Opinion ID: 1910082
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Insufficiency of the Trial Court's Sentencing Order

Text: In the first of two claims we address from Fennie's habeas corpus petition, [10] it is contended that the trial court violated his constitutional rights by failing to independently weigh aggravating and mitigating circumstances. Fennie further alleges that appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to assert this issue on direct appeal. In support of his contention, Fennie directs attention to several purported violations of the requirement that aggravating and mitigating circumstances be independently evaluated and weighed. We address only the issue pertaining to the trial judge's failure to assign individual weights to each of the ten nonstatutory mitigators which were determined to be established, and deny the remainder of the claim as meritless. [11] As a threshold matter, Fennie's substantive claim, that the trial court erred in failing to independently weigh the aggravating and mitigating circumstances, is procedurally barred, as Fennie could have and should have raised the issue on direct appeal. See Harvey v. Dugger, 656 So.2d 1253, 1256 (Fla.1995); Roberts v. State, 568 So.2d 1255, 1258 (Fla.1990). To succeed on the ineffective assistance of appellate counsel portion of the claim, Fennie must establish that counsel's failure to raise the claim on appeal is of such magnitude as to constitute a serious error or substantial deficiency falling measurably outside the range of professionally acceptable performance and, second, whether the deficiency in performance compromised the appellate process to such a degree as to undermine confidence in the correctness of the result. Floyd v. State, 808 So.2d 175, 183 (Fla.2002) (quoting Pope v. Wainwright, 496 So.2d 798, 800 (Fla.1986)). The failure to raise a meritless issue does not constitute ineffective assistance of counsel. See Valle v. Moore, 837 So.2d 905, 908 (Fla.2002); Chandler v. Dugger, 634 So.2d 1066, 1068 (Fla.1994). In fact, appellate counsel is not required to raise every conceivable nonfrivolous issue. See Valle, 837 So.2d at 908. We conclude that Fennie cannot make the required showing of prejudice on this claim. In Campbell v. State, 571 So.2d 415 (Fla. 1990), [12] this Court set forth guidelines for circuit courts to follow in weighing aggravating and mitigating factors. In the words of the Campbell Court: When addressing mitigating circumstances, the sentencing court must expressly evaluate in its written order each mitigating circumstance proposed by the defendant to determine whether it is supported by the evidence and whether, in the case of nonstatutory factors, it is truly of a mitigating nature.... The court next must weigh the aggravating circumstances against the mitigating and, in order to facilitate appellate review, must expressly consider in its written order each established mitigating circumstance. Campbell, 571 So.2d at 419-20 (footnote omitted). Arguably, the assignment of individualized weights to aggravating and mitigating factors is not expressly and absolutely required by Campbell. Subsequent decisions from this Court have, however, interpreted Campbell as requiring individualized weighing of aggravating and mitigating factors. See Hurst v. State, 819 So.2d 689, 697 (Fla.2002) (citing Campbell for the proposition that written sentencing orders must carefully evaluate each mitigating circumstance offered by the defendant, decide if it has been established, and assign it a proper weight); Woodel v. State, 804 So.2d 316, 327 (Fla.2001) (deeming a sentencing order insufficient due, in part, to the trial court's failure to assign individualized weights to aggravators and mitigators). Although we believe the state of Florida law on this point to be clear, we again reiterate that Campbell, as subsequently interpreted by this Court, requires a trial judge to assign a weight to each aggravating factor and also to each mitigating factor that he or she deems has been established. This requirement is in addition to the other procedural dictates articulated in Campbell. Thus, pursuant to Campbell, a trial judge presiding over a capital case must: (1) expressly evaluate in his or her written order each mitigating circumstance proposed by the defendant to determine whether it is supported by the evidence and whether, in the case of nonstatutory factors, it is truly of a mitigating nature; (2) assign a weight to each aggravating factor and mitigating factor properly established; (3) weigh the established aggravating circumstances against the established mitigating circumstances; and (4) provide a detailed explanation of the result of the weighing process. The requirement to assign a weight to each aggravator and mitigator found both stems from, and advances, the constitutional requirement for individualized sentencing that compelled this Court to provide the Campbell guidelines in the first instance. See Campbell, 571 So.2d at 420 (Hopefully, use of these guidelines will promote the uniform application of mitigating circumstances in reaching the individualized decision required by law.). The process, as clarified herein, will engender an analytical discipline at the trial court level that will, in turn, enhance the trial court's consideration of the unique circumstances surrounding each capital case and each individual defendant. This process will also facilitate a meaningful review of capital cases by ensuring that sentencing orders accurately and fully reflect the trial court's sentencing determination. See Jackson v. State, 704 So.2d 500, 507 (Fla.1997). The importance of a complete understanding of the trial court's reasoning and determination cannot be understated, as it is the responsibility of this Court to conduct a proportionality review of each capital case for the purpose of fostering uniformity in our death penalty jurisprudence. See Tillman v. State, 591 So.2d 167, 169 (Fla.1991). The sentencing order in the instant case failed to assign weights to the aggravating and mitigating circumstances on an individualized basis, and thus did not strictly conform with the requirements of Campbell as subsequently interpreted by this Court. However, we determine that the nonconformity in the instant case does not constitute fundamental error because the sentencing order was otherwise thorough and detailed, addressed all of the matters claimed in mitigation and aggravation, and contained a proper weighing analysis even though individual weights were not assigned. [13] See Griffin v. State, 820 So.2d 906, 914 n. 10 (Fla.2002). This Court was able to conduct a meaningful review of Fennie's case on direct appeal, reaching the ultimate conclusion that [t]he totality of the aggravating factors and lack of significant mitigating circumstances conclusively demonstrate that death is the appropriate penalty in this case. Fennie, 648 So.2d at 99. On this basis, we conclude that Fennie was not prejudiced by appellate counsel's failure to raise the insufficiency of the sentencing order on appeal.