United States v. Berriel

Appellant, Daniel Raymond Berriel, and a co-defendant McGrath, were convicted upon a jury trial of bank robbery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2113(a). Both defendants were identified by several eyewitnesses as participants in the crime. Error is assigned in the failure to appoint separate counsel and in the cross-examination of appellant as to his previous conviction of felonies 1) Separate counsel. Appellant and his co-defendant were arraigned in the District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, and one attorney was appointed to represent both. The District Judge then advised that if the appointed counsel considered that there could be any conflict of interest, he should inform the judge. For reasons undisclosed here the originally appointed attorney did not conduct the defense, and the case was tried before a different judge. This judge appointed a different attorney who conducted the defense for both defendants. Neither the defendants nor the appointed counsel requested that each defendant have his own attorney. The record discloses no conflict of interest between defendants, and the appeal points to no substantial prejudice that came to either defendant because of the single attorney's conduct of the defense.