Ratchford v. State

Jim Hannah, Justice.

Appellant Jeffrey Scott Ratchford was convicted of two counts of sexual abuse and one count of rape by a Benton County jury. Ratchford was sentenced to two ten-year terms and a term of life imprisonment, to be served concurrently. Ratchford’s sole point on appeal is that he received ineffective assistance of counsel at trial. Ratchford acknowledges that in order to raise a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel on direct appeal, a defendant must first raise the claim in the lower court either during the trial or in a motion for new trial, and Ratchford admits that he…