United States Ex Rel. Benjamin Reid v. Mark S. Richmond, Warden of Connecticut State Prison

WATERMAN, Circuit Judge

(dissenting).

I dissent from the denial of the petition for a rehearing. I would grant it.

Our present opinion, in which I concurred, could well be re-examined in the light of the additional explanatory information we are likely to obtain. There are two puzzling factors in this case concerning which we could well receive enlightenment. One, though it may be clear that the Public Defender’s decision to have Reid testify should be unreviewable as planned strategy adopted by him in the hope that thereby the jury might recommend clemency, why weren’t the pretrial confessions objected to—if only to save for appellate review the obvious constitutional questions? And, two, inasmuch as no objection was made at trial, why hasn’t the State heretofore relied upon this trial waiver—a waiver we have found from our own unassisted survey of the case?

Reid’s life is at stake.