Michael Lambrix was supposed to die today..

Florida - State of the Death Penalty -  written by Adam Tebrugge, Staff Attorney, ACLU of Florida

https://aclufl.org/2016/02/11/florida-state-of-the-death-penalty/


                                                                     

Michael Lambrix was supposed to die today.

Three months ago his death warrant was signed by Governor Rick Scott. Michael was moved to a special “Death Watch” cell, steps from the execution chamber. He was fitted for his burial suit and was visiting with his friends and family for what he assumed would be the final time.

However, thanks to the recent ruling from the United States Supreme Court that Florida’s death penalty statute is unconstitutional, Michael was allowed to challenge his sentence. Attorney Brian Stull of the ACLU Capital Punishment Project was among those who filed a brief on behalf of Michael. Last week the Florida Supreme Court agreed to a stay of execution while they sort out the question of which death row inmates might be entitled to a new sentence.

While the courts are doing their work, I am continuing to ask the Governor and Cabinet to grant Michael a clemency hearing. Historically, clemency has always been the last safeguard of our criminal justice system, particularly in death penalty cases. As we know all too well, the courts don’t always get it right. Lawyers and judges make mistakes, all the evidence isn’t heard, and injustice results. That’s why the Governor and Clemency Board have the power to commute a death sentence to one of life imprisonment.
In Florida, however, our Governor’s office has turned the clemency process into a sham, despite Florida having the most unreliable death penalty system in the country. The last Governor to grant clemency was Bob Graham, and that was more than thirty years ago. Governor Scott is now executing inmates at a record pace without apparently considering whether they might be worthy of clemency. The case for clemency is particularly strong for Michael Lambrix.

Michael’s case started in 1984 when a woman named Francis Smith was found driving the car of a man who had been reported missing. Francis led law enforcement to a rural area in Glades County where the bodies of a man and a woman were discovered. Francis claimed that Michael Lambrix had killed both people. She cut a deal with prosecutors to test facing any charges herself. However, prosecutors never disclosed this deal to the Court or to Michael’s attorneys.

Michael’s attorneys were handling their first death penalty case. They wouldn’t let him testify at his trial and threatened to withdraw if he did. The first jury to hear this case could not reach a decision. The second jury found Michael guilty and recommended the death penalty on a less than unanimous vote. Only later did it come out that a key witness had lied after being pressured. Only later did it come out that Francis Smith was having a sexual relationship with the lead State Attorney investigator in the case. Only later was DNA technology developed that could show that Michael was not the killer. Unfortunately for Michael, the courts have ruled that it is too late for any of this evidence to be considered.

After spending the past 31 years on death row, in solitary confinement, you wouldn’t be surprised if Michael had been driven insane or to despair but that’s not the case. Michael has spent his time on self-reflection and improvement. After focusing on his own education during his first years in confinement, Michael began reaching out to people around the world. I have heard from people from Australia, Great Britain, the Netherlands, and more. Everyone wanted me to know what a positive impact Mike has had upon their lives. From solitary confinement on Florida’s death row, Mike’s letters and essays have been published in anthologies and shared with people around the world.

At a minimum, Michael Lambrix deserves a hearing before the Clemency Board where these facts could be presented. His case represents a failure of the court system and of the clemency process.  Here is what I would ask you to do. Please contact the members of the Florida Clemency Board and deliver this message:

“Please grant a clemency hearing for Michael Lambrix, whose sentence was just stayed by the Florida Supreme Court. At a time when our state’s death sentences are under serious scrutiny, the evidence in this case is especially questionable.  Michael has spent the past 30 years and done everything possible to improve himself and to help others. Our death penalty system is in crisis, and Floridians deserve to know that their leaders are working to ensure that our justice system is in fact just. You have an opportunity to review the facts of this case as a member of the Clemency Board  Please grant him a clemency hearing, so his case can be reviewed, and you don’t end up executing a potentially innocent man.”

You can write any of the folks below at The Capitol, Tallahassee, FL 32399-1050, or better yet, call them today.

