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Court of Appeals hears challenge to trial counsel’s conduct in McCraw appeal
Summary
Appellate lawyers argued whether the absence of adversarial testing at a brief justice-court trial — including limited cross-examination and no opening or closing statements — amounted to ineffective assistance requiring reversal.
The Utah Court of Appeals heard oral argument in City v. McCraw over whether defense counsel’s performance at a short justice-court trial deprived the defendant of effective assistance of counsel.
The appeal centers on whether the lack of adversarial testing at trial — a roughly four-minute proceeding with proffers from three witnesses, no cross-examination, and no opening or closing arguments — rendered the conviction unreliable. If the appeals court finds counsel’s conduct rose to the level of constructive denial of counsel, the ruling could require retrials in similar cases and affect how counsel handle absent or noncooperative clients.
Dylan Carlson, appearing for appellant McCraw, told the panel that trial counsel “took no…
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