Full opinion text
EBEL, Circuit Judge. Petitioner Alvie James Hale was tried and convicted by jury in the District Court of Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma on one count of Murder in the First Degree and one count of Kidnapping for Extortion. The jury recommended death for the crime of Murder in the First Degree and life imprisonment for the crime of Kidnapping for Extortion. After unsuccessful direct and post-conviction appeals in state court, Mr. Hale filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254. The district court denied the writ. Mr. Hale appeals, and we AFFIRM. BACKGROUND Hale was charged with the murder and kidnapping of William Jeffrey Perry (“Perry”) of Tecumseh, Oklahoma. Perry’s parents owned and managed a local bank. When Perry failed to arrive for work Tuesday morning, October 11, 1983, his sister, Veronica, went to his home to locate him. She found his automobile in the driveway, the front door to his home open, his clothes laid out for work, and Perry missing. The only sign of a struggle was an upset alarm clock. At 10:30 a.m. that day, Perry’s mother received the first of a series of telephone calls concerning her son from an unidentified man. The second call came at 1:30 p.m. and was received by Perry’s sister who was asked “Where is the money, where is $350,000?” During each call, the family asked to speak with Perry and were told that Perry was at a lake cabin and could not be brought to a phone, but that he would be released after the caller received $350,000 from the family. The family could not arrange to have the money until the following day. Meanwhile, at approximately 7:00 a.m. on the morning of October 11, 1983, a man identified as Hale came to the bathroom window of the house where Janet Miller lived. He asked her if he could use a telephone and she told him she did not have a phone. As the man went back to his white station wagon in her driveway, a second man dressed only in undershorts yelled for help from an adjacent field. Hale hurried to the spot where the second man was located, who was bent over with pain, and pulled him over the fence into the automobile. The next day, Mrs. Perry received a phone call directing her to go to the pay phone at a 7-11 store where she would receive further instructions. When Mrs. Perry reached the 7-11 she received a phone call on the pay phone at the store that directed her to another 7-11. During this phone call, Mrs. Perry spotted Hale sitting in a red and white pickup across the street. Mrs. Perry then proceeded to the second location, where she again received a phone call which told her where to drop off the ransom money. Mrs. Perry followed the caller’s instructions and deposited the money at the designated location. While Mrs. Perry was dropping off the money, she observed Hale’s truck approaching her location and was able to identify Hale as the driver of the vehicle. After Hale retrieved the money, F.B.I. agents pursued Hale in a high speed chase through Oklahoma City. The pursuit ended when Hale’s vehicle finally came to a stop after he hit a drainage ditch, went airborne, and collided head on with an F.B.I. agent’s vehicle. All the money Mrs. Perry had delivered was found in the truck and Hale was taken into custody at that time. Hale’s father gave law enforcement officers consent to search his home and property. During the search, officers found the victim’s body wrapped in a dark colored trampoline tarp within a metal storage shed, one which fit a trampoline frame found at Hale’s own home. Perry' had been shot a number of times. Also located at the house was a cream-colored station wagon Hale had used the morning of October 11th. A blood-stained towel containing a hair identified as Hale’s was found in the vehicle. In addition, blood was found on the shoulder harness in the car which was consistent with Perry’s blood. A .38 caliber revolver was also found in a kitchen cabinet. Two bullets found in Perry’s head were determined by a ballistics expert to have come from that revolver to the exclusion of all other weapons. Hale was found guilty of Murder in the First Degree and Kidnapping for Extortion. During the second stage of Hale’s trial, the prosecutor sought the death penalty on the kidnapping as well as the first degree murder charge. The prosecutor argued three aggravating circumstances for the kidnapping charge and four aggravating circumstances for the murder charge. The jury found two aggravating circumstances for kidnapping-that it was done for remuneration and was heinous, atrocious, or cruel-and sentenced Hale to life imprisonment. The jury found the existence of two aggrava-tors on the murder charge-the murder was heinous, atrocious, or cruel and the murder was committed to avoid lawful arrest-and sentenced Hale to death. On March 22, 1984, the trial judge sentenced Hale in accordance with the jury’s recommendation. Hale appealed, raising twenty-two propositions of error. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals (“OCCA”) affirmed Petitioner’s convictions and sentences. Hale v. State, 750 P.2d 130 (Okla.Crim.App.1988) (“Hale I”). Certiorari review was subsequently denied. Hale v. Oklahoma, 488 U.S. 878, 109 S.Ct. 195, 102 L.Ed.2d 164 (1988). Hale then pursued post-conviction relief which was denied by the District Court of Pottawatomie County following an evidentiary hearing. Hale appealed to the OCCA raising thirteen grounds for relief. The OCCA affirmed the trial court’s denial of post-conviction relief, finding twelve of the allegations waived because they were either raised on direct appeal or could have been. Hale v. State, 807 P.2d 264 (Okla.Crim.App.1991) (“Hale II”). The OCCA denied relief on the final claim. Certiorari review was again denied. Hale v. Oklahoma, 502 U.S. 902, 112 S.Ct. 280, 116 L.Ed.2d 231 (1991). On April 28, 1992, Hale filed a second application for post-conviction relief in the District Court of Pottawatomie County. All relief was denied. On appeal, the Court of Criminal Appeals again affirmed the denial of post-conviction relief. Hale v. State, 934 P.2d 1100 (Okla.Crim.App.1997) (“Hale III”). Hale then filed a petition for writ of habe-as corpus on February 28, 1997 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, raising twenty issues. That petition was denied on January 28, 1999 and Hale was granted a certificate of appealability on all issues. On appeal, Hale makes the following thirteen claims of constitutional error: (1) he was (a) denied effective assistance of counsel through a conflict of interest and (b) denied due process when his counsel’s motion to withdraw from representation was denied outside of Hale’s presence, (2) he was denied effective assistance of counsel during the punishment stage of his trial, (3) he was denied effective assistance of counsel during voir dire, (4) he was denied effective assistance of counsel when counsel failed to object to the admission of other crimes evidence, (5) he was denied effective assistance of counsel during counsel’s second stage closing remarks, (6) he was denied effective assistance of counsel during counsel’s first stage closing remarks, (7) he was denied a fair trial due to an improper instruction to the jury that kidnapping was a death-eligible offense and denied effective assistance of counsel for his counsel’s failure to object to the improper jury instruction, (8) he was denied due process because of the late filing of the Bill of Particulars and