Governor Rick Scott:  850-488-7146 - Email:  rick.scott@myflorida.com
Office of Governor Rick Scott State of Florida The Capitol 400 S. Monroe St. Tallahassee, FL 32399-000 
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi: 850-414-3300
Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater: 850-413-2820
Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam 850-245-1000

Letter from Death Watch (part 7)

When the Governor first signed my death warrant on November 30, 2015 scheduling my execution for February 11, 2016, I had 73 days until they planned to kill me. As I write this , I’m now down to 18 days. To keep us occupied ~ if we were to go nuts awaiting our execution then they couldn’t kill us as the Supreme Court has said that violates the Eighth Amendment prohibition to execute a prisoner that has become “mentally incompetent” ~ they have installed a 40 inch flat screen television on the wall in front of cell one, which I watch regularly.

Funny thing though, as the days passed I have noticed that there are previews for more shows that I would really like to watch, but they won’t come on until after my scheduled execution and I find myself saying that it sucks as now I’m going to miss that show. For example, many years ago I faithfully watched every episode of the science fiction series “X-Files,” but then the series ended with a lot of unanswered questions.

Recently the Fox Network brought it back for a six show mini series to answer some of those questions we all waited so long to be resolved. And I was anxiously awaiting its return. However, it doesn’t begin until Sunday January 24th and then run for the next five consecutive weeks. But I only have less than 3 weeks to live so it created a dilemma ~ do I watch what I can and hope that my execution is put on hold until I’ve watched all 6 episodes, or do I just blow it off for now as I wouldn’t want to go to my grave left hanging to see how it all ends. 

More and more I’m confronting these dilemmas ~ finding myself making choices based on when my execution is scheduled. The other day I noticed that my toothpaste was getting low and normally, I would just buy another tube without a second thought. But instead I found myself contemplating whether what I had left might be stretched to last until February 11th as I didn’t want to waste the money buying a new tube, then be put to death and leave it wasted.

These are just a few of the examples of how even the smallest things that most wouldn’t give a second thought to will creep into mind and then I will find myself putting way too much thought into how that particular thing or event impacts my scheduled date with death.

                                                                    

Maybe that’s part of this deliberate process ~ to compel those awaiting their appointed date with death to be reminded that they intend to kill you every moment of every day until they do. Perhaps that “process” itself helps facilitate passivity in the condemned by instilling a sense of becoming part of that countdown, so that when the time does come, we will feel almost obligated to cooperate.

A few days ago the death watch supervisor came down and laid a brand new suit on the desk out in front of my cell. He has been assigned to this post for years and personally dealt with at least the last 30 executions ~ probably many more. In this environment, that wall of separation between prisoner and guard somewhat relaxes and there’s significantly more personal interaction if for no other reason but there’s no one else to talk to.

This supervisor (whom I’m deliberately not naming) exhibits a level of professionalism you very rarely see in the prison system. He deals with us in a fair and respectful manner, and takes good care of us. When our family and friends come for a visit, he will do what he can to make it easier on them. Often even introducing himself to our visitor and giving them his phone number in case they need to call if problems arise. When my mentally challenged daughter came to visit, he escorted her to the parking lot to make sure she got there alright. He is a model of professionalism balanced with that measure empathy towards those he interacts with that you just don’t expect from prison employees.

But when he brought that suit down, it made me realize just how much this job has taken from him. Most of us give no thought to how all this affects those who work here and interact with the condemned. They will spend months down here on death watch with us, knowing just as well as we do that with each day that passes we take one step closer to that date of our appointed death. How could all this not affect them too.

Yet he laid the bag containing the suit down on that desk and as if it was nothing more than getting a cup of water. He pulled the brand new suit from the bag and casually told me I needed to try it on to make sure it fits. I watched as he first took the white shirt from its plastic bag (George for men, size XL, short sleeves ~ long sleeves would obstruct their ability to insert the needles into my arms ~ with a neck of 18 inches). He unfolded the shirt, removing the store tags, then shook it out and passed it through the cell bars so that I could try it on.

