Collier v. State

Summary

The Georgia Supreme Court held that the habeas court properly rejected most of Collier’s claims as procedurally barred or waived and was not required to hold a hearing on those claims. However, the court held that the ineffective-assistance-of-appellate-counsel claim could not be resolved solely from the petition and that the habeas court could not deny it on the merits based only on Collier’s failure to prosecute. The judgment was affirmed in part and reversed in part.

Holdings

1. A habeas court need not hold a hearing when it can determine from the face of the petition that the claims are procedurally barred or otherwise without merit. Because Collier's claims other than ineffective assistance of appellate counsel had been adjudicated or could have been raised on direct appeal, the habeas court properly resolved them without a hearing.
2. An ineffective-assistance-of-appellate-counsel claim alleging failure to raise an error on appeal cannot be resolved solely from the face of the habeas petition when resolution requires determining counsel's tactical reasonableness and whether the alleged error probably affected the appeal's outcome. The habeas court therefore was required to conduct a hearing on Collier's claim.
3. The habeas court could either deny the ineffective-assistance claim on the merits after conducting a hearing or dismiss the claim without prejudice for failure to prosecute, but it could not deny the claim on the merits solely because Collier failed to prosecute it.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the habeas court was required to hold a hearing on claims that were procedurally barred, waived, or could have been raised on direct appeal.
2. Whether an ineffective-assistance-of-appellate-counsel claim could be resolved solely from the face of the habeas petition.
3. Whether the habeas court could deny the ineffective-assistance-of-appellate-counsel claim on the merits based solely on Collier's failure to prosecute rather than dismissing it without prejudice.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded