Ex parte Neelley
| Decision Date | 10 June 1994 |
| Parties | Ex parte Judith Ann NEELLEY. (In re Judith Ann Neelley v. State). 1921808. |
| Court | Alabama Supreme Court |
Petition for writ of Certiorari to the Court of Criminal Appeals (CR-91-1036). Appeal from DeKalb Circuit Court, No. CC-89-407.60, Randall L. Cole, Judge.
F. Timothy McAbee and Barry A. Ragsdale of McAbee, Nail, and Ragsdale, Birmingham, for petitioner.
James H. Evans, Atty. Gen., and Melissa G. Math, Deputy Atty. Gen., for respondent.
Prior report: Ala.Cr.App., 642 So.2d 494.
WRIT QUASHED AS IMPROVIDENTLY GRANTED.
I disagree with the Court of Criminal Appeals' conclusion that the publicity contract between Judith Ann Neelley and her defense counsel, Robert French, Jr., did not adversely affect his performance of her defense. Although the contract was not signed until after the trial had concluded, there is evidence that it was in negotiation before that time and that the contract directly influenced French's trial strategy.
The most questionable aspect of this strategy was having Neelley testify on her own behalf. French presented no evidence by the testimony of expert witnesses or by other means to establish Neelley's "battered wife syndrome" defense, and he never consulted with any mental health professionals to learn about the disorder so that it could be explained rationally to a jury. Instead, French merely had Neelley herself describe her mental condition and her abusive husband. During the four-day direct examination, French elicited damaging testimony about the many lurid aspects of Neelley's life; he also brought out detailed testimony about portions of Neelley's pre-trial confession and certain out-of-court statements made by her husband that had already been ruled inadmissible by the trial court and that the State had no way of bringing into evidence. The prejudice that this testimony caused is clear; the trial court's sentencing order shows that it gave weight to her gratuitous testimony when it rejected the jury's recommendation of life without parole and sentenced Neelley to death.
On direct appeal of her conviction, the Court of Criminal Appeals relied on Neelley's testimony in rejecting at least one viable issue Neelley raised, that is, the possible illegality of her pre-trial confession. See Neelley v. State, 494 So.2d 669 (Ala.Crim.App.1985), affirmed, 494 So.2d 697 (Ala.1986). The Court of Criminal Appeals stated that Neelley's gratuitous account of her past "redefine[d] and [gave] new meaning to traditional concepts of depravity and evil" and "virtually annihilated any prejudicial effect that the...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Lawhorn v. State
...error rule does not apply in collateral review proceedings. Neelley v. State, 642 So.2d 494, 496 (Ala.Cr.App.1993), cert. quashed, 642 So.2d 510 (Ala.1994), cert. denied, 514 U.S. 1005, 115 S.Ct. 1316, 131 L.Ed.2d 197 C. Lawhorn contends that his trial counsel was ineffective because counse......
-
Jenkins v. State
...sentence. Hill v. State, 695 So.2d 1223 (Ala.Crim.App.1997); Neelley v. State, 642 So.2d 494 (Ala.Crim.App.1993), writ quashed, 642 So.2d 510 (Ala.1994). Last, this proceeding was initiated at Jenkins's direction. According to Rule 32.3, Ala.R.Crim.P., Jenkins has the "burden of pleading an......
-
Hamm v. State
...511 U.S. 1046, 114 S.Ct. 1579, 128 L.Ed.2d 221 (1994); Neelley v. State, 642 So.2d 494, 496 (Ala.Cr.App.1993), cert. quashed, 642 So.2d 510 (Ala.1994), cert. denied, 514 U.S. 1005, 115 S.Ct. 1316, 131 L.Ed.2d 197 (1995); State v. Tarver, 629 So.2d 14, 19 (Ala.Cr.App. 1993); Davis v. State, ......
-
DeBruce v. State
...denied, 510 U.S. 976, 114 S.Ct. 467, 126 L.Ed.2d 418 (1993); Neelley v. State, 642 So.2d 494 (Ala.Crim.App.1993), writ quashed, 642 So.2d 510 (Ala.1994), cert. denied, 514 U.S. 1005, 115 S.Ct. 1316, 131 L.Ed.2d 197 (1995); State v. Tarver, 629 So.2d 14 (Ala.Crim.App.1993). When evaluating a......