Gary Lee Bragg, Jr. v. State of Tennessee

Petitioner, Gary Lee Bragg, Jr., claims that trial counsel provided ineffective assistance by
failing to request that the jury be instructed on the lesser-included offenses of aggravated
burglary. The post-conviction court found that trial counsel “was deficient for not
requesting applicable lesser-included jury instructions” but found that “Petitioner was not
prejudiced as a result” and denied relief. We determine that trial counsel’s decision not to
request an instruction on lesser-included offenses was an “informed choice based upon
adequate preparation,” Moore v. State, 485 S.W.3d 411, 420 (Tenn. 2016), and that
Petitioner failed to overcome the presumption that counsel provided adequate assistance
and used reasonable professional judgment to make the strategic decision to employ an
“all-or-nothing” defense strategy. We agree with the post-conviction court’s ruling that
Petitioner failed to prove the prejudice prong of Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668,
687 (1984). Discerning no reversible error, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.