State v. Torres

• Decision Date: 01 July 2004
• Docket Number: No. CR-03-0326-PR.,CR-03-0326-PR.
• Citation: State v. Torres, 208 Ariz. 340, 93 P.3d 1056 (Ariz. 2004)
• Parties: STATE of Arizona, Appellee, v. Victor TORRES, Appellant.
• Court: Arizona Supreme Court

93 P.3d 1056

208 Ariz. 340

STATE of Arizona, Appellee, v. Victor TORRES, Appellant.

No. CR-03-0326-PR.

Supreme Court of Arizona, En Banc.

July 1, 2004.

Terry Goddard, Arizona Attorney General, by Randall M. Howe, Chief Counsel, Criminal Appeals Section, and Karla Hotis Delord, Assistant Attorney General, Phoenix, Attorneys for Appellee.

Susan Sherwin, Office of the Legal Advocate, by Tennie B. Martin, Deputy Legal Advocate, Phoenix, Attorneys for Appellant.

OPINION

RYAN, Justice.

¶ 1 The question this case presents is whether a trial court's failure to conduct an inquiry into an indigent defendant's request to change appointed counsel mandates an automatic reversal of the defendant's conviction. We conclude that it does not. Instead, we hold that the matter must be remanded for a hearing on the defendant's request.

I.

¶ 2 The State charged Victor Torres with several felonies. Because Torres was indigent, the trial court appointed the Maricopa County Public Defender's Office to represent him. Two months before Torres' original trial date, he filed a written motion in propria persona asking for a change in his appointed counsel. Torres claimed that he could no longer speak with his lawyer about the case, he did not trust him, he felt threatened and intimidated by him, there was no confidentiality between them, and his counsel was no longer behaving in a professional manner. The trial judge denied the motion, stating that he did not have the authority to appoint new counsel, but suggested that Torres contact the Public Defender's Office. Subsequently, Torres went to trial with his appointed counsel and was convicted. At sentencing before another judge, Torres renewed his request for new counsel, which the judge granted.

¶ 3 On appeal, Torres argued that the trial court's failure to consider his motion to substitute counsel violated his constitutional right to adequate representation under the Sixth Amendment. State v. Torres, 206 Ariz. 52, 53, ¶ 2, 75 P.3d 142, 143 (App.2003). Because the trial judge had not conducted an inquiry into Torres' claims, the court of appeals concluded it could not decide if an irreconcilable conflict existed between Torres and his counsel. Id. at 56, ¶ 15, 75 P.3d at 146. Nevertheless, the court held that the trial judge's "summary denial" of Torres' motion "violated his Sixth Amendment right to counsel because it may have subjected him to `representation by a lawyer with whom he had a completely fractured relationship.'" Id. at 57, ¶ 17, 75 P.3d at 147 (quoting State v. Moody, 192 Ariz. 505, 509, ¶ 23, 968 P.2d 578, 582 (1998)) (emphasis added). Concluding that the "[f]ailure to hold a hearing on an allegation of a fundamental constitutional violation is reversible error," id., the court of appeals reversed Torres' convictions and ordered a new trial, id. at 58, ¶ 22, 75 P.3d at 148.

¶ 4 The State petitioned for review, arguing that a trial court's failure to inquire into a defendant's request for appointment of new counsel should not require automatic reversal. We granted review because of the statewide importance of the issue. We have jurisdiction under Article 6, Section 5(3), of the Arizona Constitution and Arizona Revised Statutes ("A.R.S.") sections 13-4031 and -4032(3) (2001).

II.

¶ 5 In analyzing the question presented by this case, we must address two core issues. First, we must decide whether a trial judge has a duty to inquire when a defendant requests substitution of counsel. If so, we must define the scope of that duty in light of the nature of a defendant's request. Second, if the trial judge does not conduct an inquiry, we must determine the appropriate remedy.

A.

¶ 6 The Sixth Amendment guarantees criminal defendants the right to representation by counsel. U.S. Const. amend. VI; see also Ariz. Const. art. 2, § 24. The Supreme Court extended that right to indigent defendants charged with felonies in state courts. Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335, 344-45, 83 S.Ct. 792, 9 L.Ed.2d 799 (1963). And, not only does an indigent criminal defendant have the right to counsel, but he also has the right to competent counsel. State v. LaGrand, 152 Ariz. 483, 486, 733 P.2d 1066, 1069 (1987) (citing State v. DeLuna, 110 Ariz. 497, 500, 520 P.2d 1121, 1124 (1974)). Nevertheless, an indigent defendant is not "entitled to counsel of choice, or to a meaningful relationship with his or her attorney." Moody, 192 Ariz. at 507, ¶ 11, 968 P.2d at 580 (citing State v. Bible, 175 Ariz. 549, 591, 858 P.2d 1152, 1194 (1993)). But when there is a complete breakdown in communication or an irreconcilable conflict between a defendant and his appointed counsel, that defendant's Sixth Amendment right to counsel has been violated. See id. Accordingly, this court has held that if a defendant is forced to go to trial with counsel with whom he has an irreconcilable conflict or a complete breakdown in communication, a resulting conviction must be reversed. See id. at 509, ¶ 23, 968 P.2d at 582 (holding that a trial court's erroneous denial of a request to change counsel deprives a defendant of his Sixth Amendment right to counsel, which "infect[s] the entire trial process," requiring automatic reversal (quoting Bland v. Cal. Dep't of Corr., 20 F.3d 1469, 1478 (9th Cir.1994), overruled on other grounds by Schell v. Witek, 218 F.3d 1017, 1024-25 (9th Cir.2000))).

