Opinion ID: 1907308
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 9

Heading: judge's override

Text: Regardless of whether a majority of this Court has concluded that Ring does not apply in Florida, we cannot simply ignore the constitutional legal principles discussed in the Ring opinion and our obligation to determine whether any of those constitutional principles impact Florida's death penalty scheme. Perhaps the most visible flaw in Florida's sentencing scheme is its provision allowing a judge to override a jury's finding that sufficient circumstances do not exist to justify imposition of a sentence of death. As noted above, authorizing such an override is tantamount to authorizing a judge to set aside a jury's verdict of not guilty and the imposition of a directed verdict and judgment of death in favor of the State by the judge. Ironically, the State has frequently asserted in this Court that it is the jury's action in recommending death that saves Florida's death scheme under the constitutional analysis in Ring. In other words, the State has asserted that the jury's recommendation of death is tantamount to a finding by the jury of sufficient aggravation to authorize death. However, that argument (even accepting its validity for purposes of further analysis), is completely undermined when a judge is allowed to trump a jury's recommendation of life since in such instance there can be no implication that the jury found aggravating circumstances at all. A recitation of the circumstances and history of the instant case vividly illustrates how Florida's death sentencing scheme violates the Sixth Amendment. Marshall was charged in an indictment which stated that he unlawfully killed the victim in this case with premeditated design and/or while engaged in the perpetration of a felony [burglary]. [19] Upon conviction, the jury's general verdict form simply stated that the jury found Marshall guilty of first-degree murder. There is no indication as to whether this conviction was for premeditated murder under section 782.04(1)(a)(1), or felony murder under section 782.04(1)(a)(2), or both. Thus, the jury's guilt phase verdict provides no guidance whatsoever as to whether the facts necessary to sentence Marshall to death were present, let alone proven beyond a reasonable doubt. More importantly, at this stage of the proceedings no aggravating circumstances or elements necessary to impose the death sentence had been found beyond a reasonable doubt, and thus no narrowing under the Eighth Amendment had occurred. Stated differently, at this stage of the proceedings, without a finding of any aggravating circumstances necessary to impose the death sentence, Marshall stood in the same position as all other defendants convicted of first-degree murder, including those individuals whose crimes did not warrant the death penalty. See generally §§ 775.082, 782.084(1)(b), Fla. Stat. (1987) (indicating that upon conviction of first-degree murder, the procedures in section 921.141, Florida Statutes must be followed in order to determine sentence of death or life imprisonment). Following the penalty phase proceedings, the jury gave its advisory recommendation pursuant to section 921.141(2), Florida Statutes (1989), that Marshall should be given a sentence of life in prison. Given the recommendation in favor of life, the jury obviously found that the evidence was insufficient to demonstrate the presence of aggravating circumstances that outweighed the mitigating circumstances, [20] if we are to assume, as we must, that the jury followed the standard instructions given in accord with Florida's death penalty scheme. However, after receipt of the jury's recommendation, the trial judge, pursuant to section 921.141(3), Florida Statutes (1989), went on to make his own findings in support of the death sentence and he imposed a sentence of death contrary to the jury's findings and recommendation. [21] Hence the override of the jury's contrary determinations as to aggravation and mitigation. In short, to the extent that the jury participated in the process by which Marshall was sentenced to death, it rendered an advisory recommendation in favor of life. The judge acting as the sole fact-finder of the aggravating circumstances then rejected the jury's findings and sentenced Marshall to death. This is simply the way in which Florida's death sentencing scheme is written in the statutes and the way it operates. However, under Ring, this type of judicial fact-finding is unconstitutional.