Erick E. Beckett Missouri Cases

Erick Beckett appealed the denial of his Rule 29.15 motion to vacate his conviction for first-degree murder and armed criminal action, arguing ineffective assistance of trial counsel. Beckett claimed his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to investigate and call a firearms expert to support his defense that the shooting was unintentional. The appellate court reversed the motion court's judgment, finding that trial counsel's failure to investigate an expert was objectively unreasonable and that the expert's testimony would not have been cumulative or inadmissible, thereby prejudicing Beckett.