Speight

Eric Dayshawn Speight appeals from a judgment after a jury convicted him of two counts of premeditated, willful, and deliberate attempted murder and found true various enhancements. Speight argues the following: (1) the prosecutor committed prejudicial misconduct when she misstated the law concerning homicide and the error was compounded by the trial court’s statements and omission of an instruction on the interaction between attempted murder and attempted voluntary manslaughter, and (2) his sentence was cruel and unusual punishment and he received ineffective assistance of counsel when defense counsel failed to object to part of his sentence

As we explain below, we agree the trial court erred in instructing the jury but conclude Speight was not prejudiced. With respect to his sentencing claim, we conclude defense counsel’s performance was deficient regarding sentencing. We affirm the judgment, reverse Speight’s sentence, and remand the matter for a new sentencing hearing.

FACTS

One evening in August 2010, Tonesha S. was at home in bed asleep with her boyfriend Richard S. when her brother Michael S. woke them and said 17-year-old Speight and a few other men had…