Full opinion text
MARCUS, Circuit Judge: Petitioner Eric Lynn Ferrell (“Ferrell”) was sentenced by a state trial court in Georgia to die following his convictions on two counts of malice murder for the fatal shootings of his grandmother and fifteen-year-old cousin. The Georgia Supreme Court, on direct appeal and during collateral habeas proceedings, rejected all of Ferrell’s attacks on his convictions and sentence. Thereafter, a federal district court denied Ferrell’s petition for writ of habeas corpus, including his claims that trial and appellate counsel were ineffective in failing to conduct a reasonable investigation for mitigating evidence; that trial counsel’s penalty-phase closing argument also was ineffective; that his right to conflict-free trial counsel was wrongfully denied; and, finally that Ferrell was constructively absent from the penalty phase of his trial. After thorough review of this ample record, we are compelled to reverse in part the judgment of the district court. We hold that the state court’s rejection of Ferrell’s ineffective-assistance claims was an unreasonable application of Strickland v. Washington, and, accordingly, we reverse the district court’s denial of habeas relief from Ferrell’s death sentence. Neither the jury nor the sentencing judge was ever told, because defense counsel never discovered that Ferrell suffers from extensive, disabling mental health problems and diseases including organic brain damage to the frontal lobe, bipolar disorder, and temporal lobe epilepsy. Nor did they learn that the defendant had attempted suicide at age eleven, or that because of these mental health issues, Ferrell exhibits increased impulsivity and decreased sound judgment; that his conduct was not entirely volitional; or that his judgment and mental flexibility were significantly impaired by organic brain damage. Nor, finally were they ever told that Ferrell’s father was physically abusive to his children, especially to Ferrell, waking them in the middle of the night to beat them (sometimes after stripping them naked) with razor strops, fan belts, and old used belts; that the family was repeatedly evicted from their homes and hungry, and lived in fear of those to whom the father owed gambling debts; or that Ferrell’s mother suffered from clinical depression, suicidal ideations, rage blackouts, and urges to physically injure her children. Since we grant habeas relief concerning the death penalty, we have no occasion to address Ferrell’s remaining penalty-phase claims. Finally, we are unpersuaded by Ferrell’s claim that he was otherwise unconstitutionally encumbered by conflict-ridden counsel. I. A. The Murders and the Guilt Phase of Ferrell’s Trial This tale of murder and abuse began on the night of December 29, 1987, when Eric Lynn Ferrell spent the evening at his grandmother’s home along with his grandmother, Willie Myrt Lowe, and his cousin, Tony Kilgore. (RE43 at 554, 632-33). At around 5:30 a.m. the next morning, Ferrell left Mrs. Lowe’s home and returned to his mother’s house, where he lived. (RE43 at 554). Later that morning Ferrell called to ask a friend, Barry Wise, for a ride to Ferrell’s probation officer to pay his overdue probation fees. (RE43 at 579, 615). While on route, Wise saw Ferrell with a “wad of money,” and heard Ferrell explain that the money had come from the police for loss of income after a lawsuit. (RE43 at 579, 615). Ferrell paid the fees to his probation officer, who had previously threatened to revoke Ferrell’s probation and incarcerate him if he did not pay up. (RE43 at 600). Wise described the Petitioner as acting “real hyper” and “upset” that morning. (RE43 at 579). In the interim, shortly before noon, one of Mrs. Lowe’s daughters, Annie Fallen, stopped by Mrs. Lowe’s house to pick up her mother for an appointment. (RE10 at 848-49). She and a neighbor discovered the bodies of Mrs. Lowe and fifteen-year-old Tony Kilgore in a bedroom where they had been murdered. Both Willie Myrt Lowe and Tony Kilgore had been shot twice in the head at contact range and were dead. Tony Kilgore’s head was found resting on a pillow indicating that he was asleep, and never disturbed, when he was shot. (RE11 at 1178-82, 1221-22). Mrs. Lowe suffered two gunshot wounds to the head. Her dress was torn and two buttons were detached from the front of her dress. The medical examiner concluded that the time of death of both victims was around 5:30 a.m. (RE11 at 1241, 1244-45,1247 — 48). After paying his probation fees, Petitioner called home. Ferrell’s mother had already gone to the crime scene and a neighbor answered Ferrell’s call. (RE43 at 569-72). The neighbor only advised Ferrell that his grandmother was sick and that his mother had gone to his grandmother’s house. (Id.) The neighbor purposefully did not tell Ferrell anything else, and specifically did not advise him his grandmother was dead. (RE43 at 569-72, 614). Ferrell explained to his friend that “the mafia had hurt his grandmother because his Uncle Freddie had killed a guy last weekend,” and “he needed to get back home.” (RE43 at 581, 615; RE10 at 897-98). At the site of the fatal shootings, the police discovered three purses, one underneath the bed where Mrs. Lowe normally slept, one on the door, and one on the wooden table beside her bed. The contents of one purse had been emptied onto the bed. (RE11 at 1037-39). As part of the investigation, Ferrell, along with other family members, were interviewed at the police station. During his initial interview, the police asked Ferrell to empty his pockets and discovered about $676 in cash and a lot of loose change. (RE43 at 638). During subsequent interviews, Ferrell was unable to account for the $676 in cash. Contrary to what he had told his friend, he told the police that he had saved some of the money and had recently been paid for a construction job. (RE10 at 981-84; RE11 at 1046-47). But the detectives soon learned that Ferrell usually had little or no money. (RE43 at 640). Also, contrary to his claim that nothing was missing from Mrs. Lowe’s home, the police discovered that a substantial amount of money was missing. According to family members, Mrs. Lowe received Social Security benefits and approximately $50 a day in change from selling drinks, candy, and snacks in the neighborhood. (RE43 at 568, 631). She kept all of her money in her house. Further, Mrs. Lowe’s daughter, Annie Fallen, had taken her mother to the hospital earlier in the year and Mrs. Lowe had about $700 in cash at the time. (RE10 at 846-48). Mrs. Lowe hid the money in a powder puff in her bra. (RE 10 at 847-48). Based on the repeated irregularities in statements made by Ferrell during his interviews with the police, the police obtained a search warrant for his mother’s home, where he resided. (RE43 at 644). Pursuant to the warrant, the police searched the home and found a .22 caliber revolver later identified as the murder weapon. (RE43 at 644, 654, 657). The police then arrested Ferrell, and discovered four spent rounds of .22 ammunition still in his pocket; the rounds were later determined to have been fired from the murder weapon. (RE43 at 647-48). During the course of the investigation, Ferrell gave several voluntary statements, was advised of his rights under Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966), and waived them in writing at least two times. (RE43 at 643, 650). In his first three or four statements to police, he claimed that