White v. State, No. A05-1169.
| Decision Date | 23 March 2006 |
| Docket Number | No. A05-1169. |
| Citation | 711 N.W.2d 106 |
| Parties | Tyrone James WHITE, petitioner, Appellant, v. STATE of Minnesota, Respondent. |
| Court | Minnesota Supreme Court |
ANDERSON, PAUL H., Justice.
Petitioner Tyrone James White appeals the denial of his petition for postconviction relief, alleging six claims of error. We affirm the postconviction court's denial of White's petition.
On January 31, 2003, petitioner Tyrone White was convicted in Saint Louis County District Court of first-degree felony murder and attempted first-degree premeditated murder. Our opinion issued in response to White's direct appeal provides a comprehensive statement of the facts of this case. State v. White, 684 N.W.2d 500, 502-04 (Minn.2004). The district court sentenced White to life imprisonment for murder and a consecutive 180-month sentence for attempted murder. White appealed his convictions, arguing that (1) the court erred by denying his Batson objection to the state's peremptory challenge of a prospective juror; (2) Minnesota's accomplice liability statute, Minn.Stat. § 609.05 (2004), is unconstitutional; (3) the court erred in its instruction to the jury regarding accomplice liability; and (4) the evidence was insufficient to support the convictions. White, 684 N.W.2d at 502. We affirmed.
White subsequently filed this petition for postconviction relief, alleging that (1) the district court erred in admitting uncorroborated accomplice testimony; (2) racial discrimination in the Saint Louis County grand jury selection process violated the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment; (3) the court erred when it engaged in improper ex parte communication with a juror; (4) the court erred when it failed to excuse a juror who was unable to be impartial; (5) his trial counsel provided ineffective assistance; and (6) his appellate counsel provided ineffective assistance. The postconviction court denied White's petition, concluding that White had already raised a majority of the claims in his direct appeal and that he failed to establish the facts alleged in the petition by a fair preponderance of the evidence. White now appeals all of the issues raised in his postconviction petition. The state declined to file a brief in response to White's postconviction appeal.
A defendant may seek postconviction relief "to vacate and set aside the judgment * * * or grant a new trial * * * or make other disposition as may be appropriate." Minn.Stat. § 590.01, subd. 1 (2004). "A petitioner seeking postconviction relief has the burden of establishing, by a fair preponderance of the evidence, facts which warrant a reopening of the case." Mckenzie v. State, 687 N.W.2d 902, 905 (Minn.2004) (quoting State v. Rainer, 502 N.W.2d 784, 787 (Minn.1993)). Review of a postconviction proceeding is limited to determining whether there is sufficient evidence to sustain the postconviction court's findings, and a postconviction court's decision will not be disturbed absent an abuse of discretion. Zenanko v. State, 587 N.W.2d 642, 644 (Minn. 1998).
Once a direct appeal has been taken, all claims that were raised in the direct appeal and all claims that were known or should have been known but were not raised will not be considered upon a subsequent petition for postconviction relief. See Hanley v. State, 534 N.W.2d 277, 279 (Minn.1995); State v. Knaffla, 309 Minn. 246, 252, 243 N.W.2d 737, 741 (1976) ("Knaffla rule"). There are two exceptions to the Knaffla rule: (1) if a novel legal issue is presented, or (2) if the interests of justice require review. Taylor v. State, 691 N.W.2d 78, 79 (Minn. 2005) (citing Ives v. State, 655 N.W.2d 633, 636 (Minn.2003)). The second exception may be applied if fairness requires it and the petitioner did not "deliberately and inexcusably" fail to raise the issue on direct appeal. Taylor, 691 N.W.2d at 79 (quoting Fox v. State, 474 N.W.2d 821, 825 (Minn.1991)).
We have previously rejected, in a somewhat different form, White's first claim that the district court erred in admitting uncorroborated accomplice testimony. In essence, this claim is a recharacterization of White's previously rejected claims that (1) Minnesota's accomplice liability statute, Minn.Stat. § 609.05, and the jury instructions based on it, impermissibly and unconstitutionally alleviated the state's burden of proving the elements of the charged crime, and (2) the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions. White, 684 N.W.2d at 508-09. Because this claim has already been raised and addressed, we conclude that the postconviction court did not abuse its discretion when it denied White relief on this claim. See Black v. State, 560 N.W.2d 83, 86 (Minn.1997). Furthermore, we conclude that White's claims of racial discrimination in the selection of the grand jury, improper ex parte communication between the judge and a juror, and failure to excuse a juror who was unable to be impartial are also barred by the Knaffla rule because White knew or should have known of these claims at the time of his direct appeal.
