News : POLITICO Florida Playbook: Parkland verdict may reopen Florida death penalty law

Friday, October 14, 2022

POLITICO Florida Playbook: Parkland verdict may reopen Florida death penalty law

Oct 14, 2022

Hello and welcome to Friday.

Context — Since Gov. Ron DeSantis became governor, he's signed three death warrants and the state has carried out two executions, with the most recent one being in August 2019.

Situation — There's been a lot of speculation — some of it fueled by non-specific answers from state officials — about why the state has not pursued the death penalty in the last three years, including whether Florida prison officials have had trouble obtaining the chemicals used for lethal injection. A spokesman for DeSantis told Florida Politics in August a key reason was the focus on the Covid-19 pandemic.

Catalyst — But the verdict handed down by a Broward County jury sparing Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooter and murderer Nikolas Cruz from the death penalty could serve as a catalyst for the governor — and the Legislature — to once again look at the state's death penalty laws.

DeSantis weighs in — Cruz was spared the death penalty because the jury could not come to a unanimous decision on whether he deserved to die. The decision stunned and angered many family members of those who were killed in Parkland. Both DeSantis and Democratic rival Charlie Crist said Cruz should have gotten the death penalty. "I think that if you have a death penalty at all, that that is a case, where you are massacring those students with premeditation and utter disregard for basic humanity, that you deserve the death penalty," DeSantis said.

History — Florida used to be a state that did not require a unanimous jury recommendation. A series of court decisions — including one from the U.S. Supreme Court and another key one from the state's highest court — prompted the Legislature to change the law, first by requiring a supermajority and then unanimity. This last change was made in 2017 and signed into law by then-Gov. Rick Scott.

Then this happened — But… in a decision that sent shockwaves through the legal community at the time, the Florida Supreme Court — shifted rightward by appointments made by DeSantis — reversed itself in early 2020 and said a unanimous jury recommendation was no longer needed. Outgoing state Sen. Jeff Brandes told The Miami Herald that there was no reason to revisit the law, but given the level of outcry over Cruz, it seems inevitable that legislators might once again be grappling with what to do.

— WHERE'S RON? — Gov. DeSantis is expected to be in southwest Florida.

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THE GUNSHINE STATE

'SHAME, ANGER, DEVASTATION' — "'They did not receive justice today': Families stunned, angered, disgusted by jury decision to spare life of Parkland gunman ," by South Florida Sun Sentinel's Ben Crandell, Lisa J. Huriash, Susannah Bryan, Scott Travis and Angie DiMichele: "It has been 1,702 days since they last looked into the eyes of their child, their spouse, but the families of 17 students and staff killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018 finally got their moment of reckoning. They were shocked and furious at the outcome — and by the mercy shown to the gunman who took their loved ones' lives. 'There are 17 victims, including my beautiful daughter Jaime, and they did not receive justice today,' said Fred Guttenberg, describing his emotions as 'shame, anger, devastation.'"

Mitch and Annika Dworet react as they hear that their son's murderer will not receive the death penalty as the verdicts are announced in the trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022. | AP

BEHIND THE SCENES — "Nikolas Cruz trial: Prosecutors seek interview of juror over alleged threat by another juror," by CBS Miami: "Prosecutors have filed a motion with the Broward County court asking Judge Elizabeth Scherer to compel law enforcement officers to interview a juror who said they felt threatened by another juror during deliberations to decide the fate of Nikolas Cruz…The filing comes on the heels of another handwritten letter from a juror who allegedly was a lone holdout and was accused of saying she would not support the death penalty for Cruz. In her letter to the judge, the juror who is from Pembroke Pines, said she told [Judge Elizabeth] Scherer she lived up to the terms of the oath of service she took."

REACTION — DeSantis says the Parkland shooter deserves the death penalty, by POLITICO's Bruce Ritchie: Speaking at a press conference in Florida just minutes after the jury delivered its recommendation to spare Nikolas Cruz's life, [Gov. Ron] DeSantis said the only appropriate sentence for the Florida school shooter is the death penalty. "I think that if you have a death penalty, then that is a case where you are massacring those students with premeditation and utter disregard for basic humanity that you deserve the death penalty," he said.

AFTERMATH — " After Parkland shooter gets life verdict, what's next for the death penalty in Florida?" by Miami Herald's David Ovalle and Mary Ellen Klas: "A jury's decision to hand out a life sentence for Parkland mass killer Nikolas Cruz will make it even more difficult to secure death sentences in the future — and could also spur lawmakers to consider changing the state's capital punishment law, legal experts say. Cruz's was the most high-profile capital case to go to sentencing since Florida lawmakers changed the law in 2017 to require juries to be unanimous in recommending execution, a requirement shared by nearly every other death-penalty state in the United States."

TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP

PARTING ACT — "House Jan. 6 committee votes to subpoena Trump in finale surprise ," by Washington Post's Rosalind S. Helderman, Jacqueline Alemany and Tom Hamburger: "The House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol issued a surprise subpoena seeking testimony from former president Donald Trump on Thursday, a challenge with little historical precedent that members said was a necessary final act before the panel concludes its work. The unanimous vote came at the end of the committee's ninth and likely final public hearing, a session intended as a closing argument to the panel's 14-month investigation."

