Thompson v. State

383 S.E.2d 339, 191 Ga. App. 906, 1989 Ga. App. LEXIS 852
Court of Appeals of Georgia·Decided May 31, 1989·No. A89A0125·Published·Cited by 22 cases

Opinion

Benham, Judge.

Appellant was convicted of rape, aggravated sodomy, and burglary. He appeals from the denial of his motion for new trial, raising three enumerations of error. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

1. Appellant complains that he was denied effective assistance of counsel during his trial. He contends that his trial attorney did not consult with him about jury selection and that the attorney presented a character witness whose testimony led to the introduction of unfavorable evidence. “ ‘ “To establish that there has been actual ineffective assistance of counsel, the defendant must show that counsel’s performance was deficient and that the deficiency prejudiced the defense. In order to prove the defense has been prejudiced, defendant must show there is a reasonable probability that the result of the proceedings would have been different but for counsel’s unprofessional deficiencies. [Cits.]” ’ ‘The complaining defendant must make both showings. His failure “to establish either the performance or the prejudice component results in denial of his Sixth Amendment claim.” [Cit.] A reviewing court need not “address both components if the defendant makes an insufficient showing on one,” (cit.), nor must the components be addressed in any particular order. (Cit.)’ ” Prophitt v. State, 191 Ga. App. 5 (2) (381 SE2d 83) (1989).

“ ‘ “The decisions on which witnesses to call . . . what jurors to accept or strike . . . and all other strategies and tactical decisions are the exclusive province of the lawyer after consultation with his client.” ’ [Cits.]” Austin v. Carter, 248 Ga. 775, 779 (285 SE2d 542) (1982). At the hearing on the motion for new trial, appellant testified that his trial counsel did confer with him during jury selection; that there were five persons appellant wanted to retain on the jury and the only reason he wanted to do so was because they were black; and that there were at least four black jurors on appellant’s jury. Appellant’s trial counsel testified that during the voir dire he conferred with ap *907 pellant; that there was one specific juror on which they disagreed; and that appellant said he would defer to counsel’s decision. Under these facts, appellant failed to satisfy the first component of the test, i.e., he failed to show that counsel’s performance was deficient.

Regarding the character witness, the trial counsel testified that it was appellant who informed him about the witness, who was appellant’s employer. The trial counsel, a veteran of over 100 criminal trials, characterized the witness as “[not] just your run of the mill employer. . . . [He] was a fellow who presented himself in court in a suit and tie, he was articulate, he was believable, and he was sold on Solomon Thompson. . . . [H]e probably may have been our only witness that, in my opinion, could be believable or was believable. . . . He thought that [appellant’s] character was excellent. The tradeoff was to be prepared to have introduced [appellant’s] prior [conviction] record which, according to our investigation, was . . . several years old [and for] . . . relatively . . . minor crime. And I thought that the tradeoff would work in his favor.” The attorney further testified that he discussed facts of the previous convictions with appellant, and that he was surprised at trial during appellant’s cross-examination “by some facts that he had not told me about one of them that related it, in fact... to the matter for which he was on trial. . . .” Again, the evidence adduced at the hearing failed to show a deficiency in the trial counsel’s performance. The trial court did not err in rejecting appellant’s claim of ineffective assistance of counsel. Gabler v. State, 177 Ga. App. 3 (2) (338 SE2d 469) (1985).

2. Appellant complains that statements he gave on August 3, 1987, before he was arrested, should have been suppressed because he had not been given his Miranda rights. We find no error in the trial court’s decision not to suppress the statement. The testimony given at the hearing on this matter shows that on the afternoon in question, detectives went to appellant’s home to question him about the crimes. He was advised that he was not under arrest and that he did not have to make any statements at that time. He agreed to answer questions. The detectives asked him whether he had been to a particular block on a particular street or knew anyone who lived in that vicinity; whether he knew the victim or her roommate; and whether there was any reason for his fingerprint to have been at that residence. Appellant answered all of the questions in the negative, and the interview was concluded. The detectives left appellant’s home and the area, but returned later that day to arrest appellant. He was given his Miranda warnings at that time.

“For Miranda to apply a person must be taken into custody or otherwise deprived of his freedom of action in any significant way. [Cits.] . . . [T]here is no indication that the defendant had been taken into custody or otherwise deprived of his freedom of action in *908 any significant way by action of the officers when he made [the statement in question]. The defendant’s statement was admissible as a statement made prior to any in-custody interrogation. [Cit.]” Hardeman v. State, 252 Ga. 286, 288 (313 SE2d 95) (1984).

Decided May 31, 1989 Rehearing denied June 20, 1989 Mark J. Nathan, for appellant. Spencer Lawton, Jr., District Attorney, David T. Lock, Assistant *909 District Attorney, for appellee.

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Thompson v. State, 383 S.E.2d 339, 191 Ga. App. 906, 1989 Ga. App. LEXIS 852 (Ga. Ct. App. 1989).

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