denied effective assistance of counsel when his attorney failed to object to the late filing, (9) his convictions for murder and kidnapping violated double jeopardy principles, (10) the government committed a violation of Brady v. Maryland, 378 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963), (11) he was denied a fair trial due to the trial court’s failure to grant a change of venue, (12) there was insufficient evidence to support the aggra-vator that Hale committed murder to avoid lawful arrest, and (13) there was insufficient evidence to support the “heinous, atrocious, or cruel” aggravator. DISCUSSION A. Standard of Review When reviewing the denial of a ha-beas corpus petition, we are generally subject to two different frameworks of review, depending upon whether the state courts addressed the merits of the claim for relief. If the state courts have not heard the claim on its merits, we review the district court’s legal conclusions de novo and its factual findings, if any, for clear error. If the state courts have addressed the claim on its merits, we review the state court ruling under the standard enunciated under 28 U.S.C. § 2254. Smallwood v. Gibson, 191 F.3d 1257, 1264 (10th Cir.1999) (footnote and citation omitted). Because Mr. Hale filed his petition for habeas relief nearly one year after the effective date of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (“AEDPA”), AEDPA applies to his petition. See Lindh v. Murphy, 521 U.S. 320, 336, 117 S.Ct. 2059, 138 L.Ed.2d 481 (1997). Under AEDPA’s provisions, a federal court is precluded from granting habeas relief on any claim adjudicated on the merits by the state court, unless the state proceeding “resulted in a decision that was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court,” 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d)(1), or “resulted in a decision that was based on an unreasonable determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented in the State court proceeding,” 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d)(2). “In addition, we presume the factual findings of the state court are correct unless petitioner can rebut this presumption by clear and convincing evidence.” Smallwood, 191 F.3d at 1265 (citing 28 U.S.C. § 2254(e)(1)). The Supreme Court recently construed the review standard set forth in 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d)(1). See Williams v. Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 120 S.Ct. 1495, 146 L.Ed.2d 389 (2000). In order for Hale to secure a writ under section (d)(1) he must satisfy one of the following two conditions: “the state-court adjudication resulted in a decision that (1) ‘was contrary to ... clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States,’ or (2) ‘involved an unreasonable application of ... clearly established Federal law as, determined by the Supreme Court of the United States.’ ” Williams, _ U.S. at _, 120 S.Ct. at 1523, 146 L.Ed.2d 389 (omissions in original). The Court determined that a state court decision is “contrary to” clearly established federal law “if the state court arrives at a conclusion opposite to that reached by this Court on a question of law or if the state court decides a case differently than this Court has on a set of materially indistinguishable facts.” Id. A state court decision is an unreasonable application of federal law “if the state court identifies the correct governing legal principle from this Court’s decision but unreasonably applies that principle to the facts of the prisoner’s case.” Id. When a federal habeas court is making an “unreasonable application” inquiry, the Court stated that it “should ask whether the state court’s application of clearly established federal law was objectively unreasonable.” Id. at 1521. The Court stopped short of defining the term “unreasonable” as it is used in AEDPA, but did note that while it is “difficult to define,” it is “a common term in the legal world and, accordingly, federal judges are familiar with its meaning.” Id. at 1522. The Court was careful to point out, however, that “an unreasonable application of federal law is different from an incorrect application of federal law.” Id. We now turn to our review of Mr. Hale’s claims in light of Williams. I. Ineffective Assistance of Counsel and Related Claims A. Motion to Withdraw Hale first argues that he was denied the effective assistance of counsel because of a conflict of interest. Hale contends that his trial counsel suffered under a conflict of interest based on trial counsel’s assertions to the court in a motion to withdraw. Hale’s trial counsel, Mr. Van Wagner, was appointed by the trial court to represent Hale on November 30, 1983. Van Wagner testified at the post-conviction hearing that the first thing he did after being appointed was to file an Application to Withdraw with the trial judge. The written application stated in pertinent part: He [Van Wagner] knows said Defendant whose office was across the hall from this applicant’s law office in 1982 and portions of 1983, and this applicant believes that the Defendant attempted to burglarize his law office in early 1983 along with other offices in the building, although there was not sufficient evidence to press charges. Because of this, this applicant has a personal dislike, distrust and animosity toward the Defendant which will prevent the desirable communication and trust that is necessary to an attorney-client relationship. After Van Wagner filed this application he had a meeting with the trial judge. There is no transcript of the meeting between Mr. Van Wagner and the judge; however, following the meeting, the judge denied the application to withdraw and the following “court minute” was handwritten at the bottom of the application: “Above application denied after consideration by the Court. The Court is of the opinion that the attorney will not permit personalities to effect [sic] his relationship or representation of defendant.” Hale argues on appeal that the asserted animosity of Van Wagner towards Hale was a conflict of interest which the judge failed to inquire into adequately and resolve properly. In addition, Hale argues that his due process rights were violated because he was not present while his attorney discussed the application to withdraw with the trial judge. In Hale’s state direct appeal, he raised only the conflict of interest issue, and he failed to raise the procedural due process claim. With regard to the conflict of interest claim, the OCCA stated: Trial counsel asked to withdraw from representing Hale because he suspected appellant of attempting to burglarize his offices and thought that his personal animosity might hinder communications with Hale. The trial court held a hearing out of Hale’s presence and declined the application. We find no abuse of the court’s discretion in requiring counsel to overcome his personal feelings and to represent Hale. There is no constitutional right to an attorney client relationship free of animosity. Morris v. Slappy, 461 U.S. 1, 103 S.Ct. 1610, 75 L.Ed.2d 610 (1983). Hale I, 750 P.2d at 135. In his state application for post-conviction relief, Hale, for the first time, raised his procedural due process claim based on his absence from the hearing on the motion to withdraw, in addition to his previously raised conflict of interest claim. The OCCA denied consideration of the issue, stating that the conflict of interest claim had been addressed on direct appeal and was therefore barred from review on post-conviction. Hale II, 807 P.2d at 267. It appears that the procedural due process claim has never been addressed by the OCCA. Because the state does not raise procedural bar on appeal, we will consider the procedural due process claim on the merits. See Hooks v. Ward, 184 F.3d 1206, 1223 (10th Cir.1999). 