on the morning of the murders his grandmother had awakened him at 5:30 a.m., and he had left to get ready for work. (RE43 at 635). Ferrell also mentioned that he spent the night with his grandmother because she was afraid to stay alone after having received a series of threatening phone calls. (RE43 at 634). He did not report that anything had happened that morning. In his final statement to the police, however, the Petitioner claimed that two men had entered his grandmother’s home as he was leaving and demanded to see his uncle, Fred Lowe, who had just been charged with murdering a man named Whimphrey (“Wimp”) Hinton. (RE43 at 651). Ferrell said the two men then took his gun from him and shot both Tony Kilgore and Mrs. Lowe in the bedroom where the bodies were found. (RE43 at 651-52). After the shooting, the two men purportedly returned the gun to Ferrell, inexplicably gave him a large sum of cash, and let him live. (RE43 at 652). He also told the officers that he left his grandmother’s home through the front door (which was dead bolted when police arrived) and went home. (RE43 at 652). Ferrell then put his gun away, checked to see how much money the men had given him, and made himself hot chocolate. (RE43 at 652 — 53). Ferrell was tried for the murders in the Superior Court of DeKalb County, Georgia. Ferrell was the only witness called to testify for the defense. Again, he claimed that two men had committed the killings in revenge for his uncles’ killing of Wimp Hinton (RE11 at 1321), and that they left him with the gun and money. However, Tony Hinton, the son of murder victim Hinton, was allowed, over defense counsel’s objection, to testify that no one in his family sought revenge for his father’s death. Ferrell’s uncle, Fred Lowe, assisted the prosecution in obtaining Tony Hinton’s testimony. (RE11 at 1162-64). On September 16, 1988, Ferrell was convicted of two counts of malice murder for the fatal shooting of his 72-year-old grandmother and his young cousin. (RE12 at 1601). He was also convicted of one count of armed robbery and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. (RE12 at 1601). B. The Penalty Phase of Trial During the penalty phase, the State presented no evidence. Defense counsel, Larry Schneider, called five witnesses: Ferrell’s parents, two of his five brothers, and an uncle — all of whom testified for a total of 26 minutes, including a break. In their sparse testimony, the witnesses said that they did not believe Ferrell had committed the murders, brother Darrell Walker and both of Ferrell’s parents asked the jury for mercy, and brother Stanley Ferrell noted that Ferrell had committed himself to Christ before the murders. (RE 13 at 1622-60). Notably, Ferrell suffered a seizure during the charge conference following the presentation of testimony at the penalty phase, in the presence of the court but out of the presence of the jury. He fell to the floor, “flopping,” shaking and crying out unintelligibly. (RE13 at 1643-44). The court recessed while deputies and defense counsel investigator Phyllis Corder remained with Ferrell. Some ten minutes after adjourning, the court observed that “Mr. Ferrell’s composure” had returned, and defense counsel announced that Ferrell wished to proceed. (RE13 at 1644). Defense counsel did not seek any continuance or make any motion to have the defendant evaluated by a mental health expert. During closing argument, the prosecutor stressed the depravity of the crime and Ferrell’s odd behavior after the murders. He declared that Ferrell was “the Devil made flesh”; Ferrell’s behavior demonstrated “depravity of mind”; Ferrell “planned it out”; the crime was “depraved, and evil, and totally corrupt”; it was “a cold-blooded execution” showing depravity and cruelty and a complete lack of remorse; and “after executing his grandmother and his cousin, [Ferrell] walked slowly up the street to his mother’s house .,. fixed a cup of hot chocolate ... plopped down on the couch, watched TV with the remote ... and dozed off for a while.” (RE13 at 1670-96). The prosecutor then asked the jury, “[w]hy in the world, how in the world, could anybody do this? How could a human being act like this?” (RE13 at 1694). The prosecutor assured the jury that he, unlike the defense witnesses, would not insult their verdict. (RE13 at 1683). Defense counsel then argued to the jury that because they had already found one aggravating circumstance — that Ferrell had committed the murder of his grandmother during the course of another felony, the murder of his cousin — they could “legitimately find the death penalty.” (RE13 at 1698). Counsel “assum[ed] that it’s true that [Ferrell] did do it,” (RE 13 at 1698), and bemoaned his responsibility for arguing to the jury “that the death of a 72-year-old lady, by execution, and the death of a 15-year-old boy, by execution, are not deserving of the death penalty.” (RE13 at 1699). He added that “the only way I can try to convince you” this “enormous” crime was not so bad, was to compare it to other situations counsel had seen at the Public Defender’s Office: “young children, babies, who are sexually assaulted, to the point of mutilation and strangled.” (RE13 at 1699). Defense counsel asked the jury whether Ferrell was “completely ... the animal” the prosecutor had labeled him, and admitted that Ferrell was not necessarily a “person of good character,” but questioned whether it was necessary to kill him. (RE13 at 1701-02). Counsel highlighted for the jury that there was no rational reason for Ferrell to have committed the double murder and that it was a case based solely on circumstantial evidence, but noted that all the circumstances pointed toward Ferrell, and that Ferrell’s “absurd tale of two gunmen” who committed the double homicide using his pistol, then paid him some money and returned his pistol to him, was “hard to swallow” and “hard to believe.” (RE13 at 1704). Counsel assured the jury “I am not ridiculing your decision. No rational jury would have found otherwise in the guilt-innocence phase because of the ludicrousness of that story.” (RE13 at 1705). Counsel then closed by asking the jury for mercy. Not surprisingly, the jury returned two death sentences on September 17, 1988. (RE13 at 1737). The jury found three statutory aggravating circumstances: first, the murders were committed while the offender was engaged in the commission of the offense of murder, Ga.Code Ann. § 17-10 — 30(b)(2); then, the murders were committed while the offender was engaged in the commission of the offense of armed robbery, Ga.Code Ann. § 17 — 10—30(b)(2); and, finally, the murder of Ferrell’s grandmother was outrageously and wantonly vile, horrible or inhuman in that it involved torture and depravity of mind, Ga.Code Ann. § 17-10-30(b)(7). The trial court sentenced the Petitioner to death for the two counts of murder, life imprisonment for the armed robbery count, and five years’ imprisonment for the firearm possession count. (RE13 at 1741-42). Following his conviction and sentence, Ferrell was placed on suicide watch in prison, from at least April 14, 1989 until February 23,1990. (RE1 at 178). C. The Motion for New Trial At a subsequent evidentiary hearing conducted on defendant’s motion for a new trial, several witnesses testified about Ferrell’s claims that he suffered from conflict-riddled counsel, that his counsel was ineffective at the penalty phase, and that Ferrell was constructively absent