In reversal, most new death penalty cases in Florida upheld

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Rory Conde, a death row inmate notorious as the "Tamiami Strangler" for the murders of six Miami prostitutes whose bodies were dumped along the road, couldn't persuade Florida's high court justices last year to overturn his conviction or his sentence.

Neither could Adam Davis, who killed choked, poisoned and stabbed his girlfriend's mother in her Tampa kitchen; nor could Charles Anderson, who drove over his stepdaughter in Broward County; or James Belcher, who raped, strangled and drowned a Jacksonville woman.

In an almost complete reversal from just a few years ago, most of the new death sentences coming to the Florida Supreme Court for initial review are being upheld. The state's high court affirmed 20 death sentences on initial review last year and ordered resentencings or new trials in just five cases.

In 1998, only six death sentences were affirmed after initial review. In the 26 rulings of such cases that year, 10 cases were sent back to the trial court for either a new trial or a new sentencing hearing and 10 death sentences were reduced to life by the Supreme Court.

The statistics cover only the first automatic review of new death sentences and not the outcomes of subsequent appeals.

It's unclear what's driving the turnaround. One theory is specialized training for lawyers and judges who handle death penalty cases in Florida.

The training, some say, has led to fewer mistakes in trials by prosecutors, defense lawyers and judges that create avenues for sentences or convictions in death penalty cases to be reversed by the high court. Some legal experts say, too, that the Florida court may have become more conservative in its thinking.

Chief Justice Harry Lee Anstead said Thursday it's impossible to measure all the factors that may be at play in the change but added that the training certainly "contributed in some significant way."

The trend in Florida comes even as death penalty opponents across the country claim some victories the highly charged national debate. They say fewer death sentences are being imposed, fewer executions are being carried out and public support for capital punishment has dropped across the country.

In recent years, the U.S. Supreme court also has put restrictions on capital punishment. And Illinois and Maryland imposed statewide moratoriums, but Maryland's was rescinded shortly after Republican Gov. Robert Ehrlich took office in November. Other states have considered such a move or other reforms.

In Florida, all three branches of government have tried to revamp the system to reduce the time convicts spend on death row and to insure that no one is unfairly or unjustly condemned. The state has 365 people on death row - several for decades - and has executed 58 condemned killers in the last 25 years.

Some of the changes in Florida include training for judges and lawyers. Better trained judges and lawyers mean fewer mistakes are made at the very beginning - the trial, said Circuit Judge O.H. Eaton, who teaches other judges around Florida and the country how to handle the sentencing in capital cases.

Eaton said what's happening in Florida belies the trend nationwide. About half the cases are getting reversed, he said.

Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington, said the changing trend in Florida high court decisions could reflect a change in the court's thinking on death penalty issues. Larry Spalding, a Tallahassee attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union who ran Florida's first office of death row lawyers from 1985 through 1993, said the court's rulings are more conservative. But Spalding added that he thinks the justices still carefully review cases to apply the law properly.

Spalding and others also said the high court's rulings may be a result of prosecutors, defense attorney and trial judges doing a better job of avoiding mistakes.

"I think overall there's a lot more caution about the death penalty now with so many instances of wrongful convictions," said Nancy Daniels, a public defender in Tallahassee whose office handles appeals for death row inmates in 32 northern Florida counties.

Florida has had its share of death row inmates being freed because of trial problems or wrongful convictions. The most recent was Rudolph Holton in January 2003. His death sentence for the 1986 murder of a Tampa teen was overturned by a judge who cited problems with the trial. He was the 24th inmate to walk away from Florida's death row in 30 years and the third high-profile reversal in three years

Daniels said the recent trend in Florida high court rulings indicates judges are doing a better job at following the rules that dictate how capital trials are to be conducted. Neal Dupree, who runs one of the two state offices of death row lawyers, agrees that trials are "exponentially better" than they used to be.

More death sentences are surviving because appeals courts have settled many key legal doctrines and established rules about courtroom procedures that give trial judges clear guidance, said assistant deputy attorney general, Carolyn Snurkowski, who oversees Florida's defense of capital sentences.

The Supreme Court adopted a rule a few years ago requiring all judges to take a three-day course before handling a capital case. During the training, which includes discussing hypothetical cases, judges are always reminded that the death penalty is supposed to be reserved for the worst murders, Eaton said.

"The worst reason to impose a death penalty is because you can," he said, adding that judges are told over and over they've got to be able to justify their decisions.

State Sen. Victor Crist, a lead lawmaker in the Legislature on capital punishment for several years, also thinks the system is working better.

"There are fewer cases getting the death penalty and when they do get the death penalty they have been reviewed and litigated thoroughly," the Tampa Republican said.

ON THE NET

Commission on Capital Cases: www.floridacapitalcases.state.fl.us

Death Penalty Information Center: www.deathpenaltyinfo.org

Innocence Project: www.innocenceproject.org

Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty: www.fadp.org