State v. Latham

On May 17,1996, appellant Kevin Latham shot and killed 17 year old Harvis Coleman as he stood in front of his Baltimore City home. The State appeals a judgment granting Latham postconviction relief on the ground that he received ineffective assistance of counsel at his 1997 jury trial on murder and handgun charges. In the eight years between conviction and Latham’s petition for postconviction relief, trial counsel became unavailable to testify due to his conviction and disbarment for perjury. On the basis of the trial record and Latham’s postconviction testimony, the Circuit Court for…