CONFRONTATION — The Jan. 6 committee plays truth and dare with Trump, by POLITICO's Kyle Cheney and Nicholas Wu: The Jan. 6 select committee's subpoena of Donald Trump is not a play to secure his testimony. It's a dare for the former president: Rebut our case against you, if you can. "We have left no doubt, none, that Donald Trump led an effort to upend American democracy that directly resulted in the violence on January 6," the panel's chair, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), said Thursday as members approved the subpoena. "He tried to take away the voice of the American people and replaced the will of the voters with his will to remain in power. He is the one person at the center of the story of what happened on January 6."

— "Jan. 6 panel scrutinizes Trump's post-election military orders," by Washington Post's Dan Lamothe

A video Donald Trump speaking during a rally near the White House on Jan. 6th is shown on a screen at a hearing.

The Select Committee unanimously voted to subpoena former President Trump. | Pool photo by Jabin Botsford

AS THE PAGES TURN — Supreme Court rebuffs Trump in Mar-a-Lago docs fight, by POLITICO's Josh Gerstein: The Supreme Court on Thursday turned down former President Donald Trump's request to step into the legal fight over documents the FBI seized from his Mar-a-Lago estate. The former president was seeking an order to return about 100 documents with classification markings to a review process a "special master" is conducting of more than 10,000 documents the FBI took during the Aug. 8 search of Trump's home.

...HURRICANE HOLE...

FALLOUT — "Why Ian may push Florida real estate out of reach for all but the super rich," by The New York Times' Christopher Flavelle: "Ian's aftermath shows how climate change is increasingly eroding the financial underpinnings of modern American life. Without insurance, banks won't issue a mortgage; without a mortgage, most prospective homeowners can't buy a home. With fewer buyers, home prices fall, and new development can slow or even come to a stop. 'You need a private insurance market to have a mortgage market,' Dr. [Zac] Taylor said. 'Will working- and middle-class homeownership remain viable in Florida in the long term?'"

DETAILS — " 28 have been arrested in Ian looting. DeSantis highlights 3 in US illegally," by Miami Herald's Ana Ceballos: "Twenty-eight people have been arrested on charges related to looting in Lee County, the county hit hardest by Hurricane Ian — three of whom were singled out by Gov. Ron DeSantis in news conferences. The three individuals have one thing in common: They are in the country illegally. DeSantis was quick to underscore the immigration status of three suspects during a news conference on Oct. 4 in Fort Myers, where he provided updates on the hurricane recovery process. DeSantis said that four people had been arrested at that point on charges related to looting, but subsequent records show at least eight arrests had been made by then."

— "Rebuild or give up? Florida citrus growers explore options after losses to Hurricane Ian," by The Ledger's Paul Nutcher

— DeSantis gives $2m from Hurricane Ian disaster relief fund to first responder groups, by POLITICO's Matt Dixon

— " FEMA not ready to deploy trailers for temporary housing yet in Collier County," by Naples Daily News' Laura Layden

CAMPAIGN MODE

DEEP DIVE — 'Ron DeSantis greatest foe isn't Charlie Crist or Donald Trump. It's hubris', by POLITICO's Michael Kruse: All indications are that it is working to his political favor. In the past two-plus years, he's raised what is approaching some $200 million. On his campaign website he's selling taunting baubles such as "Freedom Over Fauci" flip-flops and golf balls that come in a package that crows that "Florida's Governor Has a Pair." Polls have reliably predicted he is going to win another term. And that was before President Joe Biden, however enfeebled [Gov. Ron] DeSantis might consider him to be, praised his response to the devastation of Hurricane Ian — "a checkmate moment for Charlie Crist," as a Florida-based Democratic strategist put it to me, "unfortunately."

CRIST SLAMS DESANTIS — "'I condemn him.' Crist delivers takedown of DeSantis' pre-Hurricane Ian leadership," by South Florida Sun Sentinel's Anthony Man: "Charlie Crist denounced Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday for what he said was mishandling the approach of Hurricane Ian, suggesting that better leadership could have meant fewer deaths from the storm. 'The lapse in leadership was apparent and obvious,' Crist said in a video interview with the South Florida Sun Sentinel and Orlando Sentinel editorial boards. 'It's before the storm hit where true leadership really comes to bear, and it didn't in this case and it breaks my heart.'"

'REASONABLE ACCOMODATIONS' — DeSantis agrees to election changes for storm-battered area, by POLITICO's Gary Fineout: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis used his emergency powers on Thursday to waive state election laws for counties hard hit by Hurricane Ian that are grappling with widespread damages and disruptions. DeSantis agreed to set aside state laws so election officials in Charlotte, Lee and Sarasota — all of which are Republican strongholds — can consolidate polling places, extend early voting days and make it easier to send mail in ballots to voters to an address that is not listed in voting records. "Those are, I think, reasonable accommodations that ensure everybody has an opportunity to participate in this November's election," said DeSantis during a mid-afternoon press conference in Cape Coral in southwest Florida.

