JUSTIN JONES, Director,
Respondent - Appellee.
ORDER DENYING CERTIFICATE OF APPEALABILITY
Before KELLY, HARTZ, and HOLMES, Circuit Judges.
Applicant Terry Wayne Doyle filed an application under 28 U.S.C. § 2254in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma,
challenging his conviction and sentence in Oklahoma state court. The district
court denied the application. See Doyle v. Jones, No. 07-CV-0507-CVE-TLW,
2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26679 (N.D. Okla. March 15, 2011) (R., Vol. 1 pt. 2 at
386). He now seeks a certificate of appealability (COA) from this court to appeal
the denial. See 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(1)(A) (requiring a COA to appeal the denial
of a § 2254 application). We hold that he is not entitled to a COA and dismiss the
appeal.
I. BACKGROUND
On September 8, 2003, a Tulsa police officer pulled over a car driven by
Applicant. Applicant, the sole occupant of the car, threw a dark object out the
driver’s side window as he was slowing down. Officers recovered the object,
which was a handgun, and Applicant was arrested. He was charged in Oklahoma
state court with felonious possession of a firearm after former conviction of two
felonies. See Okla. Stat. Ann. tit. 21, § 1283 (West 2011). A jury found him
guilty and recommended a sentence of 50 years, which the trial judge imposed.
He obtained new counsel and unsuccessfully appealed his convictions and
sentence to the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals (OCCA). He later filed for
postconviction relief in the state trial court, but the court denied his claims. The
OCCA affirmed, disposing of some claims on the ground that they were
procedurally defaulted.
Applicant then filed his § 2254 application. It raised the following claims:
(1) his trial counsel provided ineffective assistance by unrealistically promising
an acquittal, failing to impeach the arresting officers by pointing to prior
inconsistent testimony and their contrary versions of some events, failing to point
out the absence of scratches on the gun allegedly thrown from his car, failing to
object to the forensic expert’s testimony that the gun was operable, and failing to
object to the introduction of his prior felony conviction during the guilt phase of
the trial; (2) evidence of his prior felony conviction was improperly admitted
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during the guilt stage of the trial; (3) his trial was fundamentally unfair because
of cumulative error; (4) his sentence was excessive; (5) his trial counsel was
ineffective for failure to conduct an adequate investigation, prepare for trial, and
consult with him as requested; (6) his trial counsel was ineffective for failure to
exercise peremptory challenges that he requested; (7) the prosecutor improperly
vouched for witnesses; (8) the prosecutor knowingly used perjured testimony; and
(9) his appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to raise several of the
preceding claims on direct appeal. The district court denied relief. See Doyle,
2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26679.
Applicant’s request for a COA pursues only his district-court claims of
ineffective assistance of appellate counsel (district-court claim 9) and trial
counsel (district-court claims 1, 5, and 6), cumulative error (district-court claim
3), and excessive sentence (district-court claim 4). He also argues two new
claims of ineffectiveness of trial counsel—failure to object to impermissible
prosecutorial vouching and failure to object to the prosecutor’s introduction of
perjured testimony. But we will not address the two claims because they were not
raised below. See Parker v. Scott, 394 F.3d 1302, 1327 (10th Cir. 2005).
II. DISCUSSION
A. Standard of Review
A COA will issue “only if the applicant has made a substantial showing of
the denial of a constitutional right.” 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2). This standard
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requires “a demonstration that . . . includes showing that reasonable jurists could
debate whether (or, for that matter, agree that) the [application] should have been
resolved in a different manner or that the issues presented were adequate to
deserve encouragement to proceed further.” Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473,
484 (2000) (internal quotation marks omitted). In other words, the applicant must
show that the district court’s resolution of the constitutional claim was either
“debatable or wrong.” Id.The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA)
provides that when a claim has been adjudicated on the merits in a state court, a
federal court can grant habeas relief only if the applicant establishes that the
state-court decision was “contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of,
clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the
United States,” or “was based on an unreasonable determination of the facts in
light of the evidence presented in the State court proceeding.” 28 U.S.C.
