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Tennessee appellate panel presses arguments over whether juvenile’s testimony reflected ineffective counsel
Summary
Attorneys argued before a Tennessee appellate court whether defense counsel’s decision to call 16-year-old Kevin Buford to testify and elicit admissions, and to reference a prior guilty plea, amounted to ineffective assistance that undermined the verdict. Judges focused on whether the appellate record is complete and whether any deficiencies caused prejudice under the Postconviction Procedure Act.
Kyle Parks, attorney for appellant Kevin Buford, told a Tennessee appellate panel that calling his then-16-year-old client to testify and eliciting admissions about a January 2008 shooting were grave errors that deprived Buford of effective counsel.
Parks said he reserved five minutes for rebuttal and argued that trial counsel Scott Wilder — who had been appointed about five months before trial — both solicited a confession on the stand and allowed the jury to learn of a prior guilty plea that had been withdrawn. "I've waited 11 years to do this," Parks said, urging the court to consider whether the cumulative effect of counsel’s choices undermined confidence in the verdict.
A member of the bench pushed back, noting that a recorded statement in which the petitioner admitted involvement had already been played for the jury and…
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