Carroll v. State, 8 Div. 175
| Decision Date | 09 October 1984 |
| Docket Number | 8 Div. 175 |
| Citation | 462 So.2d 789 |
| Parties | Bruce CARROLL v. STATE. |
| Court | Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals |
Bruce Carroll, pro se.
Charles A. Graddick, Atty. Gen., and Rivard Melson, Asst. Atty. Gen., for appellee.
In 1982, Bruce Carroll was convicted of robbery in the first degree and sentenced to life without parole. This conviction was affirmed on appeal. Carroll v. State, 440 So.2d 343 (Ala.Cr.App.1983), cert. denied, Carroll v. Alabama, --- U.S. ----, 104 S.Ct. 1299, 79 L.Ed.2d 698 (1984). In April of 1984, Carroll filed a petition for writ of error coram nobis. The circuit court granted the State's motion for summary judgment: "After consideration of all evidence submitted, including all affidavits, a review of the transcript of testimony offered at trial and the complete court file, the Court is of the opinion that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact in the case and that the defendant, State of Alabama, is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Carroll appeals from this ruling.
A reading of the petition makes it abundantly clear that Carroll is merely attempting to use coram nobis as a mechanism to get a second appeal of his conviction. We will not dignify his allegations by stating them in this opinion. The writ of coram nobis is not a substitute for an appeal nor does it serve the function of an appeal. Summers v. State, 366 So.2d 336, 339-40 (Ala.Cr.App.1978), cert. denied, Ex parte Summers, 366 So.2d 346 (Ala.1979).
On this appeal, Carroll's only argument is that his trial counsel was incompetent for the commission and omission of numerous sins and offenses. Although Carroll was represented by different counsel at trial and on appeal, the issue of ineffective assistance of counsel was not raised on direct appeal. Having failed to raise this issue on the original appeal, the remedy of coram nobis is not available. Ex parte Ellison, 410 So.2d 130 (Ala.1982). Here, as in Ellison, "a reading of ... [Carroll's] petition convinces this Court that he is seeking to use the writ as a delayed appeal of issues which could have been decided at the initial trial or on direct appeal." 410 So.2d at 132.
Furthermore, we view Carroll's allegations against his trial counsel as incredible and undeserving of belief. Holsclaw v. State, 429 So.2d 1185, 1187 (Ala.Cr.App.1983).
The guidelines for the review of claims of ineffective counsel are established in Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). See Ex parte Daniel, 459 So.2d 948 (Ala.1984), applying Washington. Appellate courts are reminded that in deciding an actual ineffectiveness claim "counsel is strongly presumed to have rendered adequate assistance and made all significant decisions in the exercise of reasonable professional judgment." 104 S.Ct. at 2066. "[W]e do not think that counsel should be penalized for the fact that he...
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Davis v. State
..."`is treated procedurally as a cross between a civil and a criminal action; [it is] a new civil action....'" Carroll v. State, 462 So.2d 789, 790 (Ala.Crim.App.1984). The burden of proof in a Rule 32 proceeding rests solely with the petitioner, not the State. According to Rule 32.3, Ala.R.C......
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Hamm v. State
...has held that postconviction proceedings are civil proceedings and not criminal proceedings as Click contends. See Carroll v. State, 462 So.2d 789 (Ala.Cr.App.1984) (`Coram nobis [predecessor to a Rule 32 proceeding] is treated procedurally as a cross between a civil and a criminal action; ......
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McLemore v. State
...coram nobis should be based on affidavits attached thereto as the petition is "essentially a motion for new trial." Carroll v. State, 462 So.2d 789, 790 (Ala.Cr.App.1984). Moreover, "[a] hearing [on a coram nobis petition] should not be granted without affidavits sufficiently refuting a rec......
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Ex parte Harper
...was the case here. See, Ex parte Ellison, 410 So.2d 130 (Ala.1982); Jones v. State, 484 So.2d 554 (Ala.Crim.App.1986); Carroll v. State, 462 So.2d 789 (Ala.Crim.App.1984). The State, nevertheless, argues that the petitioner's claim is The facts are that the petitioner's trial counsel had di......