1. Procedural Due Process Claim Hale first argues that his constitutional rights were violated when he was not notified of or permitted to attend the hearing or meeting at which his court-appointed counsel discussed his motion to withdraw with the trial judge. Because the OCCA did not address this claim on the merits, we apply pre-AEDPA standards to this portion of Hale’s claim. See Hooks, 184 F.3d at 1223. The district court below concluded that Hale’s due process rights were not violated by his absence from the hearing on the motion to withdraw because it was not a stage of the proceedings in which his presence was required. The question of whether a defendant has a constitutional right to be present at a particular stage of his trial is a legal question that we review de novo. See United States v. Gomez, 67 F.3d 1515, 1528 (10th Cir.1995). The Supreme Court has held that a defendant “has a due process right to be present in his own person whenever his presence has a relation, reasonably substantial, to the fullness of his opportunity to defend against the charge.” Kentucky v. Stincer, 482 U.S. 730, 745, 107 S.Ct. 2658, 96 L.Ed.2d 631 (1987) (internal quotation marks omitted). When a defendant’s presence, however, would be “useless” or “the benefit but a shadow,” his presence is not constitutionally required. Id. Due process requires a defendant’s presence only whenever “a fair and just hearing would be thwarted by his absence.” Id. “Thus, a defendant is guaranteed the right to be present at any stage of the criminal proceeding that is critical to its outcome if his presence would contribute to the fairness of the procedure.” Id. In Stincer, the Supreme Court found no due process violation occurred as a result of the defendant’s exclusion from a hearing to determine two young witnesses’ competency to testify. In reaching this conclusion, the Court stressed the fact that no substantive testimony that the two girls would give during trial was revealed during the hearing and the defendant did not make a showing that his presence would have ensured a more reliable determination of the competence of the two young witnesses to testify against him. Id. at 745-46, 107 S.Ct. 2658. Therefore, the Court concluded that the defendant’s absence from the hearing could not have affected his ability to defend himself at trial. This court considered a similar legal issue as the one presented here in United States v. Oles, 994 F.2d 1519 (10th Cir.1993). In Oles, this court held that the defendant’s absence from a preliminary hearing, in which the court determined whether court appointed counsel would withdraw in favor of potential retained counsel, did not violate the defendant’s due process rights. Id. at 1525. In reaching this holding, we found that because no substantive matters relating to the charges pending against the defendant were discussed at the hearing and because the defendant did not establish that his presence would have contributed to the fairness of the trial, the defendant’s absence did not “impinge on [the defendants’] opportunity to defend against [the charges], or affect the fairness of the entire trial.” Id. Similarly, in Green v. Johnson, 116 F.3d 1115 (5th Cir.1997), the Fifth Circuit held that a defendant’s due process rights were not violated when the defendant was absent during a meeting between the judge and one of his two attorneys concerning the one attorney’s motion to withdraw. Id. at 1124. In the meeting, the attorney argued that her relationship with her co-counsel had deteriorated to the point that they did not communicate about the case directly, and she felt this situation was hindering her ability to represent the defendant. Id. The Fifth Circuit held that the defendant’s exclusion from the meeting did not thwart the fairness and just treatment of the issue during the meeting or the fairness of the defendant’s overall representation. Id. Moreover, the court found that although the defendant had stated that if he was present he could have provided the court with important information about the conflict, the defendant failed to provide the court with such information or explain how it would have affected the ruling. Id. Like the defendants in Stincer, Oles, and Green, Hale’s absence from the conference between the trial judge and his counsel did not affect his ability to defend against the charges he was facing nor did it thwart the fairness of that conference or his overall representation. There is no allegation that the trial judge and counsel, Mr. Van Wagner, discussed the substantive charges against Hale. The conference discussed whether Van Wagner’s asserted subjective feelings toward Hale would affect his representation. There is no suggestion that the conference addressed, or attempted to resolve, the truth of the underlying suspicions that gave rise to Van Wagner’s ill will nor was there an allegation of a breakdown in communications. As in Green, Hale does not indicate what he could have done had he been present that would have had an effect on the ruling by the trial judge or affected the fairness of his trial or the presentation of his defense. This court finds that Hale’s exclusion from the proceeding did not result in an unfair proceeding or trial. Rather, the trial judge, after being presented with Van Wagner’s petition, specifically found that trial counsel’s relationship and representation of the defendant would not be affected. Similarly, Van Wagner testified at the post-conviction hearing that his “vague suspicion” that Hale had attempted to burglarize his office did not affect his representation of Hale at all. Hale has presented no evidence to refute the above findings and testimony. We conclude that the meeting on the motion to withdraw did not impinge on Hale’s opportunity to defend against the charges against him or affect the fairness of the entire trial; thus we find no constitutional violation. 2. Conflict of Interest The second part of Hale’s claim urges this court to find that an actual conflict of interest existed between Hale and Mr. Van Wagner because Mr. Van Wagner had a vague suspicion that Hale might have burglarized his offices. Because the OCCA addressed this claim on the merits, we review under AEDPA standards. The Sixth Amendment guarantees the effective assistance of counsel to a defendant in a criminal trial. See Selsor v. Kaiser, 81 F.3d 1492, 1496-97 (10th Cir.1996). “The Sixth Amendment right to effective assistance of counsel encompasses the correlative right to representation that is free from conflicts of interest.” Id. at 1497 (internal quotation marks omitted). This court has explained that the [tjypical conflict of interest case[ ] giving rise to [a] claim[] of ineffective assistance of counsel involve[s] multiple representation of co-defendants at a single trial. However, a defendant’s right to counsel free from conflicts of interest is not limited to cases involving joint representation of co-defendants but extends to any situation in which a defendant’s counsel owes conflicting duties to that defendant and some other third person. United States v. Cook, 45 