Opinion ID: 1709949
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Alternative Sentence of Life without Parole

Text: Finally, Tanzi claims that the trial court erred in its generalized rejection of the proposed mitigating circumstance that a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole would protect society. This Court has held that [p]arole ineligibility is mitigating in nature because it relates to the circumstances of the offense and reasonably may serve as a basis for imposing a sentence less than death. Ford, 802 So.2d at 1136. While [parole ineligibility] is mitigating in nature, it may or may not be mitigating under the facts in the case at hand (that is for the trial court to determine). Id. The trial court included the following in its sentencing order regarding this proposed mitigating factor: This is not a mitigating circumstance. Arguably, it would be true for all capital cases. Protection of society is a proper consideration as one of the goals to be achieved through incarceration of a criminal. However, imprisonment will not guarantee that a prisoner will not commit any further criminal acts. Incarcerated prisoners commit crimes. And a life sentence without the possibility of parole does not guarantee that a prisoner will not escape at some time in the future. This court is of the opinion that the legislature did not intend to create an automatic mitigator when enacting the law providing for the sentence of life without the possibility of parole in capital cases. The court will give this alternative sentence no weight as a mitigator. In its order, the trial court does not decide whether life without the possibility of parole was mitigating under the particular facts of this case. Instead, the trial court found that life without the possibility of parole is not mitigating in nature, a finding that is contrary to this Court's precedent. However, any error present was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt in light of the following: (a) the trial court recognized and gave weight to numerous other mitigating circumstances; (b) this case involves substantial aggravation, including the HAC and CCP aggravating circumstances; and (c) the life without parole proposed mitigator is minor and tangential with respect to the record in this case. Accordingly, Tanzi's claim is denied. [4]