DocketNumber: AC 20996
Citation Numbers: 66 Conn. App. 872
Filed Date: 11/13/2001
Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 9/8/2022
Opinion
The petitioner appeals following the denial by the habeas court of his petition for certification to appeal from the court’s denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus. After a review of the record and briefs, we conclude that the petitioner has failed to make a substantial showing that he has been denied a state or federal constitutional right and, further, has failed to sustain his burden of persuasion that the denial of certification to appeal was a clear abuse of discretion or that an injustice has been done. See Simms v. Warden, 230 Conn. 608, 612, 646 A.2d 126 (1994); Simms v. Warden, 229 Conn. 178, 189, 640 A.2d 601 (1994); Walker v. Commissioner of Correction, 38 Conn. App. 99, 100, 659 A.2d 195, cert. denied, 234 Conn. 920, 661 A.2d 100 (1995); see also Lozada v. Deeds, 498 U.S. 430, 431-32, 111 S. Ct. 860, 112 L. Ed. 2d 956 (1991). We therefore dismiss the appeal.
The habeas court’s denial of the petition for a writ of habeas coipus was predicated on a factual review of the petitioner’s claim that he was denied the effective assistance of counsel and a determination that the petitioner had failed to rebut the strong presumption that “counsel’s conduct f[ell] within the wide range of rea
In his petition for a writ of habeas corpus, the petitioner claimed that his trial counsel was ineffective in entering his plea because counsel failed (1) to have the petitioner examined for psychological or psychiatric conditions that impaired his ability to understand the charges and proceedings, (2) to request a competency examination prior to his plea, despite requesting a drug and alcohol abuse evaluation prior to sentencing, and (3) to investigate potential defenses, most specifically intoxication and diminished capacity.
Following a hearing and review of the transcript of the plea proceeding, the habeas court found that the petitioner had been charged in two informations with multiple counts of robbery in the first degree, along with other charges, arising from incidents that occurred in Middletown and East Hampton. Due to the strength of the state’s case against him
The petitioner wrote to the trial court and made certain allegations about his counsel. Consequently, his public defender withdrew from the case and gave his file, including the psychologist’s report, to a special public defender who represented the petitioner at sentencing. He was sentenced to eight years imprisonment in accordance with the plea agreement.
The habeas court concluded that the petitioner failed to meet the two-pronged test set forth in Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S. Ct. 2052, 80 L. Ed. 2d 674 (1984). The petitioner presented no evidence that his counsel’s performance was not reasonably competent or within the range of competence expected of attorneys with ordinary training and skill in the criminal law. There was no basis for the habeas court to conclude that the petitioner’s counsel had reason to believe that he should have requested a competency hearing for the petitioner. The evidence overwhelmingly established that the petitioner had a rational and factual understanding of the proceedings against him and was able
We conclude that the habeas court had before it sufficient evidence to find as it did and that it did not abuse its discretion in denying the petition for certification to appeal.
The appeal is dismissed.
The petitioner confessed, and the state had surveillance videotapes of one of the incidents.
North Carolina v. Alford, 400 U.S. 25, 91 S. Ct. 160, 27 L. Ed. 2d 162 (1970).