Brief filed: 05/12/2016
Documents
Tucker v. Idaho
Supreme Court of the State of Idaho; Case No. 43922
Prior Decision
Appeal from the District Court of the Fourth Judicial District for Ada County, Case No. CV-OC-2015-10240 (The Honorable Samuel A. Hoagland, District Judge, presiding).
Argument(s)
The violations alleged by the plaintiffs cause ongoing and cognizable harm. The district court applied the wrong legal framework to the plaintiffs' claims. A criminal defendant has a fundamental right to counsel at any "critical stage" of the proceedings against him. The Sixth Amendment can also be violated if the attorney's performance fails to meet constitutional standards. Federal and state courts addressing claims for prospective relief, like the plaintiffs' claims here, have rejected application of the Strickland standard.
Author(s)
Gia Cincone, Kilpatirck Townsend & Stockton LLP, San Francisco, CA; Jeffrey Ellis, Oregon Capital Resource Counsel, Portland, OR.