Lee v. United States
United States Supreme Court
137 S. Ct. 1958 (2017)
Jae Lee (defendant), a non-citizen with no real defense to a drug-distribution charge, pleaded guilty after his attorney incorrectly assured him he wouldn't be deported, when in fact the plea triggered mandatory deportation. The district court found Lee's counsel was ineffective but denied relief, reasoning the overwhelming evidence against Lee meant he would have been convicted at trial regardless, so the ineffective advice caused him no prejudice; the Sixth Circuit affirmed, and the Supreme Court granted certiorari.
Whether a defendant can show that ineffective assistance of counsel deprived him of a trial by demonstrating a reasonable probability that, but for the ineffective assistance, he would not have pled guilty but would have gone to trial.