Ineffective Assistance of Counsel

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WI Court of Appeals – District I

Case Name: State of Wisconsin v. Sadiq Imani

Case No.: 2018AP596-CR

Officials: Kessler, P.J., Brennan and Brash, JJ.

Focus: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel

Sadiq Imani appeals from a judgment of conviction, entered on a jury verdict, for armed robbery by use of force and false imprisonment, both as party to a crime. The convictions related to Imani’s robbery of the North 76th Street TCF Bank in Milwaukee on August 2, 2013. Imani also appeals the denial of his motion for postconviction relief.  He seeks a Machner hearing on his claim of ineffective assistance of counsel. He argues that trial counsel was constitutionally ineffective for two reasons: (1) he did not object to the use of a 1999 felony conviction to impeach Imani when he testified, and (2) he advised Imani to testify and did not tell him that prior to trial the State had provided counsel interview notes from a witness who would directly contradict Imani’s alibi.

Imani’s Strickland claim fails on the prejudice prong: regardless of whether the alleged errors constituted deficient performance, there is not a reasonable probability that but for the alleged errors, the result of the proceedings would have been different. See Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687 (1984). Because the totality of the record shows that Imani is not entitled to relief, the postconviction court correctly denied his postconviction motion without a hearing. See State v. Balliette, 2011 WI 79, ¶¶50, 56-59, 336 Wis. 2d 358, 805 N.W.2d 334.

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Derek A Hawkins is trademark corporate counsel for Harley-Davidson. Hawkins oversees the prosecution and maintenance of the Harley-Davidson’s international trademark portfolio in emerging markets.