F.3d 388, 393 (10th Cir.1995) (internal citations, quotation marks, and alterations omitted). Implicit in the latter category of conflicts noted in Cook is the notion that a conflict may also arise where a lawyer’s self-interest is adverse to the interest of his client. See Smith v. Lockhart, 923 F.2d 1314, 1320 (8th Cir.1991) (“In general, a conflict exists when an attorney is placed in a situation conducive to divided loyalties.”); see also Beets v. Scott, 65 F.3d 1258 (5th Cir.1995) (discussing conflict of interest when attorney’s self-interest conflicts with duty of loyalty to defendant). Hale argues that this situation exists in his case because his counsel informed the court that he disliked and distrusted Hale because he suspected that Hale may have burglarized his law offices approximately a year earlier. Hale suggests that this animosity demonstrates that his interests and Van Wagner’s interests were in conflict. Hale’s interpretation of the law is too broad. Under Hale’s view, any time that counsel dislikes his or her client, the defendant could claim a conflict of interest. This is not the state of the law. A conflict does not arise any time defendant and his counsel had prior dealings that may have been at odds; rather, the interests of counsel and defendant must be divergent in the current litigation, such that the attorney has an interest in the outcome of the particular case at issue that is adverse to that of the defendant. See United States v. Soto Hernandez, 849 F.2d 1325, 1329 (10th Cir.1988) (stating that to show conflict of interest, the defendant must demonstrate that counsel “actively represented conflicting interests” in the pending case); see also Beets, 65 F.3d at 1273 (condemning as a conflict the execution of media and literary rights fee arrangements between the attorney and his client during the pendency of a representation but declining to award habeas relief because of a lack of a showing of prejudice). In the present case, there is no evidence that Van Wagner had any interest in the outcome of the current case that would conflict with Hale’s interest. The fact that Van Wagner had a suspicion that ■ Hale may have burglarized his office at an earlier time is unrelated to the case for which he was currently representing Hale. Although Van Wagner would have a conflict of interest if he were representing Hale for the robbery of his law office because their interests in that case would be adverse, representation of Hale in a wholly unrelated case does not give rise to a conflict of interest. Cf. Church v. Sullivan, 942 F.2d 1501, 1511 n. 8 (10th Cir.1991) (finding conflict of interest where defense counsel may have to cross-examine a witness who is a former client only when counsel’s previous representation of the witness is “substantially related to the attorney’s later representation of [the current client]” (alteration in original omitted)). The fact that Van Wagner did not like Hale or did not trust him does not rise to the level of a conflict of interest. Personality conflicts are not conflicts of interest. Morris v. Slappy, 461 U.S. 1, 13, 103 S.Ct. 1610, 75 L.Ed.2d 610 (1983). Thus, we decline to find a conflict of interest in this situation. Although there is no conflict of interest, we have recognized that “a complete breakdown in communication between an attorney and client may give rise to a presumption of ineffectiveness.” Romero v. Furlong, 215 F.3d 1107, 1111 (10th Cir.2000) (alterations in original omitted). In this case, however, there is no evidence that there was a breakdown in communication between Van Wagner and Hale. The evidence, instead, supports the conclusion that client and counsel maintained adequate communication. Van Wagner testified at the state post-conviction hearing that he met with Hale many times prior to the trial and discussed the case and the strategy they would follow at trial. In addition, Hale testified at the post-conviction hearing that he did not have any difficulty communicating with Van Wagner. Thus, there is no evidence from which we could presume ineffective assistance based on a total breakdown in communication. There being no conflict of interest and no evidence of a total breakdown in communication, we can vacate Hale’s conviction on Sixth Amendment grounds only if he can show ineffective assistance of counsel within the meaning of Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). However, given the concession by Hale’s counsel that he carried animosity towards Hale due to his suspicion that Hale might have previously burglarized his law office, we believe it is appropriate to scrutinize counsel’s performance with a somewhat more critical eye. We turn, then, to the specific allegations of trial conduct that Hale argues constituted ineffective assistance of counsel. B. Mitigation Evidence Hale argues his trial counsel, Mr. Van Wagner, was ineffective during the penalty phase of the trial. Specifically, Hale contends that his attorney failed adequately to investigate, prepare, and present a second stage defense. Hale focuses on the lack of any mitigation evidence during the sentencing phase, which he asserts was readily available had Van Wagner done any amount of investigation or preparation. According to Hale, there exists a reasonable probability that had the jury heard the undiscovered mitigation evidence, it would not have voted for death. On direct criminal appeal, the OCCA rejected this claim, stating that counsel’s decision with regard to witness testimony is a matter of trial tactics which the court would not second guess. See Hale I, 750 P.2d at 142. On Hale’s first state habeas petition, the lower court held an extensive evidentiary hearing. Following the hearing, the court denied relief and the OCCA subsequently rejected the claim a second time, reiterating that what witnesses should be used at trial are a matter of trial strategy, and further stating that Hale had failed to meet his burden to show that but for trial counsel’s decisions, the result of the trial would have been different. The OCCA then pointed out that Hale had raised this issue on direct appeal, and thus was barred from raising it again on post-conviction. See Hale II, 807 P.2d at 267. Claims of ineffective assistance of counsel are mixed questions of law and fact. See Wallace v. Ward, 191 F.3d 1235, 1247 (10th Cir.1999) (applying AEDPA). “To establish ineffective assistance of counsel, a petitioner must prove that counsel’s performance was constitutionally deficient and that counsel’s deficient performance prejudiced the defense.” Id. (citing Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687, 104 S.Ct. 2052 (alteration in original omitted)). With regard to the first prong, to prove deficient performance Hale “must overcome the presumption that counsel’s conduct was not constitutionally defective. Judicial scrutiny of counsel’s performance is highly deferential.” Wallace, 191 F.3d at 1247 (citation omitted). If constitutionally deficient performance is shown, then Hale must demonstrate that “there is a ‘reasonable probability’ that the outcome would have been different had those errors not occurred.” Brecheen v. Reynolds, 41 F.3d 1343, 1365 (10th Cir.1994). However, when a petitioner is specifically challenging the imposition of the death sentence during the punishment phase of the trial, the prejudice prong of Strickland focuses on whether there is “a reasonable probability that, absent the errors, the sentencer ... would have concluded that the balance of aggravating and mitigating circumstances did not warrant death.” Stafford v. Saffle, 34 F.3d 1557, 1564 (10th Cir.1994). Courts may address the performance and prejudice components in any order and need not address both if a defendant fails to make a sufficient showing of one. See Strickland 466 U.S. at 697, 104 S.Ct. 2052. Hale’s trial counsel did not give an opening statement at the beginning of the penalty phase and presented no mitigating evidence. Counsel addressed the jury during the second stage only in his closing argument in which he urged the jurors to bestow mercy on Hale and give him life in prison. Hale argues on habeas that his counsel should have introduced the testimony of persons in the community who knew him both as a youth and as an adult, in his capacity as a father, businessman, and friend. “[T]he failure to present available mitigating evidence is not per se ineffective assistance of counsel.” Brecheen, 41 F.3d at 1368. Instead, it is necessary to evaluate the reasons for counsel’s failure to present mitigating evidence and then determine whether that failure, if due to deficient performance by the attorney, prejudiced the defendant. Here, Hale contends that counsel’s failure to present mitigating evidence resulted from his failure to investigate possible sources of such evidence. “[A]n attorney has a duty to conduct a reasonable investigation, including an investigation of the defendant’s background, for possible mitigating evidence.” Brecheen, 41 F.3d at 1366. The duty to investigate derives from counsel’s basic function, which is to make the adversarial testing process work in the particular case. Because that testing process generally will not function properly unless defense counsel has done some investigation into the prosecution’s case and into various defense strategies, the Supreme Court has noted that counsel has a duty to make reasonable investigations or to make a reasonable decision that makes particular investigations unnecessary. Stouffer v. Reynolds, 168 F.3d 1155, 1167 (10th Cir.1999) (alterations in original omitted). This duty is strictly observed in capital cases. See Nguyen v. Reynolds, 131 F.3d 1340, 1347 (10th Cir.1997). An attorney’s failure to conduct a reasonable investigation “may fall outside the scope of reasonable professional assistance, and thereby amount to deficient representation under the first prong of Strickland.” Brecheen, 41 F.3d at 1366 (quotation marks omitted). To determine whether Van Wagner’s performance was below the prevailing standards, we review the evidence presented at the state habeas evidentiary hearing. During the hearing, Van Wagner testified that he spent a considerable amount of time reviewing the law and the charges, conferencing with Hale, examining the FBI reports from the federal prosecution, talking with Hale’s father and wife, and talking with other witnesses. Although Van Wagner testified that he spoke with various potential witnesses, he could not recall any person with whom he actually spoke other than Mr. Hale’s father and wife. Moreover, Hale testified that he gave Van Wagner a list of friends that Van Wagner could contact about possibly testifying on Hale’s behalf. Several people Hale named on this list testified at the hearing that they were never contacted before or during the trial, though they would have been willing to testify at trial on Hale’s behalf. Although Van Wagner testified that Hale was adamant that his wife and daughter not testify during the mitigation stage, this did not preclude him from investigating other potential witnesses or mitigating evidence. In addition, Van Wagner admitted that he did not hire an investigator to track down any potential mitigation witnesses. A defense investigator hired by Hale’s state habeas counsel testified at the hearing that finding mitigation witnesses in this case was in fact easier than most death penalty cases because Hale had been a long-time resident of the area where the crime and trial took place. Thus, there were reasonable lines of investigation open to Van Wagner which would have revealed readily available mitigation witnesses; however, Van Wagner failed to pursue any of them. Given this lack of investigation, Van Wagner’s decision not to put forth any mitigation evidence at the sentencing phase cannot be justified as strategic. As this court stated in Breechen, before an attorney can insulate his behavior from review by claiming that a decision to forego mitigation evidence was strategic, “an attorney must have chosen not to present mitigating evidence after having investigated the defendant’s background, and that choice must have been reasonable under the circumstances.” Brecheen, 41 F.3d at 1369. In this case, Van Wagner testified that he “thought” one of the reasons he may have decided not to present any mitigation testimony was because Hale had several prior felony convictions which he feared would be brought out by the prosecution should he put on character witnesses. However, none of the these prior felony convictions involved violent crimes. Moreover, the witnesses that testified on behalf of Hale at the post-conviction hearing stated that these prior convictions would not have influenced their opinion of Hale. If Van Wagner had spoken with these individuals he may have decided that the risks of revealing several prior, non-violent convictions were outweighed by the benefit to be obtained from the witnesses’ testimony. In any event, Hale’s criminal record could not justify a failure to investigate possible mitigating evidence even if it might be a justification not to introduce such evidence at trial. Because Van Wagner failed to make any investigation, _we believe it was unreasonable for the OCCA to conclude that Van Wagner’s decision to present no mitigating witnesses was a strategic decision. We conclude that Van Wagner functioned well below the level of any competent attorney during the penalty phase in failing to investigate mitigating evidence. We must, however, still determine whether Hale has met his burden under AEDPA of showing that Van Wagner’s deficient performance prejudiced him. In assessing prejudice in the penalty phase, “we must keep in mind the strength of the government’s case and the aggravating factors the jury found as well as the mitigating factors that might have been presented” if Van Wagner’s performance had not been deficient. Stafford v. Saffle, 34 F.3d 1557, 1564 (10th Cir.1994). During the state post-conviction evidentiary hearing, Hale presented the testimony of four family members and nine friends who all stated they would have testified at the sentencing phase if asked. Two of these witnesses, however, included Hale’s wife and daughter. Hale had insisted at trial that his wife and daughter not be allowed to testify on his behalf, and affirmed this demand when he testified at the post-conviction hearing. As the client, Hale had the right to preclude this testimony. See Stafford, 34 F.3d at 1564-65 (recognizing client’s right to preclude a line of defense). This left the potential testimony of two family members, Hale’s sister and his uncle, and nine friends. Initially, we point out that it is unclear whether Hale’s sister would have been able to testify on her brother’s behalf. At the time of the trial, she was away in Italy and no one had informed her that her brother was on trial. In addition, four of the people who testified provided somewhat