Cormier
Cormier v. United States
Opinion
Lead Opinion
MEMORANDUM **
Peter John Cormier appeals the district court’s denial of his 28 U.S.C. § 2255 habeas petition based on an ineffective assistance of counsel claim. Cormier also appeals the court’s denial of an evidentiary hearing. We have jurisdiction over this case pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2253 , and we now affirm.
The Supreme Court has held that “[t]he benchmark for judging any claim of ineffectiveness must be whether counsel’s conduct so undermined the proper functioning of the adversarial process that the trial cannot be relied on as having produced a just result.” Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 686 , 104 S.Ct. 2052 , 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). In order for Cormier to succeed on his petition, he must show that “in light of all the circumstances, the identified acts or omissions were outside the wide range of'professionally competent assistance.” Id. at 690 (emphasis added). “Judicial scrutiny of counsel’s performance must be highly deferential,” and there is a strong presumption that counsel “rendered adequate assistance and made all significant decisions in the exercise of reasonable professional judgment.” Id. at 689-90 .