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The Third District Court of Appeal has affirmed a mandatory life sentence imposed as a prison releasee reoffender (PRR) after a probation revocation. As Judge Miller’s concurrence describes the record, the State had waived PRR at the original plea. The court also certified conflict with the First District’s decision in Hill v. State, 403 So. … Read more

The Florida Supreme Court has affirmed the summary denial of William Reaves’ successive postconviction motion, denied his habeas petition, and declined to stay his execution. Reaves was sentenced to death for the 1986 killing of Deputy Richard Raczkoski in Vero Beach. Governor DeSantis signed a death warrant on September 18, 2026. Reaves then raised a … Read more

The Florida Supreme Court has reversed the denial of postconviction relief for Henry Lee Jones, directed that his conviction for the 2003 murder of Carlos Perez be set aside, and remanded for a new trial. The Court held that the State violated Brady v. Maryland. Two justices dissented. The State had evidence that a woman’s … Read more

The First District Court of Appeal has affirmed a trespass conviction from Alachua County, holding that a defendant who represented himself and personally asked for a bench trial validly waived his right to a jury, and that any error in the colloquy was invited. Derrick Lamar Walker argued that the evidence was insufficient and that … Read more

The First District Court of Appeal has reversed a possession conviction and ordered a new trial because the State did not disclose until mid-trial that the defendant had agreed to act as a confidential informant, and the trial court did not finish the inquiry the law requires. After a 2023 traffic stop in Escambia County, … Read more

The First District Court of Appeal has held that a trial court should not appoint postconviction appellate counsel unless it articulates why the appointment is legally required, and that the basis must be apparent from the record. It affirmed. Parrish Anthony George was convicted in Suwannee County of battery on a law enforcement officer and … Read more

The Second District Court of Appeal has affirmed a man’s Hillsborough County convictions for first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, and two counts of felony aggravated child abuse, rejecting his argument that his conviction by a six-person jury violated his constitutional rights. The court said that argument “lacks merit under current precedent,” and in the same … Read more

The Fifth District Court of Appeal has held that a Lake County defendant had a right to be present at a resentencing in which the judge had discretion over the new sentence, and that his lawyer’s oral waiver of his presence was not enough without a record showing he knowingly and voluntarily waived that right. … Read more

The First District Court of Appeal has held that a sentencing judge who rejects a request for a downward departure does not have to state on the record the reasons for that decision, expressly disagreeing with the reasoning of a line of Second District Court of Appeal decisions. Bryan Arthur Weber entered an open no … Read more

The Second District Court of Appeal has held that a Manatee County judge could not depart below the guidelines for a man convicted of selling cocaine within 1,000 feet of a church because of the small amount of drugs involved or because of the volunteer work he did while jailed awaiting trial. Wayne Carlton Mathis … Read more