Tyler Joseph Barefield v. State of Arkansas

Summary

The court affirmed the denial of Barefield’s Rule 37 petition, holding that his trial counsel’s challenged decisions were either reasonable trial strategy, unsupported by specific facts, or nonprejudicial. It also upheld the circuit court’s refusal to qualify a nonmedical witness to testify about the victims’ causes of death and concluded that counsel was not ineffective for failing to seek additional relief after successfully objecting to prosecutorial statements. The court further held that the written postconviction order controlled over any inconsistent oral ruling.