§ 2254(d)(1), (2). As we have explained:
Under the “contrary to” clause, we grant relief only if the state court
arrives at a conclusion opposite to that reached by the Supreme Court
on a question of law or if the state court decides a case differently
than the Court has on a set of materially indistinguishable facts.
Gipson v. Jordan, 376 F.3d 1193, 1196 (10th Cir. 2004) (brackets and internal
quotation marks omitted). Relief is provided under the “unreasonable
application” clause “only if the state court identifies the correct governing legal
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principle from the Supreme Court’s decisions but unreasonably applies that
principle to the facts of the prisoner’s case.” Id. (brackets and internal quotation
marks omitted). Thus, a federal court may not issue a habeas writ simply because
it concludes in its independent judgment that the relevant state-court decision
applied clearly established federal law erroneously or incorrectly. See id. Rather,
that application must have been unreasonable. For an applicant’s claims that have
been adjudicated on the merits by the state court, “AEDPA’s deferential treatment
of state court decisions must be incorporated into our consideration of [the]
request for [a] COA.” Dockins v. Hines, 374 F.3d 935, 938 (10th Cir. 2004).
We now turn to the issues raised in Applicant’s brief in support of a COA.
Although some of the issues were resolved by the OCCA and district court on the
ground of procedural bar, we will address them all on the merits.
B. Ineffective Assistance of Appellate Counsel
Applicant appears to contend that his counsel on his direct appeal to the
OCCA was ineffective for failing to argue (1) that his trial counsel was
ineffective because she stipulated to his prior felony conviction during the guilt
stage of the trial, (2) that trial counsel was ineffective because she failed to
investigate his claim that the police officers conspired to set him up, (3) that his
trial counsel was ineffective because she failed to consult with him as he
requested, (4) that his trial counsel was ineffective because she failed to exercise
peremptory challenges as he requested, (5) that the prosecutor engaged in
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impermissible vouching for witnesses, and (6) that the prosecutor knowingly used
perjured testimony.
To establish ineffective assistance of counsel, Applicant must show (1) that
his attorney’s performance “fell below an objective standard of reasonableness,”
Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687–88 (1984), and (2) that he suffered
prejudice, meaning that there is “a reasonable probability that, but for counsel’s
unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been different,” id.
at 694. Our review of counsel’s performance is “highly deferential,” to avoid the
distortion of hindsight; and we presume that counsel was effective unless the
defendant shows otherwise. Id. at 689–90. “[I]n analyzing an appellate
ineffectiveness claim based upon the failure to raise an issue on appeal, we look
at the merits of the omitted issue.” Cargle v. Mullin, 317 F.3d 1196, 1202 (10th
Cir. 2003) (internal quotation marks omitted). “[I]f the [omitted] issue is
meritless, its omission will not constitute deficient performance.” Id. As we
explain, no reasonable jurist could debate the correctness of the district court’s
dismissal of the claims of ineffective appellate counsel because on each claim
either deficient performance or prejudice was clearly not established by
Applicant.
1. Evidence of Prior Felony Conviction
Applicant appears to contend that his appellate counsel was ineffective for
not raising the claim that his trial counsel was ineffective for not challenging the
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introduction of evidence of his prior felony conviction during the guilt phase of
his trial. But Applicant could not have been prejudiced by that failure because
appellate counsel argued on appeal that admission of the conviction during the
guilt phase was error, and the OCCA rejected that argument on the merits. It
said:
[Applicant] concedes that the procedure used in this case comports
with our decision in Chapple v. State, . . . 866 P.2d 1213, 1216-17,
but asks this Court to reconsider Chapple, which we decline to do.
[Applicant] was not denied a fair trial by this procedure, and trial
counsel was not ineffective in failing to ask the trial court to
withhold all evidence of [Applicant]’s criminal history until the jury
had first determined whether he possessed a firearm.
Summ. Op at 2, Doyle v. State, No. F-2005-157 (Okla. Crim. App. March 10,
2006) (R., Vol. 1 pt. 2 at 266).
2. Investigation of Conspiracy
Applicant claims that his appellate counsel should have raised his trial
counsel’s failure to investigate the conspiracy by police officers to set him up.
