Wednesday, April 30, 2008

I'm ineffective!

Alice White from the KU Defender Project won a 1507 motion in Mattox v. State, 07 C 816 (April 23, 2008) on grounds of ineffective assistance of appellate counsel. I represented Mr. Mattox on his direct appeal from a Shawnee County second-degree murder conviction. The appeal included, among other issues, a couple of statement suppression issues. After winning at the COA, the KSC took review and reversed the COA in State v. Mattox, No. 89,547 (Kan. Dec. 9, 2005). Mr. Mattox, with the help of the Defender Project filed a 1507 motion claiming that I was ineffective because the KSC said that I abandoned one of the suppression issues that I had raised in the COA by insufficiently raising it in the pleadings to the KSC. Judge Parrish agreed and granted the motion.

Since I was a witness and former counsel, I will not comment one way or the other and simply leave it to the reader to review the decisions.

[Update: the state filed a motion to alter or amend on May 7, 2008. On July 22, 2008, the district court granted the state's motion to specify relief (that Mr. Mattox is entitled to reopen his appeal on the ground deemed abandoned by the KSC) but otherwise denied the state's motion. Here is the decision.]

[Further update: the state filed a notice of appeal on August 18, 2008.]

[Further update: the KSC transferred this case to itself on January 13, 2009.]

1 comment:

karl said...

I hope the next time I'm found ineffective I show as much grace and class you have.