Christopher Beverage, Appellant v. State of Arkansas, Appellee

Summary

The court held that the record did not conclusively show that Christopher Beverage was entitled to no postconviction relief on his claim that counsel failed to challenge his competency to stand trial, because a competency evaluation was incomplete and contained unresolved indications that he may not have understood plea bargaining. It therefore reversed and remanded for an evidentiary hearing on that claim. The court affirmed denial of the claim that counsel inadequately investigated the murder victim’s cause of death because Beverage failed to allege that he would have rejected the guilty plea and insisted on going to trial. Justice Goodson, dissenting, would have remanded only to settle the incomplete record, while Justice Baker, joined by Justice Hart, would have remanded without reaching the alternative claim.