Leach v. Commissioner of Correction

Citations

• 211 Conn. App. 663

Syllabus

The petitioner, who had been convicted, following a jury trial, of robbery in the first degree and assault in the first degree, sought a writ of habeas corpus, claiming that his trial counsel, R, had provided ineffective assistance as a result of R's failure to meaningfully explain the state's plea offer and to review and explain certain surveillance video evidence prior to plea negotiations and trial. Following a hearing, the habeas court denied the petition. Thereafter, the habeas court denied the petition for certification to appeal, and the petitioner appealed to this court. Held that the habeas court did not abuse its discretion in denying the petition for certification to appeal, the petitioner having failed to demonstrate that his claims involved issues that were debatable among jurists of reason, that a court could resolve the issues in a different manner or that the questions raised were adequate to deserve encouragement to proceed further: after a thorough review of the record and briefs, and based on the underlying facts as found by the habeas court, this court concluded that the habeas court properly found that R did not provide ineffective assistance of counsel, as the habeas court credited R's testi- mony that he explained the state's plea offer of six years of incarceration and that the petitioner understood the terms of the offer, the court did not credit the petitioner's testimony that he misunderstood the state's offer, the court found that R was generally aware of what the surveillance video depicted prior to viewing the video, R's failure to view the video before trial did not negate his pretrial discussions with the petitioner regarding the content of the video, and it was the petitioner who initially made R aware of the existence of the video; accordingly, R provided the petitioner with adequate information on which he could make an informed decision as to whether to accept or reject the state's plea offer. Argued February 8—officially released