State ex rel. Cody Smoot v. State of Louisiana

Summary

The court denied post-conviction relief, holding that the relator failed to establish either deficient performance or prejudice under the governing ineffective-assistance standard. Counsel was not ineffective for failing to seek suppression because the challenged searches were supported by probable cause or otherwise would not have produced meritorious suppression claims, and the identification testimony was not objectionable hearsay. The court also declared the state collateral-review denial final, subject only to narrow exceptions for successive applications.