from critical portions of his trial. The testimony was, on the whole, clumsy and profoundly incomplete. First, Catherine Shaw, the mother of Ferrell’s two children, testified after being subpoenaed by defense counsel. Shaw had not been called to testify during the penalty phase, but later said that if she had, she would have told the jury that Ferrell tried his best to take care of his kids. (RE 17 at 15). But, in response to a question posed by defense counsel about whether she would have asked the jury at trial to spare Ferrell’s life, Shaw answered that she could not say. (RE17 at 22-23). Alice Stewart, Ferrell’s counsel during the motion for new trial and on direct appeal, testified later that “[h]ad I known she would give such damning testimony, I would not have called her as a witness.” (RE41 at 11). Hubert Bailey, Ferrell’s uncle, recounted at the evidentiary hearing that he had spoken to trial counsel for the first time in the courtroom hallway before testifying at trial, but counsel had not mentioned what Bailey should or should not talk about. (RE17 at 63-64). Bailey could have testified at trial that he had given advice to Ferrell “about life,” Ferrell was not a rough guy, Ferrell wanted to make a happy home for his sons, and there had been a fire at the Ferrell home that forced the family to lean on Ferrell’s grandmother. (RE17 at 62-76). Another of Ferrell’s uncles, Robert Lowe, who had been in jail for Wimp Hinton’s murder, said that he was never asked to testify at Ferrell’s trial. (RE17 at 95). Ferrell’s father, Wilbert, added that he would have testified at the penalty phase, if asked, that Ferrell’s death would have made his family, especially his mother, suffer. (RE18 at 262). Ferrell’s brother, Stanley, recalled how their mother had suffered from “nerves,” and once had a “nervous breakdown” from the stress of financial hardship and caring for six boys. (RE17 at 99, 107-08). Stanley further testified that their father was not around much when they were growing up, that the family was very poor and experienced financial difficulties because their father “missed appropriate” [sic] funds, even though he was working all the time, and that the family was forced to move around a lot because they were frequently evicted from their homes, which was upsetting, frustrating, and caused the children great shame. (RE17 at 97-98, 101). Stanley also described how a fire consumed one of their homes, resulting in splitting up the children afterwards. (RE 17 at 100). Mike Sheffield, one of Ferrell’s two trial counsel, who led the guilt phase of trial, testified at the hearing as well. Sheffield said that in preparing for trial, counsel had requested a report on Ferrell’s mental capacity by a mental health expert, Dr. Ralph Allsopp. (RE 17 at 44, 154). In addition, Ferrell had given trial counsel a list of character witnesses; and counsel had reviewed his school and criminal records. (RE17 at 149). Defense counsel determined that they did not want to call Ferrell’s jailed uncles as witnesses because neither jailed uncle could say anything favorable about Ferrell (since they both thought that Ferrell had killed their mother), and in any event, had been in jail at the time of the murders. (RE17 at 130, 138; RE18 at 202). Counsel did not want the State to call the uncles either. (RE18 at 203, 205). As for the seizure Ferrell suffered in court during the charge conference, Sheffield recalled that the investigator Corder, who had developed a good relationship with Ferrell, had said that Ferrell wanted to continue with the trial and was alright. (RE18 at 178). Remarkably, defense counsel saw no need or basis to seek a continuance so that the defendant could be evaluated or a mistrial. (RE18 at 178-79). Larry Schneider, Ferrell’s other trial counsel, who led the penalty phase, also described the trial preparation. Schneider said that before trial, Ferrell prepared a list of 40-45 mitigation witnesses, and investigator Corder and her team interviewed those who would talk and could be located. (RE 18 at 212, 226). Schneider recounted that he had discussed the case with a few experienced death penalty lawyers, and because they could find no other reason for the jury not to impose death, decided the best approach was residual doubt. (RE18 at 213, 228). Schneider viewed his strategy as arguing to the jurors that they could not be so sure of guilt as to impose the death penalty, that there was always a possibility of innocence, and that the victims had not been tortured. (RE 18 at 220). Schneider talked to each of the mitigation witnesses following the guilt phase, and told them they could say anything they wanted to concerning whether Ferrell should receive the death penalty. (RE 18 at 214, 215, 228). Schneider thought it would be more effective just to have people speak, rather than to instruct them in any way. (RE18 at 216). Schneider spoke to Ferrell’s parents throughout the case, and the investigator talked to the rest of Ferrell’s relatives. (RE18 at 220). According to Schneider, the mental health evaluation they had requested was limited to whether Ferrell was retarded and whether he suffered from any problems that would affect the waivers of Miranda rights he had signed for the police. (RE18 at 216-17). Schneider claimed that he had no reason to raise a psychiatric defense, and did not want to give the jury concrete evidence that Ferrell was rational and intelligent. (RE18 at 231). Schneider also claimed that after the courtroom seizure during the charging conference, Ferrell seemed “very much in contact with reality.” (RE18 at 234). The limited pre-trial psychological report from Dr. Allsopp was made a part of the record. In the report, Dr. Allsopp noted that he had met with Ferrell only “for the purpose of reviewing his academic records and administering intelligence/ cognitive and achievement tests.” (RE1 at 151). Dr. Allsopp reported that Ferrell “achieved a Full-Scale WAIS-R IQ of 87, in the Low Average Range of Intellectual functioning, with a Verbal IQ of 81 and a Performance IQ of 101.” (Id.). Dr. All-sopp also observed that “Ferrell was able to copy geometric designs of progressive complexity at level consistent with that of adults who do not display gross neurological/organic deficits.” (RE1 at 152). Dr. Allsopp concluded that Ferrell “functions in the Low Average to Average IQ Range,” his intelligence level and mental status at the time of assessment “would not adversely affect his ability to understand his constitutional rights,” and “there was no indication that Mr. Ferrell would be more likely than the average person to submit to the authority of police officers.” (RE1 at 152). After conducting a hearing on the motion for new trial, the state trial court denied the motion in full. In so doing, it rejected Ferrell’s claim of a conflict of interest based on the Office of Public Defender’s representation of both Petitioner and his uncles, Ferrell’s claim of ineffective assistance of trial counsel at the penalty phase, and Ferrell’s constructive absence claim, based on his argument that he had been unconstitutionally absent from trial when he suffered a seizure. (RE1 at 261-65). D. The Direct Appeal On direct appeal, the Georgia Supreme Court concluded that trial counsel had been effective and affirmed Ferrell’s convictions and sentences on March 15, 1991. Ferrell v. State, 261 Ga. 115, 401 S.E.2d 741 (1991). The Georgia Supreme Court found that: (1) Ferrell was represented by two experienced public defenders; (2) counsel filed numerous pre-trial motions, investigated the case legally and factually, conducted an extensive voir dire examination of prospective jurors, cross-examined state’s witnesses, presented defense witnesses, and delivered substantial closing arguments; and (3) counsel interviewed numerous potential witnesses in mitigation, many of whom had been furnished by the defendant, and of the very few who would say anything favorable on the defendant’s behalf, these testified at the trial. Based on these findings, the Georgia Supreme Court concluded that Ferrell had failed to establish either deficient attorney performance, or a reasonable probability that the testimony of the new witnesses would have caused the sentencer to conclude that the balance of aggravating and mitigating circumstances did not warrant death. Ferrell, 261 Ga. at 119-20, 401 S.E.2d 741 (citations and quotation marks omitted). As for the conflict-of-interest claim, the state high court observed that “[tjhere was no relationship between the two separate cases of murder, and the defendant’s uncles did not testify at, and had no information relevant to, this trial.” Id. at 120, 401 S.E.2d 741. Accordingly, it concluded that “[tjhere was no actual conflict of interest adversely affecting trial counsel’s performance in this case.” Id. On October 21, 1991, the United States Supreme Court denied Petitioner’s petition for writ of certiorari. Ferrell v. Georgia, 502 U.S. 927, 112 S.Ct. 343, 116 L.Ed.2d 282 (1991), reh’g denied, 502 U.S. 1051, 112 S.Ct. 923, 116 L.Ed.2d 822 (1992). E. State Habeas Proceedings On July 19, 1995, Ferrell filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus with the state trial court, which held an evidentiary hearing on the petition on July 13, 1999. At the hearing, the State called as a witness Alice Stewart. For the defense, Ferrell submitted a voluminous number of affidavits that described in great detail Ferrell’s many mental health issues, his impoverished and abused childhood, that he was slow as a child, and that he always had a strong work ethic. As for the first and most critical point, the mental health expert who examined Ferrell before trial, Dr. Allsopp, averred that he had not been asked to look for brain damage, that he was provided with no material from counsel other than school records, and that he was not asked to perform any clinical interview, or do anything else for that matter, for use in mitigation. (RE41 at 265). Ferrell also submitted very extensive affidavits from three mental health professionals who opined that Ferrell suffers from organic brain damage, mental illness, an epileptic or seizure disorder, and borderline mental retardation. Specifically, Dr. Thomas Hyde, a board-certified neurologist, and Dr. Barry Crown, a board-certified clinical neuropsychologist, unambiguously averred that Ferrell suffers from organic brain damage to the frontal lobes, temporal lobe epilepsy, and bipolar disorder, is borderline mentally retarded, and attempted suicide twice, once at the age of eleven. Dr. Hyde explained that individuals with frontal lobe dysfunction display impaired insight and learning abilities, are more prone to impulsive and explosive behaviors, and are more prone towards affective instability, meaning a dysfunctional emotional or mental state. (RE41 at 43-44). Hyde further opined that Ferrell’s frontal lobe dysfunction “to a reasonable degree of scientific or medical certainty, is attributable to closed head injury or neurodevelopmental factors, and existed prior to 1988.” (RE41 at 43). Dr. Crown offered that when Ferrell “finds himself in a complex, stressful set of circumstances, [he] cannot process the information to take the appropriate action.” (RE41 at 75). Crown said that Ferrell has “significant impairments in judgment and mental flexibility, which are indicative of brain damage,” (RE41 at 75), “profound problems in using sound reasoning and judgment under stressful conditions,” (RE41 at 76), and “significant problems with simple concentration, attention and mental flexibility” resulting in “increased impulsivity and decreased ability to plan and to understand the consequences of one’s actions,” (RE41 at 77-78). Moreover, he explained, the actions of an individual with Ferrell’s types of impairment “are not entirely volitional,” (RE41 at 81), because “[d]uring a complex partial seizure a person is overtaken by a powerful emotion, usually anger or fear, by hallucinatory voices or visions, or by a vivid flashback,” and “[sjeizures also alter the behavior which takes place between or after the seizures, or interietally, resulting in lack of awareness, dullness, and confusion as neurofibers in the brain readjust. Interictal effects may go on for weeks or months at a time.” (RE41 at 55). Dr. Hyde described Ferrell’s seizures or “episodes” and their frequency this way: These episodes occur on a daily basis about once a day. Nothing in particular induces them. They come on without warning. He cannot talk during these episodes, but can be aroused by the external stimuli of others. He appears to others to be in a daze during these episodes. After these episodes he feels tired, disoriented and often tearful and discouraged. He describes these episodes as being “blanking out.” He will stop any ongoing activity, such as writing a letter during these episodes. He has never fainted or passed out with these episodes. There is no associated nausea or vomiting. These episodes usually last 5 to 10 minutes. Sometimes he is in and out of these spells all day long. The last such episode occurred on the day of this examination. They occur more frequently with sleep deprivation, extreme depression, situational stressors or high levels of anxiety. He has never had an EEG. He has never had a neurological evaluation for these episodes. They are often followed by a left frontotemporal headache. (RE41 at 36). Neurologist Hyde then explained Ferrell’s “psychotic symptomology” in these terms: [Petitioner] has had intermittent depression since childhood. His depressive episodes last anywhere from one day to several months. During these episodes he feels unhappy, tired and pathetic. He is frequently socially withdrawn and does not enjoy anything ... Eric has a significant history of suicidal ideation. He last had suicidal thoughts two weeks prior to this evaluation. However, he does not want to kill himself. Rather he wants God to passively “take him.” He has attempted suicide twice in his life. At 11 years of age, he attempted suicide when his mother was depressed and hospitalized following a suicide attempt of her own .... He attributes “supernatural happenings” to his survival .... He has never been treated for depression. ... [H]e has [also had] episodes consistent with mania since childhood .... Obsessive-compulsive symptomalogy has also been an issue. He is obsessed with “God and his words”. He states that he has “seen the light.” He has seen blood streaming down from heaven, churches, and the bride of Christ. His religious visions started in childhood. They became understandable to him in 1989. These have occurred once or twice a month. He also hears a small, still voice during these visions. They do not scare him. He also has the power to heal from laying his hands on others for the past nine years. He developed auditory hallucinations at 10 years of age. These have