N.D.Tex.: Def counsel wasn’t obliged to argue a Franks issue to the jury at trial; that’s presumptively strategy

Defense counsel wasn’t obliged to raise a Franks issue in closing argument. That’s quintessentially a strategic decision. “The Supreme Court has recognized that ‘judicious selection of arguments for summation is a core exercise of defense counsel’s discretion,’ and counsel ‘is not required to summarize or comment upon all the facts, opinions, inferences, and law involved in a case.’ Yarborough, 540 U.S. at 8 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). Movant has failed to rebut the strong presumption that counsel’s decision not to revisit these events in his closing statements was done ‘for tactical reasons rather than through sheer neglect.’ Id. (citing Strickland, 466 U.S. at 690).” Minor v. United States, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 31287 (N.D. Tex. Jan. 21, 2021).

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