¶ 7 Therefore, as the court of appeals correctly concluded in this matter, to protect a defendant's Sixth Amendment right to counsel, a trial judge has the duty to inquire as to the basis of a defendant's request for substitution of counsel. Torres, 206 Ariz. at 57, ¶ 18, 75 P.3d at 147; e.g., Smith v. Lockhart, 923 F.2d 1314, 1320 (8th Cir.1991) (finding that "[w]hen a defendant raises a seemingly substantial complaint about counsel, the judge `has an obligation to inquire thoroughly into the factual basis of defendant's dissatisfaction'" (quoting United States v. Hart, 557 F.2d 162, 163 (8th Cir.1977) (per curiam))); United States v. Lott, 310 F.3d 1231, 1249 (10th Cir.2002) ("If a defendant makes sufficiently specific, factually based allegations in support of his request for new counsel, the ... court must conduct a hearing into his complaint."). It is not sufficient to advise the defendant to contact the Public Defender's Office, as the trial court did in this case. Instead, the court must make an inquiry on the record. See, e.g., United States v. Morrison, 946 F.2d 484, 499 (7th Cir.1991) (finding that the court must make some inquiry into the reasons for the defendant's dissatisfaction with his lawyer).

¶ 8 The nature of the inquiry will depend upon the nature of the defendant's request. For example, generalized complaints about differences in strategy may not require a formal hearing or an evidentiary proceeding. See State v. Henry, 189 Ariz. 542, 547, 944 P.2d 57, 62 (1997) (finding that a disagreement over tactical decisions that may raise concerns about an attorney's competence is more properly analyzed in a post-conviction relief proceeding); State v. Tejeda, 677 N.W.2d 744, 751 (Iowa 2004) (stating that courts are not required to "conduct a hearing every time a dissatisfied defendant lodges a complaint about his attorney"). However, "[i]f a defendant makes sufficiently specific, factually based allegations in support of his request for new counsel, the ... court must conduct a hearing into his complaint." Lott, 310 F.3d at 1249. At such a hearing, the defendant bears the burden of demonstrating that he has a genuine irreconcilable conflict with his counsel or that there has been a total breakdown in communications. Id. (stating that "to prove a total breakdown in communication, a defendant must put forth evidence ... that he had such minimal contact with the attorney that meaningful communication was not possible"). If a defendant establishes a total breakdown in communication, or an irreconcilable conflict with his attorney, then the trial judge must grant the request for new counsel. Henry, 189 Ariz. at 547, 944 P.2d at 62.

¶ 9 In this case, Torres presented specific factual allegations that raised a colorable claim that he had an irreconcilable conflict with his appointed counsel. In light of Torres' allegations, the trial judge abused his discretion by not conducting an inquiry into Torres' request for substitution of counsel. See United States v. Morris, 714 F.2d 669, 673 (7th Cir.1983) ("In order to exercise its discretion properly the court must elicit from the defendant the reasons for his objection to counsel...."). Accordingly, we must decide the appropriate remedy when a trial judge does not conduct an inquiry into a defendant's colorable claim of an irreconcilable conflict with his counsel.

B.

¶ 10 The court of appeals in this case held that the failure to conduct an inquiry into a colorable claim for substitution of counsel requires automatic reversal. Torres, 206 Ariz. at 57, ¶ 17, 75 P.3d at 147. In effect, this holding classifies a trial court's failure to conduct such an inquiry as structural error. Two factors lead us to a contrary conclusion. First, very few errors have been found to be of such magnitude that they constitute structural errors. Second, a trial court's error in not conducting an inquiry often can be remedied without having to reverse the conviction in the first instance.

¶ 11 The United States Supreme Court has defined "structural error" as error that affects "the framework within which the trial proceeds, rather than simply an error in the trial process itself." Arizona v. Fulminante, 499 U.S. 279, 310, 111 S.Ct. 1246, 113 L.Ed.2d 302 (1991). The Court has limited structural errors to the following: the complete denial of counsel; a biased trial judge; the unlawful exclusion of members of defendant's race from the jury; the denial of self-representation at trial; the denial of a public trial; and a defective reasonable doubt instruction. Neder v. United States, 527 U.S. 1, 8,...