(Court opinion corrected 6/29/16.) The reasonable assistance standard applies to privately retained counsel who is trying a postconviction petition at second stage of proceedings. In amended petition, private counsel raised several allegations of plea counsel's deficient performance, but did not argue that Defendant suffered prejudice as a result of plea counsel's performance. The complete omission of second prong of Strickland analysis and lack of oral argument in support of this prong was unreasonable. Without this necessary allegation and argument, the amended petition could never satisfy the "substantial showing" of ineffective assistance required to advance petition to evidentiary hearing. Thus, postconviction counsel's performance was unreasonable.(CARTER and WRIGHT, concurring.)
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Ineffective Assistance of Counsel