JASON POWELL, Applicant-Appellant, vs. STATE OF IOWA, Respondent-Appellee.
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IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF IOWA
No. 9-756 / 09-0089
Filed October 21, 2009
JASON POWELL,
Applicant-Appellant,
vs.
STATE OF IOWA,
Respondent-Appellee.
________________________________________________________________
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Crawford County, Edward A.
Jacobson, Judge.
Jason Powell appeals from the denial of his application for postconviction
relief. AFFIRMED.
Chad Douglas Primmer of Chad Douglas Primmer, P.C., Council Bluffs,
for appellant.
Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, Karen Doland, Assistant Attorney
General, Vicki Ryan, County Attorney, and Julie A. Schumacher, Assistant
County Attorney, for appellee.
Considered by Sackett, C.J., and Eisenhauer and Doyle, JJ.
2
EISENHAUER, J.
Jason Powell appeals from the denial of his application for postconviction
relief. He contends his trial counsel was ineffective in four respects: (1) in failing
to move for a change of venue, (2) in failing to move for judgment of acquittal on
the attempted murder charge, (3) in failing to utilize an expert witness, and (4) in
failing to advise him on the mandatory sentence for the attempted murder
charge. Our review is de novo. See Collins v. State, 588 N.W.2d 399, 401 (Iowa
1998).
On February 12, 2005, Powell was driving a friend’s vehicle without
permission when a deputy sheriff attempted to pull him over. In the course of
attempting to evade his arrest, Powell hit one patrol car and nearly struck the
sheriff with his vehicle. He was convicted of attempted murder, eluding in the
first degree, assault on a peace officer, and theft in the second degree.
On direct appeal, this court reversed the conviction for second-degree
theft of the vehicle and remanded for entry of judgment of guilty of operating
without owner’s consent. State v. Powell, No. 05-1757 (Iowa Ct. App. Jan. 18,
2007). Powell’s conviction for first-degree eluding was reversed and new trial
was ordered, while the convictions for assault on a peace officer and attempted
murder were affirmed.
Id.
Several claims of ineffective assistance of trial
counsel were preserved for postconviction relief proceedings, including his claim
his trial attorney breached an essential duty in failing to move for judgment of
acquittal on the attempted murder charge.
3
On June 6, 2007, Powell filed an application for postconviction relief,
which he later amended. Following a hearing, the district court denied relief on
all grounds. Powell now appeals the denial on four of those grounds.
To establish a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, Powell must
show by a preponderance of the evidence that (1) counsel’s performance fell
outside the normal range of competency and (2) the deficient performance so
prejudiced the defense as to deprive the criminal defendant of a fair trial.
Thompson v. State, 492 N.W.2d 410, 413 (Iowa 1992). We may dispose of an
ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim if the applicant fails to meet either the
breach of duty or the prejudice prong. Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668,
697, 104 S. Ct. 2052, 2064, 80 L. Ed. 2d 674, 699 (1984). In order to show
prejudice, Powell must show a reasonable probability that, but for counsel's
unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been different. Id.
at 694, 104 S. Ct. at 2068, 80 L. Ed. 2d at 698.
On appeal, Powell makes general, conclusory statements that he was
prejudiced by each of his trial counsel’s alleged deficiencies. Each of these
claims was thoroughly considered and correctly decided by the postconviction
court. We adopt its findings and conclusions as our own.
Powell’s general
claims are insufficient to establish prejudice. See State v. Myers, 653 N.W.2d
574, 579 (Iowa 2002).
Because Powell has failed his burden of proving
prejudice, we affirm the district court’s denial of his application for postconviction
relief.
AFFIRMED.
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