Deck 7: The Right to Effective Assistance of Counsel and the Death Penalty

Question 1

Which Amendment of the United States Constitution states that "in all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to have the assistance of counsel for his defense"?

A) 6th
B) 1st
C) 2nd
D) 4th

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Developing a two-part test for making a determination of whether a capital defendant was provided ineffective assistance of counsel, the Court in _____________ said that such a claim was valid only if: (1) the counsel's performance was objectively unreasonable, and (2) there was a reasonable likelihood that the trial would have had a different outcome because of such performance.

A) Wiggins v. Smith
B) Strickland v. Washington
C) United States v. Cronic
D) None of the above

Answer 2

B

Question 3

On appeal, the Court held that in a claim for ineffective assistance of counsel, there must be a reasonable probability that the attorney's errors caused the ______________.

A) Correct decision
B) Incorrect decision
C) Neither of the above
D) All of the above

Answer 3

B

Question 4

In the Holland case, the Supreme Court held that a prisoner is entitled to_______________ if he can demonstrate that he has been pursuing his rights diligently, and that some extraordinary circumstance stood in his way and prevented timely filing.

A) Equitable tolling of filing procedures
B) Communicate and "satisfy professional standards of care"
C) Investigate evidence that is potentially valuable
D) None of the above

Question 5

Maples v. Thomas is a case exemplifying an agency, or ________________ approach

A) Default and counsel
B) Appellate-based
C) Performance-based
D) Relationship-based

Question 6

In Holland, Clair, and Martinez, the Court adopted a _____________ approach, but in Maples, it employed a relationship approach

A) Appellate based
B) Relationship-based
C) Performance-based
D) None of the above

Question 7

According to the text, what percent of criminal defendants are estimated to be poverty-stricken?

A) 70%
B) 80%
C) 90%
D) 75%

Question 8

In 1989, Kevin Wiggins was convicted of ______________ murder, robbery, and two counts of larceny. He was subsequently sentenced to death for committing a capital offense.

A) Third-degree
B) Second-degree
C) First-degree
D) None of the above

Question 9

In the case of Smith v. Spisak, Spisak entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity, at one point claiming to be a disciple of:

A) Adolf Hitler
B) God
C) The President
D) None all of the above

Question 10

In Cronic, the Court considered five factors that would constitute a presumption of prejudice among defense counsel and therefore eliminate the need for the ____________ test.

A) United States v. Cronic
B) Wiggins v. Smith
C) Strickland v. Washington
D) None of the above

Question 11

In the interest of maintaining ___________, at least one legal scholar has suggested that lawyers should avoid conflicting representations and to advise the court promptly when a conflict of interest arises during the course of trial.

A) Illegal acts
B) Legal ethics
C) Right and wrong decisions
D) None of the above

Question 12

In the Nixon case, which state used the Cronic rule, which was incorrect given the factual circumstances.

A) Florida
B) Texas
C) North Carolina
D) None of the above

Question 13

In 1932, the Supreme Court decided in Powell v. Alabama that the right to effective assistance of counsel existed for indigent, capital defendants.

Question 14

Lower courts have traditionally used two approaches to deciding issues of ineffective assistance of counsel in death penalty cases-one based on performance and the other on the principle of agency.

Question 15

The American Bar Association's standards provided some support, but more recent cases illustrate the Court's struggle to establish to establish clear guidelines for lower courts to follow when deciding whether defense counsel's performance is considered unconstitutional within the meaning of Strickland.

Question 16

Guidelines suggest that the mitigation specialist develop information through in-person, face-to-face, one-on-one interviews.

Question 17

Documentation of mitigation evidence was to come from multiple sources (witness statements, interviews, school records, etc.) and present a complete profile of the defendant's social history.

Question 18

In Smith v. Spisak, the defendant Spisak was convicted of murdering four people at Texas State University in 1983.

Question 19

Sears v. Upton involved a murder that took place during the course of an armed robbery and kidnapping.

Question 20

In Wood v. Allen, the central issue in Wood's federal habeas case was whether his attorney's decision not to present evidence of Wood's mental retardation to the jury was considered "strategic."

Question 21

Jefferson v. Upton explored the question of whether the Sixth Circuit erred when it ruled that the adoption of the President's finding of fact was invalid.

Question 22

In Bell v. Cone (2002), the Court reconciled two competing tests that the Court used to assess
ineffective assistance claims..