Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District / Mar 21, 2023
Leland Dent, Appellant, v. State of Missouri, Respondent.
Leland Dent was convicted of assault and armed criminal action and appealed the motion court's denial of his Rule 29.15 motion for post-conviction relief without an evidentiary hearing. Dent argued his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to present medical evidence relevant to his self-defense claim and for failing to object to the State's closing argument. The motion court denied relief, finding counsel's actions were reasonable trial strategy or that objections would have been meritless. The appellate court affirmed the motion court's judgment, concluding it did not clearly err.