Can a defendant argue on appeal that counsel's inaction at trial to alleged prosecutorial misconduct violated their constitutional right to effective assistance of counsel?

[Citation.] A defendant whose counsel did not object at trial to alleged prosecutorial misconduct can argue on appeal that counsel's inaction violated the defendant's constitutional right to the effective assistance of counsel. The appellate record, however, rarely shows that the failure to object was the result of counsel's incompetence; generally, such claims are more appropriately litigated on habeas corpus, which allows for an evidentiary hearing where the reasons for defense counsel's actions or omissions can be explored. [Citation.]" (People v. Lopez (2008) 42 Cal.4th 960, 966.)

A. Motive Theory