As I obediently put this shirt on, he focused his attention on removing the suit from its protective bag. I noticed it was bought at the local JCPenney store. The tag said it was Stafford brand, made in Mexico, with a suggested retail price of $200. I commented about that ~ the prison would only allow a “last meal” limited to $40 , but they didn’t mind spending that much for a custom fitted suit to execute me in.

He passed the pants first and then the jacket through the bars and I put each on. They fit well. I even commented about how good I looked in the dark blue, almost black suit with the subtle charcoal pinstripes. And then I removed it and handed it back and it was returned to its protective bag and places in the closet where it would wait until it was time for me to put it on again ~ only the next time I put it on, they would kill me in it.

This whole process of trying on the suit they bought just to execute me in seemed so mundane; so normal. As if we went through this everyday. And I found myself wondering, how many times has he gone through this routine before and at what point did he reach that point in which having the condemned prisoner try on his execution suit become so routine?

On the legal front, the lawyers continue preparing and filing appeals based on the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Hurst v Florida. When that case first came out on February 12th I was somewhat skeptical, as I knew that it’s hard to convince the courts to retroactively apply new case law to older cases. (See, my essay “ Death by Default” posted January 28th at www.minutesbeforesix.com). However, after reading what the lawyers have filed I must admit that they make a very convincing argument as to why Hurst v Florida dictates that my death sentences be vacated and my execution stopped. Many other organizations are also submitting “Amicus” briefs in support, which is almost unheard of. Bottom line, there’s a good chance we can win this, but it will be close. The Florida Supreme Court will hold “oral arguments” on my case on Tuesday, February 2, 2016 which can be watched online at www.wfsu.org/gavel2gavel/

 

My Federal appeal arguing actual innocence also continues to be pursued in the Federal Courts. Anyone who wants to read the appeals that have been and will be filed can do so at www.southerninjustice.net. Hopefully, either the state or federal court will grant a stay of execution soon.

(Note: Indefinite stay of execution was granted on February 2, 2016)

Execution stayed for Michael Lambrix!

The Florida Supreme Court has issued an indefinite Stay of execution for Michael Lambrix. Mike was to be executed on Thursday, February 11. The order came hours after the court heard oral arguments that focused on the impact of a U.S. Supreme Court decision earlier this month that struck down the state’s death-penalty sentencing system. Read more here:  http://www.wuft.org/news/2016/02/02/supreme-courts-ruling-could-halt-feb-11-execution-in-florida/ 
and here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article57817378.html

Read the order for the stay here
 

The Florida High Court did not rule on the impact of the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Hurst v. Florida that found Florida’s death penalty sentencing unconstitutional.

                                            

Letter from Death Watch (part 6)

Time flies quickly when you’re counting down what is expected to be the last days of your life. When Florida governor Rick Scott signed my death warrant on November 30th, scheduling my execution for February 11, 2016 I had 73 days of life guaranteed ~ but as I awoke this morning, I realized I’m now down to only 25 days. I smiled as I remembered  song on my mp3 player by country music legend Johnny Cash called “25 Minutes to Go” ~ it starts with the words, “They’re building a gallows outside my cell and I’ve got 25 minutes to go,” then in his southern accent continues, “and the whole town’s waiting just to hear me yell ~ I’ve got 25 minutes to go.”

There’s a lot of truth to those words. Although I’m blessed by the support of many from almost every corner of the world, I’m constantly reminded that the reason I’m counting down these final days until my appointed moment of death is because there are just as many pushing just as hard to see me dead. Few even think about the amount of resources that the state of Florida, on behalf of the taxpayers, are investing in this process with one singular objective… to see me dead. And at times it does feel like the “whole town is waiting to hear me yell.”

I find myself thinking about the bigger picture a lot lately ~ although I am comfortable in my own sense of spirituality and I am convinced that my eternal soul (consciousness) will continue far beyond this so-called life, I guess when it comes down to it, nobody really knows.

It bothers me that so many people are all but consumed with the need to inflict death upon me under the pretense of administering justice as by their own choices, they inflict scars upon their own souls. It seems to create a spiritual paradox that I struggle to reconcile with ~ by methodically seeking my death at a specific appointed time and by a specifically appointed manner, I’m given that rare luxury of that opportunity to seek forgiveness and make spiritual peace, while those most affected by the crime are not.

