Opinion
NO. 2018 KW 0144
04-09-2018
STATE OF LOUISIANA v. JEFFERY GUILLORY
In Re: Jeffery Guillory, applying for supervisory writs, 19th Judicial District Court, Parish of East Baton Rouge, No. 05-10-0796. BEFORE: WHIPPLE, C.J., McDONALD AND CHUTZ, JJ.
WRIT DENIED. It is well-settled that district court judges have the discretion, if the interests of justice require, to allow a petitioner to amend and supplement a timely filed but not yet ruled on application for postconviction relief. See State ex rel. Benn v. State, 2011-2418 (La. 6/22/12), 90 So.3d 1045, 1046 (per curiam). See also State ex rel. Foy v. Whitley, 92-1281 (La. 10/6/95), 661 So.2d 455. At the time that relator filed the amended application for postconviction relief, the district court had already denied relator's original claims for postconviction relief. Therefore, the district court did not abuse its discretion in dismissing the amended application for postconviction relief.
Relator's writ application (2017 KW 1284) was granted for the sole purpose of allowing him to seek review of the denial of his first application for postconviction relief, filed in 2014. The substantive claims underlying relator's contention that his Sixth Amendment right to effective assistance of counsel was violated are without merit. If the substantive issue an attorney failed to raise has no merit, then the claim that the attorney was ineffective for failing to raise the issue also has no merit. State ex rel. Roper v. Cain, 99-2173 (La. App. 1st Cir. 10/26/99), 763 So.2d 1, 5 (per curiam), writ denied, 2000-0975 (La. 11/17/00), 773 So.2d 733. Furthermore, the documents in the record, including the trial transcript, were sufficient to address relator's claims. Therefore, there was no need for an evidentiary hearing. See La. Code Crim. P. art. 929(A).
VGW
JMM
WRC
COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT /s/_________
DEPUTY CLERK OF COURT
FOR THE COURT