Steven Douglas Hayward, Appellant v. State of Florida, Appellee; Steven Douglas Hayward, Petitioner, v. Julie L…

Summary

The court affirmed the denial of Hayward's motion for postconviction relief and denied his habeas petition alleging ineffective assistance of appellate counsel. It held that trial counsel reasonably investigated and presented penalty-phase mitigation, failed to establish prejudice from the alleged suppression-hearing deficiencies or other guilt-phase claims, and that no due-process or evidentiary-hearing error warranted relief. The court also concluded that appellate counsel was not ineffective for omitting an unpreserved, nonfundamental challenge to a witness's competency.