It’s only too easy to get fixated on our own perspective and not even consider another’s. But I do wonder about those who are so deliberately pursuing my death. Each of us, without exception, are inherently imperfect creatures and in our own way we each struggle through this journey we call life. Most of us try to do the right thing ~ just as I tried to do the right thing the night when all this happened. But our perspective of what is right and what is wrong, is too often clouded by more primitive responses, such as the need to seek vengeance, only under the pretense of administering justice. But if the sanctity of life is to mean anything at all, then what could be a more deliberate act of murder then putting an innocent man to death through a state sanctioned execution.

Maybe it’s just me, but I worry about those responsible for pursuing my death. As they gather around the gallows just to hear me scream, do they even for a moment think about their own spiritual accountability? I recall the words Jesus spoke from the cross as they executed the Son of God ~ “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do.”

                                                       

This past week was a pretty good week, all things considered. Beginning on Monday and through Wednesday I was able to receive visits with my youngest son Cary Michael. On Tuesday my parents joined him for the visit, and on Wednesday my sisters Debbie and Mary came. For three days I was able to escape the reality of my pending execution and bask in the warmth of their love. We talked and we laughed ~ and we cried. It pained me greatly to see what all of this is putting them through. And I wonder whether those so determined to pursue my death spend even a moment thinking about the pain they are inflicting on so many others. As a society we have a very constrained definition of “victims,” as my own family and friends suffer just as equally and by any objective definition of the word “victim,” they are victims too.

On Tuesday January 12th the United States Supreme Court issued its long anticipated ruling in Hurst v. Florida. By an 8 to 1 majority they declared that Florida’s death penalty is unconstitutional, as under the Sixth Amendment a jury must make the findings necessary to impose death, not a judge. What this means is that every person sentenced to death in Florida ~ including the 80 men and women already executed since 1974 ~ were illegally sentenced.

But it’s not that simple. Through the years the “politics of death” have compelled the courts to judicially create procedural rules that strongly discourage retroactive application of new rulings. Under the pretense of promoting “finality,” new court decisions generally will not be applied to older cases that were already upheld on the first round of appeals.

Suddenly my own case has been catapulted to the front lines in the fight over the death penalty itself. Because I am the next person scheduled for execution following the Supreme Court decision, the disposition of my own case will now decide the fate of all those sentenced to death in Florida ~ and very well may decide whether the death penalty in America survives.

Quite simply, if I win and my February 11th execution is called off, then all 390 other death sentenced prisoners in Florida will rely on that victory to vacate their own death sentences. If I lose, then Governor Scott and the State of Florida will continue to aggressively pursue executions.

Those interested in following this issue can easily read all the appeal briefs filed, which will be available at my website www.southerninjustice.net.  Already the top death penalty lawyers have joined forces to fight this issue. Anyone can also watch the “oral arguments” before the Florida Supreme Court at 9:00 a.m. on February 2, 2016 both live and taped at www.gavel2gavel.org. Additionally, all legal filings are available on the Florida Supreme Court website by pulling up Cary Michael Lambrix v, State of Florida, case no. SC16-08.

In truth, I’m not happy about my case becoming the test case on this Hurst v. Florida issue. For 32 years I’ve fought to prove that I am innocent of this wholly circumstantial (i.e., no eyewitnesses, no physical or forensic evidence, no confessions) theory of alleged premeditated murder. But now my consistently pled claim of innocence will be effectively reduced to nothing more than a footnote as all the attention focuses solely on this Hurst case. And the reality is that the odds are against me convincing either State or Federal Courts that Hurst must apply retroactively. As I’ve said before, it's a runaway train and I’m just along for the ride.

My imminent execution will generate widespread media attention in light of the Hurst decision ~ I can only hope that the media that follows this story will take a moment to actually read the history of my case and how the state's own evidence actually substantiates my innocence.