But Applicant does not allege, nor does anything in the record in this court
suggest, any reason why appellate counsel should have thought that there had
been such a conspiracy. Counsel’s performance is not deficient for failing to
imagine theories and follow up on them.
3. Failure to Consult
Applicant argues that appellate counsel should have raised trial counsel’s
failure to consult with him after he made numerous requests to meet with her.
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But Applicant has made no showing of prejudice. He fails to describe what he
wished to discuss with trial counsel or how consultation would have affected his
defense. See United States v. Bolton, 905 F.2d 319, 324 (10th Cir. 1990).
4. Peremptory challenges
Applicant argues that appellate counsel was ineffective for not raising trial
counsel’s failure to exercise peremptory challenges. But he has not alleged that
any of the selected jurors were not impartial. See United States v. Taylor, 832
F.2d 1187, 1195–96 (10th Cir. 1987) (defendant failed to show prejudice from
failure to exercise peremptory challenges). Appellate counsel’s performance was
not deficient for failure to raise this claim when there was no possibility of
establishing prejudice.
5. Prosecutorial Vouching
Applicant argues that his appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to
raise the prosecutor’s impermissible vouching for witnesses. But he has failed to
point to any statements by the prosecutor that constituted vouching, and we have
found none.
6. Perjured Testimony
Applicant argues that appellate counsel was ineffective for not raising the
prosecutor’s knowing use of perjured testimony when he “allowed Officer Downs
and Officer Cab[a]llero to present testimony that the prosecution knew . . . was
blatantly contradictory of the witnesses[’] prior testimony given at [a] preliminary
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hearing that [was] also riddled with internal inconsistencies.” Aplt. Br. at 13.
But, as the district court noted, any inconsistencies in the testimony of the
officers were minor and “could be attributable to memory lapses as opposed to
deliberate fabrication rising to the level of perjury.” Doyle, 2011 U.S. Dist.
LEXIS 26679, at *23–24 (R., Vol. 1 pt. 2 at 378–79). On the record of this trial,
no appellate court could have sustained a claim that the prosecutor suborned
perjury.
C. Ineffective Assistance of Trial Counsel
Applicant argues that his trial counsel provided ineffective assistance by
permitting introduction of evidence of his prior felony conviction during the guilt
phase of his trial, failing to consult with him as he requested, and neglecting to
exercise peremptory challenges. But these arguments obviously fail for the
reasons stated above.
He also argues that trial counsel was ineffective for unrealistically
promising him an acquittal, failing to impeach the officers with their inconsistent
testimony, failing to argue the absence of scratches on the gun, failing to object to
evidence that the gun was capable of firing, and failing to investigate the
possibility that he was set up by the police. We address these arguments in turn.
1. Unrealistic Promise of Acquittal
Applicant claims that trial counsel provided ineffective assistance by
making an “‘unrealistic’ promise of acquittal.” Aplt. Br. at 19. He argues that
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she “provided ineffective assistance in failing to adequately advise him
concerning the relative merits or the pros and cons of accepting the State’s plea
offer versus going to trial and rec[e]iving up to a life sentence if convicted.” Id.
at 16.
The plea offer was made by the government at the outset of the trial. The
trial court explained the offer to Applicant; and when Applicant stated that he was
not sure whether he wanted to accept the offer, the court recessed to give him
time to consult with counsel. After consulting, Applicant told the court that he
wished to proceed to trial. In answer to questions from the court, he said that the
choice was his, not his lawyer’s. At sentencing, the trial court reviewed that
colloquy and Applicant confirmed that it was his choice not to accept the plea
offer. But when asked if he wished to tell the court anything else, he said, “Just
that [my attorney] told me that she could beat the case, that’s all. And I went off
of that.” R., Vol. 1 pt. 2 at 352.
When this issue was raised on direct appeal, the OCCA held that Applicant
failed “to demonstrate either that trial counsel misadvised him on the relative
merits of his options, or that counsel’s performance was professionally
unreasonable.” Summ. Op. at 2, Doyle, No. F-2005-157 (R., Vol. 1 pt. 2 at 266).
The OCCA’s ruling was not an unreasonable application of federal law to the
facts of the case. We note in particular that “could beat the case” does not mean
“would beat the case” and could refer to merely a possibility of success.
