Opinion ID: 1791862
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 9

Heading: Stovall/Linkletter Analysis

Text: After failing to examine the plain meaning of the fundamental significance prong of our Witt analysis, the majority attempts to rely upon a flawed Stovall/Linkletter analysis to justify its decision. However, the weakness of the majority's analysis of the Stovall/Linkletter factors is apparent. If anything, a proper analysis of those factors yields as strong a case for retroactivity as does the plain meaning analysis set out above. Under such an analysis it is readily apparent that we are dealing with the most important value in our criminal justice system (the right to a jury trial), applied in the most sensitive category of criminal cases (death penalty cases), which, because of their limited number will have the least disruptive effect on our criminal justice system. Hence, Ring presents the classic case for retroactive application under our test in Witt. First, unlike Justice Shaw, the majority completely misconstrues the purpose of the Ring holding to uphold the fundamental constitutional right to a jury trial in the determination of fact-based aggravators that may be utilized to impose a sentence of death. Contrary to Justice Shaw's recognition of the fundamental importance of this right, and Ring's protection of this right, the majority dismisses Ring's purpose as being one merely involving technical and inconsequential criminal procedure. Consider how different this is from the United States Supreme Court's statement in Apprendi that it was enforcing constitutional protections of surpassing importance. And, of course, the majority ignores the heightened consideration that the issue should receive in the death is different context of Ring. Nowhere is this context even recognized in the majority's analysis. Imagine applying the majority's demeaning characterization of the purpose of Ring in a case where the finding of an aggravator may literally determine whether someone lives or dies. It is obvious that Justice Shaw got it right when he stated in Bottoson that Ring's purpose is to safeguard the basic protections guaranteed by the right to trial by jury before someone's life can be forfeited. Second, in its discussion of reliance on the prior unconstitutional practice, the majority overinflates the impact of Ring in Florida. The majority acts as if a few hundred cases is a huge number in Florida's criminal justice system. The fact is that death penalty cases, for obvious reasons, constitute the smallest category of cases in our criminal justice system. Considering the tens of thousands of inmates in our penal system, the few hundred death cases are but a modest few, a tiny percentage. In fact, many of our prior decisions on retroactivity have affected thousands of inmates. But that did not prevent us from applying decisions of fundamental importance retroactively. Further, the majority ignores the fact that not one conviction for first-degree murder will be disturbed under Ring. None. Rather, only the penalty phase portion of a death case would be impacted if the defendant could demonstrate that a critical and essential aggravator was not found by the jury. Other than relying on numbers, the majority repeats the obvious that the State has relied on its prior practice denying jury fact-finding in good faith. But that is a non sequitur. No one has asserted otherwise. The same, of course, can be said in every case where important constitutional rights were eventually recognized and old practices condemned. Such was obviously the case in Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335, 83 S.Ct. 792, 9 L.Ed.2d 799 (1963), where virtually all states had refused indigent defendants the right to assistance of counsel during the judicial process. But that did not deter this Court from applying Gideon retroactively to thousands of Florida criminal felony cases. Third, the majority's analysis on the effect of applying Ring on the administration of justice in Florida is just a repeat of the false numbers game, when in fact the impact would be modest and the administration of justice would be greatly enhanced by assuring that all of those sent to their deaths were first granted their constitutional right to a jury trial in the determination of fact-based aggravators. Even the unlikely grant of a right to trial by jury in a few hundred cases would have a de minimis effect on Florida's criminal justice system where tens of thousands of convicted inmates are now housed in its prisons. Perhaps most tellingly, the majority completely ignores in its analysis the fact that this Court has already considered dozens of Ring claims on their merits and in postconviction appeals, and has turned down every one. In effect this Court has so narrowly interpreted Ring or so frequently found exceptions to its application that a Ring claimant has virtually no chance of success in this Court. Hence, based upon this Court's own track record in rejecting Ring claims on their merits, it is pure sophistry to suggest that Ring will have a substantial impact in Florida on large numbers of cases. While I have disagreed with many of those resolutions, there is no denying their existence and their consistent message of rejection on the merits. Indeed, one is left to wonder whether there is any case out there that could meet the narrow interpretation of Ring this Court has adopted.