Bill Seeks Unanimous Jury Votes To Execute
Published: Nov 5, 2005
Two state lawmakers say they plan to introduce legislation next year that would change how Florida courts impose the death penalty.
The legislation, being proposed by Sen. Alex Villalobos, R-Miami, and Rep. Jack Seiler, D-Pompano Beach, would require unanimous jury votes to recommend death sentences. Currently, state law requires a simple majority of a 12-member jury.
Although judges sentence defendants convicted of first-degree murder to death or life in prison, they are expected to give "great weight" to the jury's recommendation.
The proposal comes in response to last month's state Supreme Court decision in the case of Alfredie Steele Jr., a Lacoochee man charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of a Pasco County sheriff's lieutenant.
Written by Justice Raoul Cantero III, the court's majority opinion included a suggestion that the Legislature change the state's death penalty statute to bring it more in line with recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings and other states' death penalty laws.
Villalobos and Seiler said they interpreted the court's opinion in the Steele case to mean that Florida's death penalty law could be successfully challenged if left unchanged.
"I'm a supporter of the death penalty," Villalobos said. "I believe if we don't fix it, we're going to get in a situation where everyone sentenced to death in Florida might get a rehearing, and their sentence might change. That would just cause chaos."
Opinion A Wake-Up Call?
Considering that the opinion came from Cantero, a conservative justice, it should be a wake-up call to legislators, Seiler said.
"So many times, we sit and say that the court is activist or is overreaching," Seiler said. "Here, I think the court politely sent a very clear message."
It's unclear whether the legislation would even make it out of committee hearings. Legislative committees also can amend bills so that the finished product bears little resemblance to what was initially submitted.
Even if a bill makes it out of committee, the Senate president and the speaker of the House can kill it by refusing to bring it to a vote.
Senate President Tom Lee, R-Brandon, said he would not stop Villalobos' bill from being debated on the Senate floor.
"I think this is an important issue for the Legislature, even if they decide they want the status quo," he said. "It'll be very healthy, I think, for us to have a debate about why Florida is the only state in America that doesn't require a unanimous consent for the death penalty."
Lee said debate over the bill is likely to lead to discussions about other areas of death penalty law, such as whether a judge or a jury should sentence a defendant.
Seiler said he has spoken briefly about the bill with Speaker Allan Bense, R-Panama City.
Bense spokesman Towson Fraser said Bense has seen no evidence that change is needed.
"Unless there is some indication that Florida's death penalty statute is in jeopardy, the speaker would not favor requiring a unanimous jury vote for the recommendation of death," Fraser said.
Seiler said Bense's position doesn't necessarily mean he will quash the bill. He said Bense has been a fair speaker with a record of giving bills a hearing in the House.
Legislators are scheduled to be in Tallahassee next week for committee meetings. The general session begins the first week of March.
No Guidance Since Ring V. Arizona
Florida's death penalty has been under scrutiny since the U.S. Supreme Court's 2002 decision in Ring v. Arizona. In Ring, the court held that juries, not judges, should decide whether a defendant is sentenced to death.
The Florida Supreme Court has never issued a definitive ruling on how the state's trial judges should deal with Ring. That has left trial judges presiding over first-degree murder cases without guidance.
In Steele's case, the appeal came when Circuit Judge Lynn Tepper attempted to satisfy what she saw as concerns related to the Ring decision. Prosecutors appealed, disagreeing with Tepper's attempts, which included the use of a special verdict form detailing juror votes on aggravating factors. Aggravating factors are elements of a crime or a defendant's history that provide the legal justification for imposing the death penalty.
In recommending life or death, jurors weigh aggravators against mitigating factors presented by the defense.
The 2nd District Court of Appeal referred the case to the state Supreme Court. The high court issued its ruling Oct. 12.
Steele is still awaiting trial.
