Garrett

Appellant Jimmie Garrett was convicted by a jury of one count of threatening another person with immediate great bodily injury (Pen. Code, § 422 ). The jury was unable to reach a verdict on the charge that appellant was an ex-felon in possession of a firearm, and a mistrial was granted as to that count. Additionally, appellant admitted a prior felony conviction for which he served a separate prison term, for purposes of an enhancement under section 667.5, subdivision (b). He appeals from the judgment of conviction, and has filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus contending he was denied effective assistance of counsel. We affirm the judgment and deny the petition.

I

Appellant and his wife Beverly (hereafter Wife), the victim in this case, were married in November 1989. They lived in an apartment in Berkeley with their two small children and appellant’s seventeen-year-old sister Altia. Appellant worked as a truck driver and Wife stayed home to care for the youngest child.

On January 21, 1993, Wife received a phone call from Altia who said that she had injured her hand at school and was at Kaiser Hospital. Later that day, Altia telephoned Wife again to inform her that…