Opinion ID: 1920952
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 19

Heading: Motion to Declare Death Penalty Unconstitutional

Text: Although appellate counsel did argue on appeal that the trial court erroneously found both the aggravating circumstances of pecuniary gain and murder committed in the course of a felony, and asserted that improper doubling occurred, Doorbal contends in this claim that appellate counsel failed to fully and properly challenge the constitutionality of these two aggravators. Doorbal further asserts that in this case, the pecuniary gain circumstance applied with the robbery circumstance was improper. This claim is without merit. The trial court did not find the during the commission of a felony aggravator based on robbery, but on kidnapping. See Doorbal, 837 So.2d at 951. Hence, Doorbal's contention that the trial court improperly doubled the pecuniary gain and during the course of a felony (robbery) aggravators is inaccurate. In addition, appellate counsel did challenge the finding of the pecuniary gain and during the course of a felony (kidnapping) aggravators, and we denied relief on this claim. See id. at 960. Finally, this Court has rejected assertions that murder in the course of a felony is an unconstitutional automatic aggravator, that the pecuniary gain aggravator is improperly and overbroadly employed, that the pecuniary gain jury instructions are unconstitutionally vague, and that the pecuniary gain and during the course of a felony aggravators fail to narrow the class of persons eligible for the death penalty. See Jones v. State, 928 So.2d 1178, 1183 n. 6 (Fla.2006); Griffin v. State, 866 So.2d 1, 14 (Fla.2003); Card v. State, 803 So.2d 613, 628 (Fla. 2001); Kelley v. Dugger, 597 So.2d 262, 265 (Fla. 1992). The challenges now raised by Doorbal are either grounded in incorrect assumptions or have previously been rejected by this Court, and appellate counsel was not ineffective for the failure to raise these meritless challenges. See Lawrence, 831 So.2d at 135.