Sixth Amendment Violation, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel

By: Derek Hawkins//July 5, 2017//

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United States Supreme Court

Case Name: WEAVER v. MASSACHUSETTS

Case No.: 16-240

Focus: Sixth Amendment Violation, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel

In the context of a public-trial violation during jury selection, where the error is neither preserved nor raised on direct review but is raised later via an ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim, the defendant must demonstrate prejudice to secure a new trial.

This case requires an examination of the proper application of the doctrines of structural error and ineffective assistance of counsel. They are intertwined, because the reasons an error is deemed structural may influence the proper standard used to evaluate an ineffective assistance claim premised on the failure to object to that error.

Affirmed

Dissenting: Breyer, Kagan

Concurring: Thomas, Gorsuch, Alito

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