Mahrt v. Beard, No. 15-16404 (9th Cir. 2017)
Annotate this CaseThe State challenged the district court's grant of habeas relief to petitioner, finding that his state-court guilty plea was based on a violation of his Sixth Amendment right to effective assistance of counsel. The court held that Tollett v. Henderson does not bar petitioner's ineffective assistance of counsel claim. Tollett, properly understood, provided that although freestanding constitutional claims are unavailable to habeas petitioners who plead guilty, claims of pre-plea ineffective assistance of counsel are cognizable on federal habeas review when the action, or inaction, of counsel prevents petitioner from making an informed choice whether to plead. The court explained that if the deputies unconstitutionally searched petitioner's home, counsel's failure to move to suppress the fruits of that search prevented petitioner from making the informed choice to which he was entitled. The court further held that the state court could reasonably conclude that counsel did not provide ineffective assistance in failing to move to suppress the firearms and ammunition. The court nonetheless concluded that the state habeas courts were not unreasonable in denying the writ where it would have been reasonable for the state courts to conclude that a motion to suppress, if brought, would likely have been denied. Accordingly, the court reversed the district court's grant of habeas corpus.
Court Description: Habeas Corpus. The panel reversed the district court’s grant of a habeas corpus petition in which a California state prisoner alleged that his Sixth Amendment right to effective assistance of counsel was violated by trial counsel’s failure to bring a pre- plea suppression motion. The panel held that the petitioner’s ineffective assistance of counsel claim is not barred by Tollett v. Henderson, 411 U.S. 258 (1973), which, properly understood, does not bar federal habeas claims of pre-plea ineffective assistance of counsel when the action, or inaction, of counsel prevents petitioner from making an informed choice whether to plead. The panel explained that if the deputies unconstitutionally searched the petitioner’s home, counsel’s failure to move to suppress the fruits of that search prevented him from making an informed choice whether to plead. The panel wrote that counsel should have moved to suppress the firearm and ammunition found in the petitioner’s home, but concluded that the state habeas courts were not unreasonable in denying the writ because it would have been reasonable for the state courts to conclude that a motion to suppress, if brought, would likely have been denied. MAHRT V. BEARD 3
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