Opinion ID: 1670351
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: florida's capital sentencing statute

Text: Under Florida law, two types of first-degree murder are proscribed by statute i.e., murder committed by premeditated design, and murder committed in the course of a felonyand both are capital felonies. [29] At the time of Bottoson's crime, the penalty for a capital felony was as follows: 775.082 Penalties. (1) A person who has been convicted of a capital felony shall be punished by life imprisonment and shall be required to serve no less than 25 years before becoming eligible for parole unless the proceeding held to determine sentence according to the procedure set forth in s. 921.141 results in findings by the court that such person shall be punished by death, and in the latter event such person shall be punished by death. § 775.082(1), Fla. Stat. (1979) (emphasis added). [30] Under Florida's capital sentencing statute, once a defendant has been convicted of a capital felony, the court conducts a penalty proceeding before a jury. [31] If a majority of jurors find from the facts that at least one aggravating circumstance is present, i.e., a death qualifying aggravator, they then may decide upon death as the appropriate sentence, or six or more jurors may decide upon life imprisonment as the appropriate sentence. [32] The jury then renders its advisory sentence to the judge, [33] who must give it great weight. [34] The sentencing judge, after conducting an independent weighing of aggravating and mitigating circumstances, [35] imposes sentence. [36] A sentence of death is automatically reviewed by this Court. [37]