occurred on an infrequent basis and have not occurred in the past two years. He has heard multiple male voices, telling him to read his Bible and pray. He believes these voices are the voice of God. These voices have never told him to do bad things. They have never told him to hurt himself or to hurt others. They have never threatened him. They have told him to watch out for others who wanted to harm him. He usually hears these voices when he is manic. He also saw angels, a form of visual hallucinations, transiently 5 to 10 times in his life. He last saw them one month ago. Frequently his visual hallucinations occur when he is manic. He also has visual hallucinations as described when discussing his hyper-religiosity. He denies any olfactory, gustatory or tactile hallucinations. He worries that demons can possess people’s minds. He, himself, has not been a victim of demonic possession. He denies any ideas of reference. He denies any paranoid or somatic delusions. He denies any delusional guilt. He has a grandiose belief that he has “Been called by God to be a minister” since childhood. (RE41 at 31-34, 44). Dr. Crown also observed Ferrell’s unusual religiosity. (RE41 at 68). According to forensic psychologist Jethro Toomer, Ferrell scored a 74 on the WAIS-III IQ test, with a performance IQ of 70 and a verbal IQ of 79, and Toomer concluded that “[w]ith the existence of significant deficits in adaptive functioning, Mr. Ferrell’s score on the WAIS-III is within the range of mental retardation”— meaning that it is below 70-75. (RE41 at 85). Toomer also concluded, like the other experts, that Ferrell’s performance suggested organic brain damage. (RE41 at 85-86). Ferrell’s family and friends also would have told the jury, if asked, about the mental health problems suffered by Ferrell’s mother, Ruby. According to friends and family, she was depressed and had attempted suicide, and was “scary” to the boys. (RE41 at 138-39 (Aff. of Stanley Ferrell); see also RE41 at 233 (Aff. of Wilbert Ferrell Jr.); RE41 at 242-43 (Aff. of Jimmy Freeman)). Indeed, records of Ruby’s treatment at the psychiatric ward of Grady Hospital revealed that she suffered from severe headaches, and felt unhappy, aggressive, and slept and ate poorly. (RE54 (Grady Records 2/20/75)). According to the records, she too, like Eric Ferrell, heard voices, had visions, and experienced “rage blackouts,” where she did not know what she was doing. (Id.; RE41 at 124 (Aff. of Ruby Ferrell)). She also reported urges to harm her husband and her children, which she felt “unable to control.” (RE54 (Grady Records 3/10/75)). Ferrell’s mother “admitted] to all four hallucinations ... [ — jauditory, visual, tactile, olfactory [and] to having thought about killing self, kids, and husband on a few occasions.” (Id.) She complained of her mind snapping and of hearing voices telling her to hit her children. She quit her job because of fears of harming her employer’s child. (Id.) She experienced “fugue-like states.” (Id.) She was medicated with Valium, and given a provisional diagnosis of schizophrenia. (Id.) A neighbor also offered that Ruby’s mental problems run in her family: “It’s hard to put into words exactly, but there are more than a couple of folks in her family whose elevators don’t go all the way to the top floor.” (RE41 at 242-43 (Aff. of Jimmy Freeman)). Ruby Ferrell’s hospital records were consistent, recording that the family history “reveals depression in the female siblings and sociopathy in the males — this is classic pattern for the depressive type that is endogenous (inherited).” (RE54 (Grady Records 8/28/76)). Ferrell’s work habits also revealed elements of bipolar disorder. His brother Wilbert, Jr. noted that Ferrell would go on streaks where he did nothing but work: “At times, he would get in moods where he’d stay working all day and into the night.” (RE41 at 234 (Aff. of Wilbert Ferrell, Jr.)). Ferrell’s father noted the same thing: “That boy would go through times when he’d work like a maniac.” (RE41 at 158). An employer noted other symptoms of Petitioner’s bipolar disorder: He had some funny ways. He talked a lot, chattered, really, but he moved fast too, working. He’d do what you told him to do. He had a way of looking sometimes, like something was loose there, then he’d snap back to you. (RE41 at 191 (Aff. of William Kilgore)). Schoolmate Cynthia Ivey recalled Petitioner “blabbering” and running “his mouth in overdrive,” alternated with quiet periods. (RE41 at 194). And a neighbor described his “spells,” where “he’d just stare off for a few seconds or so.” (RE41 at 205 (Aff. of Elaine Guthrie)). Ruby, Petitioner’s mother, also explained that just like her, Eric Ferrell had seen his dead grandmother’s spirit in their house while growing up. (RE41 at 122-23). And she and her husband described how Ferrell was always going to the emergency room when he was little because he was always falling down or getting hurt. Notably, they relayed how Ferrell had been hit in the head with a 2x4 and kept “falling out,” twice was knocked unconscious while playing ball, and had headaches after a car accident. (RE41 at 123-24; see also RE41 at 159 (Aff. of Wilbert Ferrell, Sr.)). In addition to presenting testimony from family and friends, habeas counsel offered testimony from defense counsel’s investigator, Phyllis Corder, who provided her impressions of Ferrell’s mental health: Looking back, I’m sure we didn’t do an adequate job of investigating th[e mental retardation] issue. Certainly in Eric’s case, there was evidence that he had some kind of mental disorder. Eric was extremely religious, obsessively so. He said God had told him not to worry, and he was confident there would be a second coming and God would deliver him from being convicted and sentenced to death. This preoccupation with religion adversely effected his demeanor at trial. He laughed and smiled inappropriately throughout the proceedings. For me, it really brought into question his mental state, and I believe it was a signal that something was wrong other than mental retardation. I kept wondering about it long after the trial was over. (RE41 at 18). Similarly, Ferrell’s first trial counsel, August Siemon, who met with Petitioner several times, explained that he too harbored serious questions about Ferrell’s mental health: I felt Eric Ferrell had mental health problems which were overt and fairly apparent to anyone who cared to look closely. In speaking with Eric, his eyes would glance away for several seconds and then suddenly seem to come back to you. It was not shifting eyes from nervousness — his face would go blank, and then would become animated once again. He didn’t seem particularly worried about what was happening — his affect was wrong, given the circumstances. In my experience, this is characteristic of people who are relatively low-functioning, intellectually, for whatever reason. He talked about his religious beliefs a lot also, in a very fundamentalist way. He seemed to think God would take care of him regardless of what happened at trial, and he talked about how God spoke to him. Additionally, the facts of the case were so incredible you had to question Eric’s mental functioning. Whether his story was true, or if he were the killer, why would he carry the bullet casings around in his pocket the entire day until he reached the police station? It seemed clear to me that ... a mental health defense at guilt/innocence and penalty phase