A recent Supreme Court decision that has struck down parts of Florida’s death penalty legislation as unconstitutional, left hundreds of death row inmates in limbo.
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The southeastern USA state’s high court suspended until further notice the lethal injection of Cary Michael Lambrix, scheduled for February 11, it said in an order. He was found guilty, but the judge – not the jury – was responsible for the “fact finding” that resulted in his death sentence.
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office argues that Lambrix should be executed as scheduled.
“Florida’s response was to vacate every single death sentence, no matter when it had been entered, and convert it to a life sentence”, Martin McClain, a defense lawyer for one inmate appealing his conviction after Hurst, told NPR. “Such disruption is completely unnecessary”. He warned the court that allowing the Hurst ruling to apply to old cases would create chaos and suffering for victims’ families in the state with the second-most death row inmates in the nation. In the meantime, it is unclear what impact, if any, the ruling will have outside the state, something we saw when the Supreme Court rejected an appeal from an Alabama inmate.
Florida’s almost 400 prisoners on death row are the highest number in any state except California.
Lambrix and Asay were both sentenced before 2002, and McClain argues both clients should get out since the entire death-penalty procedure is now unconstitutional. The jury recommended the death sentence by votes of 10-2, for Moore, and 8-4, for Bryant. “It would be an vast burden on judicial resources”, Browne told the court. “There is great variation in how the death penalty is being applied, so one way to reduce the bias is to require unanimous juries when recommending the death penalty”.
“These are frightful, tragic cases. To unsettle the expectations of victims’ family members without any compelling provision is unwarranted”. If Salvador denies that request, McClain will be back before the Supreme Court next month asking to delay Asay’s St. Patrick’s Day execution.
“You know, here’s the problem that we’re going to have”, Justice Barbara Pariente cut him off. The court ruled that violates the 6th Amendment right to trial by jury.
University of Florida Levin College of Law professor Teresa Reid, a death penalty expert, said some of the justice’s questions indicated they are extremely interested about whether and how Hurst should be applied to already-decided cases. Sentencing Knight under a new law could run the risk of “double jeopardy”, he argued. Assistant Attorney General Scott Brown said commuting the sentences to life would be “Catasthropic”.
But the justices seemed unconvinced. “That’s what we’re struggling with”.
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“That will allow us to go to state court, circuit court in Glades County”, he said.
