Hamilton v. State – 2010 MT 25

In what I believe is his first written opinion since joining the Court, Justice Wheat, authored the majority opinion in State v. Hamilton. Here, Hamilton claimed ineffective assistance of counsel following his conviction for eight counts of incest. The District Court denied Hamilton’s petition, denied his request for an evidentiary hearing on the issue, and dismissed his claims for failure to make a prima facie showing of entitlement to relief and for failure to state a claim for relief. Hamilton appealed, challenging the District Court’s refusal to hold an evidentiary hearing and its dismissal of his petition.

A petition for post-conviction relief must show, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the facts justify the relief. The petition must identify all facts supporting the grounds for relief set forth in the petition and have attached affidavits, records, or other evidence establishing the existence of those facts. A court may dismiss a petition for post-conviction relief without holding an evidentiary hearing if the petition fails to satisfy this procedural threshold. Also, the District Court may dismiss a petition for post-conviction relief without ordering a response if the petition, files, and records conclusively show that the petitioner is not entitled to relief. Or, the court may order a response and, after reviewing the response, dismiss the petition as a matter of law for failure to state a claim for relief – or it may proceed to determine the issue.

Claims of inadequate assistance of counsel are examined under the two-prong test fromStrickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (1984). The defendant must show that counsel’s performance was deficient and that the deficient performance prejudiced the defense and deprived the defendant of a fair trial. The first prong is whether counsel’s conduct fell below an objective standard of reasonableness measured under prevailing professional norms and in light of the surrounding circumstances. There is a strong presumption that counsel’s conduct falls within the wide range of reasonable professional assistance and was based on sound trial strategy. The second prong requires the defendant to establish prejudice by demonstrating that, but for counsel’s errors, there is a reasonable probability that the result would have been the different.

Hamilton made five allegations of ineffective assistance of counsel, all five of which were dismissed by the District Court. After applying the above framework to each claim, SCOMONT affirmed the District Court’s decision. The Court concluded that Hamilton’s petition failed to show that the facts justified the relief, and that his ineffective assistance of counsel claims failed to overcome the presumption of competency.