Opinion ID: 3169583
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Conviction and Sentence

Text: Allred was indicted on October 23, 2007, on the following charges alleged to have occurred on September 24, 2007: (1) firstdegree premeditated murder of Michael Ruschak by shooting with a firearm; (2) first-degree premeditated murder of Tiffany Barwick by shooting with a firearm; (3) armed burglary of a dwelling while inflicting great bodily harm or death; (4) aggravated battery with a firearm (victim Eric Roberts) while inflicting great bodily harm or death; and (5) criminal mischief of a motor vehicle (Barwick’s car). Then, on April 30, 2008, Allred entered written and oral guilty pleas to all charges. The trial court conducted a plea colloquy of the defendant and accepted the guilty plea . . . . Allred v. State, 55 So. 3d 1267, 1271 (Fla. 2010). Against advice of counsel, Allred subsequently waived both his right to a penalty phase jury and his right to be present in the penalty phase. The facts of the case and the evidence presented during the penalty phase are more fully described in this Court’s opinion on Allred’s direct appeal. We briefly review them here. On August 25, 2007, Allred and his girlfriend Tiffany Barwick publicly and angrily broke up at a party celebrating his twenty-first birthday. Id. at 1272. Several days later, he used pictures of Barwick for target practice and sent Barwick a picture of the bullet-ridden photos. Subsequently, upon learning that Barwick had sexual intercourse with Michael Ruschak, his best friend, Allred sent them both threatening messages, and he told his friend Michael Siler that he needed to start killing some people. Id. On September 24, the day of the murders, Allred hacked Barwick’s computer and engaged in a heated exchange of messages, telling Barwick that he -2- could not forgive her and threatening to kill Ruschak. Id. at 1273. In a separate exchange, he also told his friend Siler that he would kill both Barwick and Ruschak. Id. at 1272-73. Sitting at home later that evening, Allred called Ruschak and announced that he was coming over. Allred then picked up his gun and drove to Ruschak’s location. At the time, Ruschak was living at his friend Eric Roberts’ house, as was Barwick. Four other friends had arrived for dinner that night, when Ruschak informed them that Allred was coming. Allred arrived soon thereafter and repeatedly rammed Barwick’s car with his truck. Then, when no one would let him in the front door, he shot out the glass back door and entered the house as everyone fled. Id. at 1273. After firing a shot down the hallway at Ruschak, Allred walked through the hall to the kitchen and shot Ruschak four times, killing him. Then, Roberts grabbed Allred, and they struggled until Allred shot Roberts in the leg. Allred proceeded to the hall bathroom where he found Barwick standing in the bathtub, frantically talking to a 911 operator. “In his confession, Allred recounted that after he gained his release from Roberts, he entered the bathroom. Then, without saying a word, he fired [six] shots into Barwick. She collapsed in the tub and died.” Id. at 1274. After leaving the crime scene, [Allred] called 911. He reported that he had killed two people and threatened to commit suicide. When -3- Deputy Sheriff David Kohn arrived at Allred’s home, Allred was standing at the end of his driveway near the road, with a cell phone in his hand and his gun on the ground. Upon initial contact, Allred told the officer, “I’m the guy you’re looking for.” After the officer secured him, Allred asked “if the people were dead,” but the officer told him he could not provide that information. Then, in the patrol car, Allred stated, “I knew I killed someone, I shot fourteen times.” Id. After being turned over to the Oviedo Police Department and being advised of his rights, he again confessed to the murders. Id. In mitigation, Appellant’s mother, father, and grandfather testified regarding Allred’s formative years, noting his personality change at a young age, a tic disorder he developed, and his diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Id. 1275. Three of his school teachers testified to his high IQ and abilities in school. Id. at 1276. Allred was sentenced to death for each of the murders. [T]he court found the following three aggravating factors and ascribed the weight indicated as to Allred’s murder of Michael Ruschak: (1) cold, calculated, and premeditated (CCP)—great weight; (2) murder committed while engaged in a burglary—little weight; and (3) prior capital or violent felony conviction (Barwick’s contemporaneous murder)—great weight. As to Barwick’s murder, the court found the following three aggravators and ascribed the weight indicated: (1) the murder was especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel (HAC)—great weight; (2) CCP—great weight; and (3) prior capital or violent felony conviction (Ruschak’s contemporaneous murder)—great weight. The court also considered the following mitigating circumstances and ascribed the weight indicated: (1) defendant accepted responsibility by entering guilty pleas—little weight; (2) defendant cooperated with law enforcement—moderate weight; (3) defendant suffered from an emotional disturbance—moderate weight; (4) defendant’s emotional and developmental age was less than his chronological age—not -4- established; (5) other factors including that defendant was likely sexually abused—not established; and (6) defendant’s developmental problems at a young age impacted his educational and social development—little weight. Id. at 1277 (footnote omitted).