was the best avenue of investigation, and hiring a neuropsychologist would have been my first priority. (RE41 at 153-54) (emphasis added). Despite this wealth of background information, investigator Corder admitted that in preparation for trial, she had only asked statutory character evidence questions of the potential witnesses, and only followed up with them if they said anything positive about Ferrell. (RE41 at 17-18; RE42 at 498-515, 525-527). The “character” worksheets listing the questions used to interview potential witnesses contained six questions: (1) How long have you known of the Defendant?; (2) Are you familiar with his reputation for character in the community in which he lives or works?; (3) What is that reputation; good or bad?; (4) Have you ever heard anyone speak ill of the Defendant?; (5) Would you believe the Defendant .if he were to testify under oath?; and (6) If you knew he had been charged with the crime for which he is on trial but no verdict had been returned, would your opinion change? (E.g., RE42 at 498-515, 525-29). The first five questions were taken from the statute governing character evidence in Georgia, see O.C.G.A. § 24-9-84, and the final question simply anticipates cross-examination. See Mathis v. State, 175 Ga.App. 127, 333 S.E.2d 10 (1985). Generally these were the only questions asked of the potential witnesses. (RE41 at 17). Ferrell also submitted affidavits from those who would have testified at length, if asked, about his substantially abused and impoverished upbringing. Ferrell’s brother Darrell Walker detailed the problems he and his brothers faced: [Ferrell’s father] Wilbert had a very bad gambling problem. He was almost never home because he was out losing money. Everybody knew it, and it made us stand out in the neighborhood. In an area where many people were poor, we were even worse off than others. Every time you turned around, we were getting thrown out because he had lost the rent money. He even borrowed money from us boys to gamble and never paid it back. Wilbert’s punishments were so abusive he’d be arrested for it now. We lived in terror of Wilbert. Often, Wilbert would come in in the middle of the night and wake us up to beat us. This happened so much that we learned to put on extra pants to sleep in. Sometimes, though, Wilbert would make us strip naked before he’d beat us, and those were the worst. Eric bore the brunt of Wilbert’s anger for some reason. I think it was because Eric was always a bit different from the rest of us .... Eric, though, no matter how hard he tried, couldn’t seem to live life as well as the rest of us. He had a harder time learning things than we did, and he didn’t catch on as well. (RE41 at 168-69). Additionally, brother Scott Walker described Wilbert’s drinking and gambling, and how Wilbert liked to beat Scott and Eric Ferrell more than the other boys, (RE41 at 173 (Aff. of Scott Walker)); brother Wilbert, Jr. described how Wilbert, Sr. would wake the boys up to beat them, often for unexplained reasons (RE41 at 233-34 (Aff. of Wilbert Ferrell Jr.)); neighbor Catherine Edwards described how Wilbert’s gambling left the family without money for food or rent, and led to frequent evictions (RE41 at 149-50 (Aff. of Catherine Edwards)); neighbor Jimmy Freeman described how Wilbert’s bad gambling problem caused the family’s evictions (RE41 at 242 (Aff. of Jimmy Freeman)); and neighbor Johnny Shepherd described how Wilbert’s gambling left the family dirt poor and the boys hungry (RE41 at 250-51 (Aff. of Johnny Shepherd)). Ferrell’s brother Stanley confirmed that “Eric was [our father’s] least favorite,” and “received the brunt of our father’s beatings,” which “happened quite frequently, weekly at least.” (RE41 at 136). “Eric ... tried so hard to please our father and still never received any love from him.” (RE41 at 137-38). His mother echoed that Ferrell’s father never wanted anything to do with Ferrell, would regularly reject him, and directed his considerable rage at Ferrell. (RE41 at 126, 128). Even Wilbert Ferrell, Sr. himself explained that “I used switches and my belt to whip [the boys], because kids need whipping and to be chastised strongly.” (RE41 at 158). Stanley described the family home as “an old wooden house with a tin roof. There was no indoor plumbing — we had an outhouse and a couple of slop jars for nighttime. There were exposed wires all through the house, and just a wood stove for heat. We six boys all shared one room.” (RE41 at 132). The house was burned to the ground while the boys were home alone when Stanley was six years old, and the Petitioner was only five. Stanley described the fire as “devastating,” and said that the brothers were “very, very badly shaken by this experience,” which has had “long ... after-effects” on the family. (RE41 at 132-33). Besides describing the violent and chaotic poverty he grew up in, family and friends could have given the jury a picture of Ferrell as an individual. Numerous friends would have testified if asked about his sweet and slow nature as a child: [Ferrell] was a nice boy, real mannerly. He was slow to catch on to things a lot; you had to tell him over and over how to do something ... Even so, he never got mad or anything like that[.] (RE41 at 183 (Aff. of Annie Mae Dudley)). His mother also mentioned that Ferrell always had a rough time in school. (RE41 at 125). And a custodian at Ferrell’s elementary school said that Ferrell “was much slower than the other kids ... Like, if I told [him] to go get a chair, he would stare at me for a while until the instruction ‘clicked’ in his head.” (RE41 at 224 (Aff. of Robert Sanders)). Both the State and defense counsel also submitted evidence concerning Ferrell’s counsel, Alice Stewart, who represented Ferrell during the motion for a new trial and on appeal. Stewart was appointed when the Public Defender’s Office withdrew after Ferrell’s conviction due to a potential conflict of interest involving Ferrell’s uncles. As we’ve already noted, Alice Stewart raised an ineffective-assistance-of-trial-counsel claim in the motion for new trial proceedings and on appeal. She was provided with funding to hire a mental health expert but not an investigator. (RE1 at 181). In the oral and written testimony introduced at the state court habeas hearing, Stewart averred that because she was attempting to identify direct appeal issues, worked alone, and had no investigator, she “didn’t do the kind of investigation — it wouldn’t have been possible for me to do that that — the kind of investigation that somebody preparing. for trial might do.” (RE40 at 51). She further said, “I simply could not afford to leave the office and investigate the case myself, which is what was necessary to appropriately litigate an ineffective assistance of counsel claim.” (RE41 at 3). Stewart did, however, hire a psychiatrist (Dr. Sheldon Cohen) to evaluate Ferrell for competency and sanity, although she provided him only with Dr. Allsopp’s report and the jail records. (RE41 at 9, 91). Most significantly, Stewart did not tell Cohen anything about Ferrell’s visions, anything about his courtroom seizure during the charge conference, or even about his mother’s nervous breakdown — even though she was familiar with all of this. (RE41 at 8, 9, 10). Dr. Cohen felt the story Ferrell told him — the same one from trial, that there was a revenge murder, and that Ferrell could not remember the details of the crime — was