'ANOTHER NAIL' — "How Hurricane Ian changed the Florida governor's race," by Tampa Bay Times' Emily L. Mahoney: "Joe Biden was supposed to be standing next to Charlie Crist. The two Democrats planned a rally for late September, a political risk with an unpopular president that Crist's team was willing to take because he needed a shot of momentum against Gov. Ron DeSantis. Instead, eight days and one monstrous hurricane after the date of the nixed event, Biden was on TV with DeSantis, thanking him for the state's cooperation with the federal government to help make Floridians' lives whole. The president said the Republican governor had done a 'good job' responding to the disaster."

— "Transcript details 'ghost' candidate's aid in probe of spoiler scheme," by Orlando Sentinel's Annie Martin

— " Crist rallies pro-choice voting at campaign stop in West Palm Beach," by Palm Beach Post's Stephany Matat

— "Frost, Wimbish disagree on just about everything in Orlando congressional debate ," by Orlando Sentinel's Steven Lemongello

MIGRANTS IN MASSACHUSETTS

NEXT STEPS? — Transported migrants may be on a path to citizenship because of DeSantis flights, by POLITICO's Jesús A. Rodríguez: When nearly 50 Venezuelan migrants were left stranded in Martha's Vineyard last month after Florida GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis flew them to the island from Texas, they had no employment, housing or clear pathway to citizenship. But this week, the Bexar County Sheriff's Office, which oversees the San Antonio area and previously opened an investigation into the flights, agreed to certify that the migrants had sufficiently cooperated with its investigation and are now eligible to apply for "U" visas, a kind of immigration status for victims of certain crimes that occur on U.S. soil.

... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ...

CAMPAIGN ROUNDUP — The latest analysis done by AdImpact shows that the Republican Party of Florida and the reelection campaign of Ron DeSantis has spent $43.2 million on television ads with slightly more than three weeks left to go before Election Day. Florida Democrats and Charlie Crist have spent $10.1 million (and that includes ads before the August primary). …

Rep. Val Demings has spent more than $23 million on ads for her run for Senate, while incumbent Sen. Marco Rubio and national Republicans have spent $15.3 million, according to AdImpact. Outside groups backing Rubio have spent an additional $4.9 million. …

Crist will join Orlando Democrats — including state Reps. Anna Eskamani and Carlos Guillermo Smith and Democratic congressional candidate Maxwell Alejandro Frost for a "Choice is the Choice" rally in Orlando. Earlier in the day, Crist will participate in a virtual press conference with to discuss DeSantis' position on abortion.

FOR YOUR RADAR — Young incest victim denied abortion due to Florida's new law, Planned Parenthood says, by POLITICO's Arek Sarkissian: A Planned Parenthood doctor who performs abortions in Florida said the state's new ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy forced one clinic to turn away a child victim of incest. Shelly Tien, a Jacksonville-based doctor who's also a plaintiff in a potential state Supreme Court battle over Florida's abortion ban, said during a Wednesday news conference that the minor seeking the abortion was turned away because she was past 15 weeks of pregnancy. Florida's new law provides no exceptions for victims of rape, incest of human trafficking.

HMM — PSC move sidesteps issue over utility bills before Election Day, by POLITICO's Bruce Ritchie: The Public Service Commission's decision this week to delay hearings on requests by utilities to hike their customers' bills in 2023 avoids any potential political fallout ahead of election day, according to critics. The Public Service Commission said it moved hearings on electric utility fuel costs from Nov. 1-3 until after the election because of Hurricane Ian, which struck Southwest Florida on Sept. 28 and killed more than 100 people.

PENINSULA AND BEYOND

LIGHT TOUCH — "Oilman catches sentencing break for exposing Venezuela graft," by The Associated Press' Joshua Goodman: "A Florida-based oilman who pleaded guilty for taking part in a $1 billion conspiracy to pay bribes to Venezuelan officials received a major break in sentencing after providing standout cooperation to U.S. prosecutors investigating corruption at the country's state-run oil monopoly. Abraham Shiera was one of the first witnesses to come forward and cooperate with a sprawling, multi-district federal probe into PDVSA, as the oil giant is known, following his arrest in 2016. Judge Gray Miller on Thursday sentenced Shiera, who was born in Venezuela, to 12 months and a single day in prison — well below the statutory maximum of 10 years he faced after pleading guilty to two criminal counts of corrupting a foreign official."

— "He resigned as president amid allegations. He's returning to FIU with a slight pay cut," by Miami Herald's Jimena Tavel

— " DeSantis reinstates tolls just as Central Florida road agency braces for financial hit," by Orlando Sentinel's Kevin Spear

ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN

BIRTHDAYS: Shane Strum, president and CEO of Broward Health

(Saturday) State Rep. Josie Tomkow … Edie Ousley of Yellow Finch Strategies

(Sunday) State Sen. Loranne Ausley … Beth Switzer, former executive director at WFSU-TV/The Florida Channel ... Mark Maxwell, partner SCG Governmental Affairs