Five of White's eight ineffective assistance of trial counsel claims are also Knaffla-barred. We have held that an ineffective assistance of trial counsel claim is generally Knaffla-barred in a postconviction petition if the claim can be decided on the basis of the trial record and the briefs. Carney v. State, 692 N.W.2d 888, 891 (Minn.2005). "A claim of ineffective assistance of trial counsel that can be decided on the basis of the trial court record must be brought on direct appeal and is procedurally barred when raised in a postconviction petition." Id. (quoting Torres v. State, 688 N.W.2d 569, 572 (Minn.2004)). White argues that his trial counsel was ineffective because counsel failed to (1) object to or move for a mistrial based on the district court's communication with juror number four, (2) move for a mistrial based on a witness's admission at trial that the witness was not fully truthful when he testified before the grand jury, (3) object to uncorroborated accomplice testimony, (4) object to the jury instruction on accomplice liability, and (5) that trial counsel "admitted [White's] guilt during closing argument without [White's] permission." All of these claims can be decided on the basis of the district court record and are therefore Knaffla-barred on this postconviction review. See Carney, 692 N.W.2d at 891.
Even if we were to address the five foregoing ineffective assistance of counsel claims, White would not prevail because the claims lack merit. To prevail on a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, a petitioner must show that his attorney's performance "fell below an objective standard of reasonableness and that he [or she] was prejudiced as a result." Sessions v. State, 666 N.W.2d 718, 722 (Minn.2003) (quoting Ives, 655 N.W.2d at 637). To allow counsel "flexibility to represent a client to the fullest extent possible," our review of trial counsel's performance does not include reviewing attacks on trial strategy. Opsahl v. State, 677 N.W.2d 414, 421 (Minn.2004) (quoting State v. Jones, 392 N.W.2d 224, 236 (Minn.1986)). We have previously rejected ineffective assistance of counsel claims where counsel failed to move for a mistrial or object to alleged errors at trial because these actions are trial strategy decisions. State v. Vick, 632 N.W.2d 676, 689 (Minn.2001); State ex rel. Black v. Tahash, 280 Minn. 155, 158, 158 N.W.2d 504, 506 (1968).
White asserts that his trial counsel was ineffective because counsel conceded in closing argument that White was a "robber" and a "drug dealer." This assertion is not supported by the record. White's counsel did note that the state's theory was that White and an accomplice in this murder committed robberies together. Counsel also appears to have conceded that White was a drug dealer when counsel stated that White and the murder victim were "slinging a little dope." Here it is important to note that White was not on trial for a drug offense and that counsel's admission appears to be the result of a trial strategy of admitting obvious facts while continuing to challenge the key elements of the charged offenses.
Furthermore, we conclude that the postconviction court did not abuse its discretion when it declined to apply the two Knaffla rule exceptions to White's claims. White does not argue that either Knaffla exception applies to his claims of improper ex parte communication between the judge and a juror, failure to excuse a juror who was unable to be impartial, or his ineffective assistance of trial counsel claims, nor does he argue that his claim of racial discrimination in the grand jury selection process is novel.
White's assertion that he made reasonable —yet unsuccessful—efforts to gather data to raise his racial discrimination claim on direct appeal can be construed as an argument that the interests of justice require review of this claim. We have previously held that an alleged error in the composition of the grand jury is not properly and timely raised on direct appeal absent an objection to the indictment to the district court. State v. Whittaker, 568 N.W.2d 440, 448 (Minn. 1997) () (citing Minn. R. Crim. P. 10.03, 10.04, 17.06). Before his trial, White moved to dismiss count one of the indictment based on lack of probable cause. In this motion, White did not raise any issue relating to the grand jury selection process. Because White did not raise to the district court the issue of racial discrimination in the grand jury selection process, we conclude that...
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