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Applicant relied solely on his one statement at sentencing and did not supplement
the record before the OCCA with any evidence regarding what his attorney
specifically had said to him.
2. Officers’ Inconsistent Testimony
Applicant points to two minor inconsistencies in testimony by Officers
Albert Caballero and Jeff Downs, who were present at his arrest. Both officers
testified at trial that Officer Caballero retrieved the gun; but at the preliminary
hearing, Officer Downs had testified that he was the one who had retrieved it.
And at trial Officer Downs testified that he removed a round from the gun’s
chamber and that “we also took the magazine out,” whereas Officer Caballero
testified that he cleared the weapon. R., Vol. 1 pt. 2 at 336.
Applicant complains that his trial counsel was ineffective in not pointing
out these inconsistencies to the jury. But reasonable jurists could certainly decide
that the inconsistencies were sufficiently minor that the prejudice prong of
Strickland was not satisfied. The OCCA’s rejection of this claim on the merits
was not contrary to or an unreasonable application of federal law.
3. Scratches on the Gun
Applicant argues that his trial counsel was ineffective for “failing to
challenge the lack of scratches on the gun,” Aplt. Br. at 19–20, which would
presumably have suggested that he did not throw the gun out of the car and that
the officers planted it. But there is no evidence in the record that the gun did not
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have scratches, and one officer testified that it was a “[l]ittle scraped up.” R.,
Vol. 1 pt. 2 at 340. The OCCA’s rejection of this claim on the merits was
therefore not unreasonable under federal law.
4. Testimony on Gun Being Operational
Applicant contends that his trial counsel was ineffective because she failed
to object to the testimony of a forensics firearms examiner that the gun was
functional. In his direct appeal Applicant argued that trial counsel should have
objected because the functionality of the gun was not an element of the crime.
We agree that the testimony was not particularly relevant (although it could
counter the theory that the gun had been abandoned by someone), but it was also
not unfairly prejudicial. We must defer to the reasonable decision of the OCCA
that Applicant had not shown “that [trial] counsel’s performance was
professionally unreasonable.” Summ. Op. at 2, Doyle, No. F-2005-157 (R., Vol. 1
pt. 2 at 266).
5. Investigation of Conspiracy
Applicant argues that his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to
investigate the conspiracy among the arresting officers and another officer to
plant the gun on him. He claims that he told trial counsel of his suspicions that
he was framed by the officers and that she “ignored [Applicant’s] concerns and
conducted no investigat[ion] on this information.” Aplt. Br. at 12.
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But Applicant has not shown prejudice from the failure to investigate
because he has not pointed to any evidence not already known that would have
been discovered through an investigation. See Harris v. Dinwiddie, 642 F.3d 902,
905 n.5 (10th Cir. 2011).
D. Cumulative Errors
Applicant argues that the cumulative effect of trial errors resulted in a
fundamentally unfair trial. On direct appeal the OCCA held that “because we
find no error in trial counsel’s performance or the trial itself, there can be no
accumulation of error,” Summ. Op. at 2, Doyle, No. F-2005-157 ®. Vol. 1 pt. 2 at
266). No reasonable jurist would determine that the district court’s rejection of
this claim was debatable or wrong.
E. Excessive Sentence
Applicant argues that a 50-year sentence for a “non-violent crime” by a
defendant who had “non-violent priors is constitutionally excessive under the
specific facts and circumstances of this case.” Aplt. Br. at 21. But “[w]e afford
wide discretion to the state trial court’s sentencing decision, and challenges to the
decision are not generally constitutionally cognizable, unless it is shown the
sentence imposed is outside the statutory limits or unauthorized by law.” Dennis
v. Poppel, 222 F.3d 1245, 1258 (10th Cir. 2000). Because the sentence “was
within the statutory range provided by Oklahoma law,” the district court denied
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relief. Doyle, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26679, at *28 (R., Vol. 1 pt. 2 at 381). No
reasonable jurist could debate the district court’s decision.
III. CONCLUSION
We DENY Applicant’s application for a COA and DISMISS this appeal.
ENTERED FOR THE COURT
Harris L Hartz
Circuit Judge
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