After a jury trial, Brandon Bonner was convicted of three counts of simple battery, false imprisonment, and robbery. Bonner was sentenced to an aggregate of ten years to serve and five years on probation. On appeal, Bonner argues that his trial counsel was ineffective and that the trial court should have merged the simple battery and false imprisonment charges into the robbery charge. We affirm Bonner’s conviction and sentence for robbery and false imprisonment but vacate his sentences for battery and remand for resentencing. 1. In his first and second enumerations of error, respectively, Bonner argues that his convictions should be reversed because trial counsel was ineffective when he failed to cross-examine the co-defendant and when he did not poll the jury. We disagree. To prevail on a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, a defendant must show two things: 1 that counsel’s performance was deficient, and 2 that the deficiency prejudiced the defense to the point that a reasonable probability exists that, but for counsel’s errors, the outcome of the trial would have been different. The trial judge, who oversaw the trial and heard the evidence presented at the hearing on the motion for new trial, makes the findings on whether the performance was deficient and whether it prejudiced the defendant, findings that this Court does not disturb unless clearly erroneous.1 Since appellant must show both that counsel performed deficiently and that actual prejudice stemmed from the deficient performance, an insufficient showing on either prong relieves the reviewing court of the need to address the other prong.2
a Failure to cross-examine the co-defendant . Prior to trial, Bonner’s co-defendant, Clayton Singletary, pled guilty to the same charges brought against Bonner. The record shows that Singletary also pled guilty to offenses charged in two other indictments, and that Bonner was named as one of the co-defendants in those cases as well. The maximum possible sentence for Singletary’s offenses was two consecutive life sentences plus 55 years, but Singletary negotiated a plea deal in exchange for his agreement to testify truthfully at all trials involving any of his co-defendants. After testifying in Bonner’s trial, Singletary was sentenced to 25 years, 10 of which he would serve in custody.3