One week ahead of the Florida Supreme Court Oral arguments in his case, Michael Lambrix releases a personal statement

Michael Lambrix has faced already one execution by the electric chair  when a warrant was signed in 1998
He now faces execution by lethal injection on February 11th, 2016

On February 11, 2016 the State of Florida will proceed to put Cary Michael Lambrix to death by lethal injection, despite the fact that on January 12th, 2016 the United States Supreme Court, in an unprecedented 8 to 1 decision, declared that the Florida death penalty process is unconstitutional.
All eyes will now be on the Lambrix case - the first execution since the landmark Hurst v Florida case was released. The Florida Supreme Court will hear ‘oral arguments’ in Lambrix’s case at 9.00 am on February 2, 2016.

Today Michael Lambrix comments about the particularly unusual circumstances surrounding his imminent execution, read more HERE

                                       
                                          Florida Department of Corrections execution chamber

ACLU files amicus brief with Florida Supreme Court in Michael Lambrix's case

January 22, 2016 - Brief filed by the American Civil Libeties Union Capital Pinishment (ACLU-CPP) and the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida (ACLU-FL) in support of Michael Lambrix. Read it HERE

Letter from Death Watch (part 5)

The New Year began with a vengeance. I can’t even remember the last time I really got sick, but I spent the entire first weekend of the new year sick as a dog; to the point where I didn’t even want to get out of my bunk. I didn’t get anything done and I am so far behind on writing letters to all those who have sent me cards and letters that I doubt I will ever catch up. And so let me begin this update with my thanks to all those that sent cards and letters as they truly mean so much.

In an earlier update I asked for a few jokes ~ and I got a fair share, so many thanks for those too. But I gotta tell you all, the best laugh I got as I read through them was that I didn’t realize just how many really bad jokes there are out there! (Big Smile!). Really, thanks for all the jokes as I did get a few really good laughs. Surprisingly nobody sent me any really dirty jokes, nor did I get any blonde jokes which is probably as good thing as with my mom and sister coming for a visit next week, I won’t be tempted to get myself in trouble by sharing a blonde joke or two.

Having survived the New Year’s weekend fighting my way through a cold like i’ve never had before, we then went into the week counting down to Oscar Bolin’s execution. It wasn’t easy being housed down here on death watch only a few feet away as this act of deliberate murder unfolded and as most of you know, on January 7th they did kill Oscar Bolin. But I would like to think that he was at peace in the end and far more worried about how his wife would cope than his own fate. He showed true dignity and strength and I have to believe that he is now in a better place. But his wife, family, and friends will continue to struggle with the loss, so please keep them in your thoughts.

As an involuntary witness to the events that transpired, it wasn’t easy as they proceeded to carry out this act of deliberate murder with me housed in my own solitary cell just a few feet away. At the same time, though, I have to commend the prison staff as from the warden on down, they went out of their way to keep Oscar comfortable and the stress and anxiety to a minimum.

Much to my surprise, on Wednesday afternoon, Deputy Secretary Dixon (second highest Dept of Corrections official) personally came down to death watch, accompanied by Warden Palmer, and spoke to Oscar (and briefly to me) and then a few hours before the scheduled execution FDOC Secretary Julie Jones sat down at Oscar’s cell front and talked with him too.

But for all the efforts they put into sterilizing this execution process, I’m left wondering whether it compromises the significance of their objective. Has all of this become so routine to them, that they no longer appreciate that they are methodically taking a human life?

They had Oscar scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday (January 7th) and at precisely 4 p.m. they removed him from his death watch cell and escorted him to the east side of the wing, where they have a single cell used exclusively for housing the condemned prisoner until the courts clear the way for the execution to proceed. But when they took Oscar to that holding cell, they were still waiting for the US Supreme Court to decide whether they would allow Oscar’s claim of innocence to be heard. As a result, everything remained on hold until shortly before 10 p.m.

Once the Supreme Court finally gave the go-ahead, they moved quickly, taking Oscar from the holding cell into the adjacent execution chamber only a few feet behind the cell I remained in, and with practiced precision, they quickly strapped him into the gurney and put him to death. Just that quickly, it was over ~ and no court was willing to allow review of his innocence claim before they killed him.