concocted to cover up his guilt and that he was lying about not remembering, since Ferrell apparently had not suffered from periods of'amnesia before. (RE41 at 9). Dr. Cohen performed no testing of Mr. Ferrell, but nevertheless reported to Ms. Stewart that he appeared competent. (RE41 at 103). Cohen also reported that Mr. Ferrell told him he heard voices, including the voice of the devil inside his head. (RE41 at 91, 103). Stewart did nothing with this information. (RE41 at 9). Ferrell also submitted at the state court habeas hearing Dr. Cohen’s affidavit, which explained that he “felt Eric’s report of hearing voices could indicate schizophrenia or other mental disorder, however, I had no background materials indicating there was any history of mental illness.” (RE41 at 103). “If I had been given information related to Mr. Ferrell’s history of hearing voices and hallucinations, and history of head injuries, I would have referred him for neuropsychological testing and would have attempted to conduct a more extensive ... evaluation of Mr. Ferrell.” (RE41 at 103). On February 8, 2001, the state habeas court vacated both Ferrell’s convictions and death sentence on the grounds of ineffective assistance of appellate counsel in challenging trial counsel’s mitigation investigation and penalty-phase presentation, and trial counsel’s conflict of interest. (RE59). As for mitigation evidence at the penalty phase, the court concluded that Ferrell’s former trial counsel, among other things, presented no testimony regarding Ferrell’s background that may have served as proper mitigating evidence, even though there was substantial mitigating evidence that could have been presented through the testimony of the Petitioner’s family members — including facts developed about Petitioner’s abusive background, extreme poverty, his mother’s mental illness, his own mental illness, his gambling and alcoholic father, and his kind personality, strong work ethic, and other personal characteristics. (RE59 at 8-10). The state habeas court concluded: “had this mitigating evidence been submitted to the jury, at least Petitioner would have stood a more reasonable opportunity to obtain the jury’s consideration and mercy.” (RE59 at 10). The court further found that appellate counsel, in turn, also had “failed to conduct a reasonably diligent investigation to properly identify and provide supporting evidence of the errors committed at trial.” (RE59 at 10). As for the conflict-of-interest claim, the state habeas trial court determined that automatic reversal was warranted because Ferrell and his uncles had been represented by the same counsel (the Public Defender’s Office), albeit for different crimes, and his uncles had refused to be character witnesses for Ferrell because each of them had an interest in protecting their respective plea deals with the State. On appeal, the Georgia Supreme Court reversed the order of the trial court and reinstated Ferrell’s convictions and sentences. Head v. Ferrell, 274 Ga. 399, 554 S.E.2d 155 (2001). In rejecting the ineffective-assistance-of-appellate-counsel claim regarding mitigation, the state high court found that: We note, as an initial matter, this Court’s own impression during the direct appeal that appellate counsel had “attack[ed] virtually every decision made by trial counsel.” [Ferrell, 401 S.E.2d at 746]. Ferrell’s appellate lawyer testified in the habeas proceeding that she obtained Ferrell’s file from his trial attorneys, interviewed Ferrell, spoke to his family members, reviewed some of his school records, and subpoenaed various other records. She also had an independent mental health expert interview Ferrell, review the findings of the mental health expert employed by trial counsel, and review Ferrell’s post-conviction mental health records. At the motion for new trial evidentiary hearing, appellate counsel attempted to show that Ferrell’s trial attorneys had not prepared sufficiently for the sentencing phase. Toward that end, appellate counsel presented a number of witnesses, including some of Ferrell’s family members, the mother of his children, and his trial counsel. Appellate counsel testified at the habeas hearing that Ferrell’s family members were “traumatized” at the time of the motion for new trial. This testimony is confirmed by the testimony of Ferrell’s trial attorneys at the motion for new trial hearing indicating that several of Ferrell’s own family members believed that he had murdered his grandmother and cousin. Trial counsel further testified that they had been in contact with Ferrell’s parents from the beginning of their representation, had obtained a list of 40 to 45 possible witnesses, had used the services of an investigator to assist them in interviewing these witnesses, had obtained school and prison records, had obtained a review of Ferrell by a mental health expert regarding his possible mental retardation and his susceptibility to coercion or confusion during police questioning, and had consulted with several persons who were well versed in death penalty trial strategies in formulating their “residual doubt” strategy for the sentencing phase of Ferrell’s trial. As this brief overview indicates, Ferrell’s appellate attorney attempted to show the limits of trial counsel’s preparation for the sentencing phase, but the evidence actually available, most importantly the evidence of trial counsel’s strategic decisions and attempts to develop a theory supportable by available testimony and evidence, was not particularly favorable to Ferrell’s claim that his trial attorneys rendered ineffective assistance. Nevertheless, appellate counsel attempted to argue that claim on direct appeal to the extent possible. Id. at 404-05, 554 S.E.2d 155. The Georgia Supreme Court also observed that the character evidence trial counsel developed “fit well into trial counsel’s chosen sentencing phase strategy of showing ‘residual doubt.’ ” Id. at 405, 554 S.E.2d 155. It then detailed specific mitigating evidence that appellate counsel allegedly had not introduced, and found that some of this evidence — about his father’s gambling, the family’s poverty, the frequent evictions, the home fire, his mother’s mental issues, and his religious commitment — was repetitive; some was unhelpful, since it would have shown that the brothers were close, that Ferrell loved his grandmother, who had taken him in after the family fire, and that the murder had “clearly exacerbated” Ferrell’s mother’s mental difficulties; and some, such as Ferrell’s personality as a youth or his father’s “discipline,” would not have significantly affected the jury. Id. at 406-07, 554 S.E.2d 155. As for appellate counsel’s utter failure to develop evidence of Ferrell’s organic brain damage, mental retardation, bipolar disorder, and epilepsy, the Georgia Supreme Court said this: “[ajppellate counsel, like Ferrell’s trial attorneys, performed reasonably by obtaining expert assistance in investigating the few issues regarding Ferrell’s mental functioning that would have seemed of possible concern to a non-expert and then foregoing arguments not supportable by the opinions of those experts.” Id. at 407, 554 S.E.2d 155. In addressing the conflict-of-interest claim, Georgia’s high court first noted that it had found on direct appeal that there was no actual conflict of interest, and that nothing presented on habeas review would have in reasonable probability changed that conclusion. Id. at 