Scott v. McDaniel
Scott v. McDaniel
Opinion of the Court
MEMORANDUM
Glynn Edward Scott, a Nevada state prisoner, appeals the district court’s denial of his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 habeas petition after an evidentiary hearing on remand from this court. Before his state trial on three charges of attempted murder with the use of a deadly weapon, Scott sought to have his court appointed attorney, Mark Blaskey, removed as counsel. Scott alleged that he and Blaskey were involved in an irreconcilable conflict and could not communicate. The trial court denied the motion for substitution and Scott was ultimately convicted on the lesser-included offenses of battery with the use of a deadly weapon. Scott’s habeas petition challenges his conviction on the ground that a conflict between him and Blaskey resulted in the constructive denial of Scott’s Sixth Amendment right to counsel. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2253, and we affirm.
The record does not support a finding that Scott and Blaskey were so embroiled in a conflict that the two were not able to communicate or that Blaskey was unable to effectively represent Scott. While Scott vehemently argues that he and Blaskey suffered from an irreconcilable conflict, his specific testimony suggests that there was nevertheless an exchange of information between Scott and his appointed public defender. Scott testified that he was able (1) to relate to Blaskey the events surrounding the crime charged, at least up to a point where he said he encountered an unknown knife-wielding man;
Nor is it true that Blaskey was unable to advise his client, Scott, regarding his right to testify and whether it was prudent to do so. At the evidentiary hearing, Scott gave a detailed account of his conversation with Blaskey. According to Scott, during his trial, he and Blaskey discussed the self-defense strategy and the problems with Scott testifying.
AFFIRMED.
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and may not be cited to or by the courts of this circuit except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
. Scott also testified to his version of the events during the preliminary hearing. Bias-key had and reviewed a copy of the transcript of that hearing.
. Scott points to Blaskey’s testimony (1) that the two “butted heads a lot,” and (2) that Blaskey "tried” to communicate with Scott. To Scott, Blaskey’s testimony supports a finding that the two suffered a complete communication breakdown. However, this ignores Blaskey's further testimony that he and Scott discussed Scott’s self-defense theory, potential witnesses, and that his investigator met with these witnesses and that Blaskey spoke with some of them before they testified.
. This testimony also undercuts Scott’s assertion that he did not speak to Blaskey during the trial. ER 827.
. This conclusion is borne out further in Scott’s testimony regarding his decision not to testify. According to Scott, he "decided not to testify,” because there was no corroborating testimony to support his account, be
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.