equivocal statements on behalf of Hale. For example, one friend stated that he liked Mr. Hale, but he was also friends with the victim’s family, and stated only that Hale “seemed to care,” or at least “I never saw anything that would indicate that he didn’t.” Another friend stated in response to the question “Would you have told the jury to ask them to spare his life?”: “I don’t know what I would have told them.” Still another friend responding to the same question testified that he would have simply stated that he “knew him [Hale] socially to the extent that he and I talked together frequently about baseball, and we were good friends. I-I didn’t know anything other than that about him, really.” The remainder of the testimony from other witnesses was limited to general statements that Hale was a good father and friend, a good citizen, and had been a good student back in high school. Against these testimonials from friends and family members, some of which were equivocal, is the State’s strong case against Hale. The jury found two aggrava-tors: the murder was “heinous, atrocious, or cruel” and the murder was committed to avoid lawful arrest. There was ample evidence to prove both of these aggrava-tors. In addition, there was strong evidence connecting Hale to the crime. The victim was wrapped in Hale’s trampoline tarp. The body was found at Hale’s father’s home and the gun used to kill the victim was a gun Hale had borrowed from his father. Furthermore, there was hair, blood, and fingerprint evidence connecting Hale to the murder. There was also evidence presented at trial that Hale had attempted to kidnap a woman just one day prior to the kidnapping of the victim, and a former cellmate of Hale’s testified that Hale had told him he knew how to get rid of witnesses. The cellmate further stated that when Hale learned that the inmate was going to testify against him, the inmate was beaten up by Hale and others. Given the strength of the case against Hale, the aggravating factors found by the jury, and the nature of the crime itself, we do not believe that the later-identified testimony from family and friends, some of which was equivocal and none of which was compelling, would have created a reasonable probability that the jury would have sentenced Hale to life in prison. See Boyd v. Ward, 179 F.3d 904, 918 (10th Cir.1999) (“Even if we assume the failure to present mitigating evidence in the form of testimony from childhood acquaintances and family members is deficient performance,” petitioner failed to establish prejudice in light of minimal other mitigating evidence and overall strength of state’s case); Smith v. Gibson, 197 F.3d 454, 463-64 (10th Cir.1999) (finding testimony from family, friends, bosses, and former coaches insufficient to show jury would have sentenced defendant to life in prison in light of “brutal and senseless nature of this crime and the strength of the State’s evidence supporting the three aggravating circumstances”). Thus, we conclude the OCCA’s determination that Hale’s counsel was not ineffective was not an unreasonable application of federal law. C. Voir Dire Hale next argues that his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance of counsel during voir dire. Specifically, Hale argues that his trial attorney, Mr. Van Wagner, was ineffective when he: (1) failed generally to question jurors about a possible defense strategy; (2) failed to attempt to rehabilitate jurors challenged for cause by the state based upon their views on the death penalty; and (3) failed to challenge for cause or use peremptory challenges to exclude several jurors with preconceived notions of Hale’s guilt. Hale raised this claim on direct appeal, and the OCCA summarily dismissed it, finding that defense counsel’s conduct during voir dire was not deficient. Hale I, 750 P.2d at 139. The court further stated that “challenges to veniremen are a matter of trial technique which should not be second guessed with the benefit of hindsight.” Id. As discussed above, to show ineffective assistance of counsel, Hale must show both constitutionally deficient performance by trial counsel and prejudice. 1. General Questioning During Voir Dire Hale argues that Mr. Van Wagner was ineffective because he failed to educate the jury on any aspect of his second stage strategy. However, Hale has failed to demonstrate how Mr. Van Wagner’s questioning during voir dire fell below constitutional standards. In Nguyen v. Reynolds, 131 F.3d 1340 (10th Cir.1997), this Court held that “[a]n attorney’s actions during voir dire are considered to be matters of trial strategy. A strategic decision cannot be the basis for a claim of ineffective assistance unless counsel’s decision is shown to be so ill chosen that it permeates the entire trial with obvious unfairness.” Id. at 1349 (citation omitted). Hale has failed to demonstrate that Mr. Van Wagner’s failure to question jurors about a possible defense strategy permeated the trial with unfairness. The Supreme Court has held that in a capital trial, due process requires a voir dire examination of a potential juror’s views on the death penalty, see Morgan v. Illinois, 504 U.S. 719, 729, 112 S.Ct. 2222, 119 L.Ed.2d 492 (1992); however, it is clear from the transcript of the voir dire proceedings that such an examination did take place in this case. Furthermore, after examining the transcript, it is clear that Mr. Van Wagner did ask the jurors questions that attempted to elicit potential biases which could be either helpful or damaging to Hale’s case. These questions included whether the jurors held an opinion, whether they knew anyone in law enforcement that would color their ability to be impartial, and whether they were members of a church. Moreover, the court thoroughly questioned the jurors as to their views on the death penalty. Thus, Hale has failed to show that Mr. Van Wagner’s performance in questioning the jurors during voir dire was constitutionally deficient or prejudicial. 2. Rehabilitation of Jurors Challenged for Cause Hale next argues that trial counsel was ineffective because he failed to attempt to rehabilitate four jurors after the state challenged them for cause and the court dismissed them based upon their views regarding the death penalty. The trial court asked the following question of all the jurors: “If selected as a juror in a case where the law and the evidence warrant could you without doing violence to your conscious [sic] recommend the déath penalty?” The trial judge then went on to question individually those jurors who responded negatively about their views on the death penalty. These jurors included Jurors Fischer, Zinn, Abel, and Myer. In individual questioning, three of these jurors, Fischer, Zinn, and Meyer, stated unequivocally that they could not inflict the death penalty in any case. The fourth juror, Abel, stated that she could not apply the death penalty in this case regardless of the evidence because she knew Hale, his daughter, and his wife. These responses were repeated upon questioning by the state. The Supreme Court in Wainwright v. Witt, 469 U.S. 412, 105 S.Ct. 844, 83 L.Ed.2d 841 (1985), articulated the standard for determining whether a prospective juror must be excluded for cause because of his or her view on capital punishment as “whether the juror’s views would prevent or substantially impair the performance of his duties as a juror in accordance with his instructions and his oath.” Id. at 424, 105 S.Ct. 844 (quotation marks omitted). A juror’s bias need not be proven with “unmistakable clarity” because determinations of juror bias cannot be reduced to question-and-answer sessions which obtain results in the manner of a catechism.... Despite this lack of clarity in the printed record, however, there will be situations where the trial judge is left with the definite impression that a prospective juror would be unable to faithfully and impartially apply the law.... [T]his is why deference must be paid to the trial judge who sees and hears the juror. Id. at 424-26, 105 S.Ct. 844. Thus, the state trial judge’s determination is statutorily accorded a presumption of correctness which can only be rebutted by clear and convincing evidence. See 28 U.S.C. 2254(e)(1); see also Williams v. Collins, 16 F.3d 626, 633 (5th Cir.1994). A review of the responses of the four jurors in this case indicates that the trial court did not improperly excuse them under Wainwright. All four jurors in question in this case made it clear, by the time both the trial judge and the prosecutor finished asking questions, that they could not impose the death penalty in this case regardless of the evidence or the facts presented. Based on their answers, the trial court could have been “left with the definite impression that [Fischer, Abel, Meyer, and Zinn] would be unable to faithfully and impartially apply the law.” See Wainwright, 469 U.S. at 426, 105 S.Ct. 844. Hale has produced no evidence to rebut the trial court’s finding that the jurors should be removed for cause, and he has advanced no evidence to suggest that further cross-examination of these witnesses would have been helpful. Hence, we cannot find that Hale’s counsel acted unreasonably or unprofessionally in failing to attempt to rehabilitate the four dismissed jurors. See Williams, 16 F.3d at 633 (holding that counsel was not ineffective for failing to rehabilitate three jurors excused for cause when their answers suggested they would not have been able to function properly as jurors in a capital case); Foster v. Delo, 39 F.3d 873, 878 (8th Cir.1994) (finding counsel was not ineffective for failing to rehabilitate two jurors excused for cause when they answered unequivocally that they could not consider the death penalty regardless of the law or the evidence); see also Sawyer v. Butler, 848 F.2d 582, 589 (5th Cir.1988) (denying an ineffective assistance claim and holding that there was no prejudice from counsel’s failure to rehabilitate prospective jurors who stated they could not impose the death penalty when defendant failed to demonstrate rehabilitation was possible), aff'd on reh’g, 881 F.2d 1273 (5th Cir.1989), aff'd sub nom. Sawyer v. Smith, 497 U.S. 227, 110 S.Ct. 2822, 111 L.Ed.2d 193 (1990). 3. Failure to Challenge Jurors With Preconceived Notions of Guilt Hale’s next argument is that his trial counsel was ineffective when he did not challenge for cause or excuse by peremptory challenge six jurors who bad preconceived notions of Hale’s guilt. As support for this claim, Hale presents the testimony of Judge Frank McCarthy who testified as an expert witness during the post-conviction evidentiary hearing. Judge McCarthy opined that in a case where the defense knows going in that they’re not going to offer any substantive testimony, and they know that they’ve got a good venue issue, to allow six jurors to sit on your jury, who say they’ve already got their minds made up or have opinions about your client’s guilt, is just inappropriate and it’s ineffectively representing your client. There’s no reason for you to do that. As noted above, in order to show counsel was ineffective for failing to object to the presence of certain persons on the jury, Hale must prove “counsel’s representation fell below an objective standard of reasonableness.” Kimmelman v. Morrison, 477 U.S. 365, 375, 106 S.Ct. 2574, 91 L.Ed.2d 305 (1986) (emphasis added). In addition, Hale must show counsel’s deficient performance prejudiced the defense. “This requires showing that counsel’s errors were so serious as to deprive the defendant of a fair trial, a trial whose result is reliable.” Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687, 104 S.Ct. 2052. Defense counsel’s failure to attempt to remove from the jury a person who has been established on voir dire to be biased constitutes prejudice under Strickland. See Johnson v. Armontrout, 961 F.2d 748, 755-56 (8th Cir.1992). To show a juror was biased, a defendant must show that the juror had such a fixed opinion that he or she could not judge impartially. See Patton v. Yount, 467 U.S. 1025, 1035, 104 S.Ct. 2885, 81 L.Ed.2d 847 (1984). Thus, a juror is not shown to have been partial simply because he or she had a preconceived notion as to the guilt or innocence of the accused. See Murphy v. Florida, 421 U.S. 794, 800, 95 S.Ct. 2031, 44 L.Ed.2d 589 (1975). The Supreme Court stated in Irvin v. Dowd, 366 U.S. 717, 81 S.Ct. 1639, 6 L.Ed.2d 751 (1961): It is not required ... that the jurors be totally ignorant of the facts and issues involved... .To hold that the mere existence of any preconceived notion as to the guilt or innocence of an accused, without more, is sufficient to rebut the presumption of a prospective juror’s impartiality would- be to establish an impossible standard. It is sufficient if the juror can lay aside his impression or opinion and render a verdict based on the evidence presented in court. Id. at 722-23, 81 S.Ct. 1639. Thus, to show a juror was biased, Hale must show more than that the juror had a preconceived notion of guilt; he must show that the juror had such a fixed opinion that he or she could not judge impartially. In this case, Hale contends that counsel was deficient when he did not attempt to remove six jurors whom he claims held opinions as to his guilt, and that this failure prejudiced him because he was convicted by an impartial jury. However, these jurors implicitly or explicitly all said that they held only mild or- slight opinions and all six said they could put their opinions aside and judge the' case impartially on the evidence. One of these jurors, Juror McBee, was a member of the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation Commission (“OS-BIC”). The OSBIC had been involved in the investigation of Hale’s case; however, there was no suggestion in the voir dire transcript that Juror McBee had actually participated in the investigation. On the other hand, there was testimony during voir dire that Juror McBee was a friend of Hale’s counsel, Mr. Van Wagner, and knew the defendant and the defendant’s family socially. In fact, Juror McBee stated during voir dire that he had played golf with Hale on multiple occasions. Thus, it was objectively reasonable for Van Wagner to have left McBee on the jury under the belief that he would be favorable to the defendant, both because he was a friend of counsel and because he knew Hale and his family socially. Another of these jurors, Juror McLaughlin, also stated during voir dire that he knew Hale. McLaughlin stated that he had done business with Hale and would see him at Hale’s bakery where they would strike up conversations. Based on this testimony, it was reasonable trial strategy to have left this person on the jury in the hope that he would be favorable to Hale, or at the very least be reluctant to give him the death penalty. The judge asked the entire jury panel twice whether anyone felt they could not give both sides a fair and impartial trial