408, 554 S.E.2d 155. The court further determined that appellate counsel had not ineffectively presented this claim because she “ably set forth the essential contours of the alleged conflict and supported her claim with documentary evidence showing the nature and timing of the final adjudication in the uncles’ cases.” Id. Conceding one “arguably significant argument raised by Ferrell in the habeas proceeding that was not raised by appellate counsel,” regarding “a new statement, by the uncle [Robert Lowe] who testified at the motion for new trial hearing, that he had not wanted to get involved in Ferrell’s case while his own case was still pending,” the court found that “this testimony must be viewed in light of the extensive testimony presented at the motion for new trial hearing indicating that the uncles refused to testify for Ferrell, not because of any agreement with the State, but because they believed ‘adamantly’ that Ferrell had murdered their mother.” Id. The Georgia Supreme Court concluded that “appellate counsel cannot be regarded as having performed deficiently for failing to explore further the testimony of that one uncle at the motion for new trial hearing,” and thus that Ferrell’s appellate counsel did not render deficient performance regarding the conflict of interest claim. Id. at 408-09, 554 S.E.2d 155. As for the constructive-absence claim, the Georgia Supreme Court held that although appellate counsel did not raise any claim concerning Ferrell’s constructive absence from trial when he had a seizure in court, she “raised a very similar claim on direct appeal, asserting that Ferrell was denied his right to counsel by his allegedly impaired condition following this episode.” Id. at 410, 554 S.E.2d 155. By raising this similar claim, the court concluded that appellate counsel did not perform unreasonably. Id. In any event, the Georgia Supreme Court observed that “the evidence ... showed that Ferrell regained his composure and appeared to trial counsel to be ‘very much in contact with reality’ and that the defense investigator had spoken with Ferrell and reported that he was ‘all right’ and wished to continue .... ” Id. at 410-11, 554 S.E.2d 155. F. Federal District Court Habeas Proceedings Having struck out in the state courts, Ferrell commenced this federal habeas corpus action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2254 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia on October 21, 2002. He raised fourteen claims, including these: (1) penalty-phase ineffective assistance of counsel because both trial and appellate counsel failed to conduct a thorough investigation (Claim I); (2) ineffective assistance of counsel because of counsel’s closing argument (Claim II); (3) ineffective assistance of counsel arising from counsel’s conflict of interest (Claim III); (4) ineffective assistance of appellate counsel concerning Ferrell’s constructive absence from trial (Claim V(8)); and (5) constructive absence from trial (Claim XIV). (DI, D12). The district court denied habeas relief on all fourteen claims. (D26, D41). The district court issued a certificate of appealability (“COA”) concerning “the denial of [Petitioner’s] constitutional right to effective assistance of counsel at the sentencing phase of his trial and because of a potential conflict of interest.” (D51 at 1-2). We granted Ferrell’s motion to expand the COA, allowing him to raise two additional claims: Ferrell’s “virtual absence from trial” due to seizure, and his appellate counsel’s failure to raise that issue on direct appeal. This timely appeal followed. II. Since Ferrell filed his federal habeas petition after April 24, 1996, Section 2254(d) governs this proceeding. Wilcox v. Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 158 F.3d 1209, 1210 (11th Cir.1998). Accordingly, a court may grant habeas relief only if a state court decision was “contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States,” or 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). A state court decision is “contrary to” clearly established law if the court arrived at a conclusion opposite to the one reached by the Supreme Court on a question of law or the state court confronted facts that are “materially indistinguishable” from Supreme Court precedent but arrived at a different result. Williams v. Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 405, 120 S.Ct. 1495, 146 L.Ed.2d 389 (2000). A state court decision is an “unreasonable application” of clearly established law if the state court identifies the correct governing legal rule from the Supreme Court’s holdings but unreasonably applies it to the facts of the particular defendant’s case. Id. at 407, 120 S.Ct. 1495. A state court’s factual findings are presumed correct unless they are rebutted by clear and convincing evidence. 28 U.S.C. § 2254(e)(1). Ferrell’s two main arguments concern the ineffectiveness of trial counsel at the penalty phase, and the ineffectiveness of appellate counsel in conducting the same search for mitigating evidence to present in support of a motion for a new trial and on direct appeal. To succeed on these Sixth Amendment claims, Ferrell must show both deficient performance and prejudice: he must establish first that “counsel’s representation fell below an objective standard of reasonableness,” and then that “there is a reasonable probability that, but for counsel’s unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been different.” Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 688, 694, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984); accord Wiggins v. Smith, 539 U.S. 510, 521-22, 123 S.Ct. 2527, 156 L.Ed.2d 471 (2003); Darden v. Wainwright, 477 U.S. 168, 184, 106 S.Ct. 2464, 91 L.Ed.2d 144 (1986). “The question of whether an attorney’s actions were actually the product of a tactical or strategic decision is an issue of fact, and a state court’s decision concerning that issue is presumptively correct.” Provenzano v. Singletary, 148 F.3d 1327, 1330 (11th Cir.1998). However, “the question of whether the strategic or tactical decision is reasonable enough to fall within the wide range of professional competence is an issue of law not one of fact.” Id. Under AEDPA, we accord deference to a state court’s determinations on both Strickland prongs — performance and prejudice — so long as the state court reached the merits of the petitioner’s claim, and reached both prongs of the Strickland analysis. Moreover, we are instructed to afford state court habeas decisions a strong presumption of deference, even when the state court adjudicates a petitioner’s claim summarily — without an accompanying statement of reasons. Harrington v. Richter, - U.S.-, 131 S.Ct. 770, 780, 784, 178 L.Ed.2d 624 (2011); Wright v. Sec’y for Dep’t of Corr., 278 F.3d 1245, 1255 (11th Cir.2002); see also Renico v. Lett, - U.S.-, 130 S.Ct. 1855, 1862, 176 L.Ed.2d 678 (2010) (“AEDPA ... imposes a highly deferential standard for evaluating state-court rulings ... and demands that state-court decisions be given the benefit of the doubt.” (citations and internal quotation marks omitted)). Where the state court did not reach the merits of the claim, however, “federal habeas review is not subject to the deferential standard that applies under AEDPA to ‘any claim that was adjudicated on the merits in State court proceedings,’” and instead, “the claim is reviewed de novo.” Cone v. Bell, - U.S. -, 129 S.Ct. 1769, 1784