Freeman v. Chandler, No. 10-1467 (7th Cir. 2011)
Annotate this CaseDefendant, charged with attempted murder, encountered the victim at the courthouse, shot him, and was charged with a second attempt. At trial, defendant's attorney testified about talking to the victim on the day of the shooting. After the testimony, the judge questioned defendant, who indicated that he wanted to continue being represented by the attorney. After his conviction, defendant exhausted Illinois state court appeals and post-conviction remedies. A 2007 federal petition for habeas corpus was dismissed. The district court held that defendant did not raise the issue of waiver of his right to conflict-free counsel. Defendant filed a pro se motion, which was rejected as a successive petition under 28 U.S.C. 2244(b), because it asserted new claims of errors in the conviction but was not based on new facts or law. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, treating the conflict-free counsel issue as preserved. Defendant's attorney's performance did not likely fall below an objectively reasonable standard, did not confuse the jury, and did not prejudice the defense.
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