and no one responded. Further, Hale never showed actual bias by any of these seated jurors. Cf. Smith v. Phillips, 455 U.S. 209, 215, 102 S.Ct. 940, 71 L.Ed.2d 78 (1982); Irons. v. Lockhart, 741 F.2d 207, 208 (8th Cir.1984). This situation is in stark contrast to Johnson v. Armontrout, 961 F.2d 748 (8th Cir.1992), in which the court found ineffective assistance of counsel when the defense attorney failed to remove two biased jurors for cause. In Johnson, ten members of Mr. Johnson’s venire had previously served on a jury who had earlier convicted another man of taking part in the same robbery. Mr. Johnson had appeared at the earlier trial handcuffed and under guard. Id. at 751. The court found actual prejudice because two of those ten jurors stated unequivocally that they firmly believed that Johnson was guilty of the robbery. Id. The court found that the failure to remove two biased jurors constituted actual prejudice. Id. at 755-56. In contrast, here there was no unequivocal statement by any juror that they were firmly convinced Hale was guilty and could not set aside this opinion. On the record before us, we conclude that Hale has not established a Strickland violation because his counsel failed to challenge these jurors. D. Admission of Other Crimes Evidence. Hale next argues that his trial counsel was ineffective when he failed to objpct to the admission of evidence of other crimes allegedly committed by Hale. The other crimes evidence to which Hale argues counsel should have objected included Mrs. Brenda Allison’s testimony that Hale, on the day before Jeff Perry was abducted, drove up to Mrs. Allison’s home, informed her that her husband had been in an auto accident, and offered to drive her to the hospital. Mrs. Allison later learned that her husband was never in a car accident. The Prosecutor argued that this evidence was admitted to show identity, motive, plan, and intent on the part of Hale. Hale also claims that counsel should have objected to the admission of the testimony of one of Hale’s former cellmates, Mark Weaver, who testified that Hale and other inmate beat him after he agreed to testify against Hale. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals addressed this claim as part of Hale’s ineffective assistance of counsel claim on direct appeal. In rejecting the claim, the court held: We find that the other crimes evidence which consisted of a possible attempted kidnapping and an assault on a prison cellmate who gave testimony on behalf of the State was admissible to show common scheme and identity. As the evidence was properly admissible, we find that there was no deficiency in failing to raise an objection to it. Hale I, 750 P.2d at 140. Hale’s claim can be resolved by addressing the prejudice prong under Strickland. Hale has failed to demonstrate that if trial counsel had objected to the admission of the above testimony, it would have been excluded. The OCCA has repeatedly allowed the admission of evidence of other crimes to prove motive, common scheme, identity, plan, knowledge, or absence of mistake or accident. See, e.g., Huskey v. State, 989 P.2d 1, 3 (Okla.Crim.App.1999); Douglas v. State, 951 P.2d 651, 673 (Okla.Crim.App.1997). In this case, there was a question of identity. Hale denied that he was the one who kidnapped and killed Jeff Perry. He argued that he was simply told to pick up the money. The evidence by Brenda Allison of an attempted kidnapping just a day prior to the victim’s abduction helped to establish identity and common scheme. The testimony by Mark Weaver that Hale beat him up when he discovered that Weaver was going to testify against him has been found by the OCCA to be admissible as other crimes evidence “to infer a consciousness of guilt from an attempt to improperly influence or cause the absence of a material witness at trial.” Powell v. State, 995 P.2d 510, 527 (Okla.Crim.App.2000). The OCCA has further stated that this type of evidence “constitutefs] ‘admissions by conduct designed to obstruct justice’ and [is] thus admissible to establish motive.” Id. (quoting Gideon v. State, 721 P.2d 1336, 1338 (Okla.Crim.App.1986)). Thus, the testimony of both witnesses was properly admissible as other crimes evidence. Hale has failed therefore to show that if his attorney had objected, the evidence would have been excluded. Hale attempts to show prejudice by asserting that the prosecutor failed to give notice that he was introducing other crimes evidence as required under Oklahoma law. See Burks v. State, 594 P.2d 771, 774 (Okla.Crim.App.1979) (requiring notice of other crimes evidence ten days prior to trial), overruled in part on other grounds by Jones v. State, 772 P.2d 922, 925 (Okla.Crim.App.1989). Hale argues that if counsel had objected to the admission on the basis of insufficient notice, Oklahoma would have excluded the evidence. Again, we disagree and therefore find no prejudice. First, Hale has failed to support this assertion in his brief. Although Hale had a full evidentiary hearing during post-conviction, he never asked Mr. Van Wagner, his attorney, whether he received notice; therefore there is no conclusive evidence that he did not receive notice. In addition, in Malicoat v. State, 992 P.2d 383 (Okla.Crim.App.2000), the OCCA clarified that failure to provide Burks notice does not automatically require the exclusion of other crimes evidence. The court emphasized that the purpose of Burks notice is ,to ensure that the defendant is not surprised by the admission of other crimes evidence, and to allow the defendant time to be heard on the other crimes evidence before it is presented to the jury. Malicoat, 992 P.2d at 402-03; see also Powell, 995 P.2d at 527 (no abuse of discretion on part of trial court in admitting other crimes evidence without Burks notice when defendant not surprised); Bryan v. State, 935 P.2d 338, 357 (Okla.Crim.App.1997). Hale cannot argue here that he was surprised by the testimony of either Brenda Allison or Mark Weaver. Brenda Allison testified at the preliminary hearing, thus providing counsel notice of the testimony she had to offer. In addition, her name was listed as a witness that would be called at trial. Moreover, Hale’s trial counsel filed a motion in limine prior to trial attempting to suppress the evidence of Brenda Allison that was later denied by the trial court prior to trial. Mark Weaver testified at the preliminary hearing about Hale’s assault on him. Moreover, Weaver was included on the list of trial witnesses. Therefore, even if Van Wagner had objected to the evidence at trial, the lack of written notice would not have kept the evidence out. Moreover, as discussed above, because the evidence was proper other crimes evidence, it would not have been excluded. Thus, Hale cannot show prejudice. We therefore find that the OCCA’s determination that Hale was not denied effective assistance of counsel was not an unreasonable application of federal law. E. Second Stage Closing Remarks Mr. Hale next asserts that he received ineffective assistance of trial counsel during his counsel’s second stage closing remarks. Specifically, Hale contends that his attorney’s false statement to the jury that Hale had been abandoned by his wife and daughter constituted deficient performance that prejudiced his case. The OCCA concluded that under Strickland, Hale had not been denied his Sixth Amendment right to effective assistance of counsel. See Hale I, 750 P.2d at 142. The portion of trial counsel’s