                                                         

                                    Execution chamber at Florida State Prison

For obvious reasons, I didn’t get to sleep that night, but sometime in the early morning hours I did fall asleep ~ only to be awaken a few hours later and told that I had to immediately move from cell Three (the end cell) to cell One, the cell that Oscar had only recently vacated a few hours earlier and I really didn’t want to move into that cell so quickly, but it wasn’t like I had a choice.

That Friday (January 8th) morning I has a legal visit and quickly threw my personal property into a pillow case and got ready to walk the few steps up to cel one. Before that legal visit, I was allowed a short social phone call with my long time friend Jan Ariens (in England) and I can’t begin to say how much it meant to hear a friendly voice just at that particular time.

See, here’s the thing ~ for all the perception of how well we are treated on death watch ~ and we are treated exceptionally well compared to “normal” prison life ~ the undeniable truth is that they treat us as they do to facilitate this “process.” I appreciate being treated as they do, but I’m not in denial ~ I know only too well that they have their own agenda and that is to keep those facing imminent execution calm and avoid any problems and so the bottom line is they don’t treat us this good without reason and that reason is so that when the time comes to kill us, it won’t be a confrontational process.

It is for that reason having family and friends there to support you through this becomes so important just like that Friday morning, the sound of a friend's voice brought me that measure of comfort I so desperately needed and although only allowed a few minutes, it brought an unexpected peace to my spirit.

After a long visit up front with my lawyer’s investigator Lea ~ another friendly face in the eye of the storm ~ by early afternoon I was on my way back to my death watch cell and learned that within hours of executing Oscar Bolin, Governor Scott had already signed yet another death warrant; this time on Mark Asay, who everyone that knows him calls “Catfish.”

Again, it makes me wonder whether they realize that they are methodically taking human lives. Florida’s execution process has become nothing less than that of a slaughterhouse, each step of the process intended to efficiently move the line along. No sooner than one person is killed, they move the line up and sign another warrant with the methodical efficiency of a slaughterhouse ~ and with 23 executions in a row, you wonder if those responsible for this process have forgotten they are taking human lives. When we as a society become so indifferent to that fact that we are killing people as if they are nothing more than meat delivered to market, and we do so in such an efficient process, then what does that say about the society we have become? Should taking any human life really be this easy? And shouldn’t we all be troubled by the apathy?

And now I’m next, moved up to the front of the line, with barely a month to go (as of this writing) and each day brings me one step closer to that scheduled date of February 11, 2016, when with that same measure of professional indifference, they will proceed with this machinery of death to end my own life. And like a head of livestock led to slaughter, I will be put to death.

This coming week my lawyers will file the appeal in the Florida Supreme Court seeking a stay of execution and DNA testing of evidence substantiating my claim of innocence. Additionally, we will file appeals challenging the summary denial of my innocence claim in the Federal Court. All I can do is wait and see if any court will even allow review. All these legal actions will be posted at www.southerninjustice.net for anyone who wants to read them. And in closing, I again thank all of you who have been there for me ~ you are my strength and I am truly blessed - Mike

Open letter to the Governor of Florida from friends and relatives of Mike Lambrix

Friends and relatives of Mike Lambrix, who is due to be executed in less than four weeks, rally in a unique plea to the Governor of Florida to ask to reconsider allowing a full
clemency hearing.

http://www.save-innocents.com/14-jan-2016-lambrix-press-release.html

 

 

Interview Jan Arriens, about his long time friend Michael Lambrix, on death watch Florida

Interview Jan Arriens, about his long time friend Michael Lambrix, on death watch Florida, awaiting execution on February 11. 


                                                              

The interview starts approximately 09.52 mins into the programme and lasts around half an hour. It contains also a phone conversation between Jan and Mike Lambrix

Listen to it here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06vfcfv#play

Urgent Appeal from Amnesty for Mike Lambrix

                                                           

New Urgent Appeal for Mike Lambrix from Amnesty READ HERE

Letter from Death Watch (part 4)

As I write this it’s been more than four weeks since Governor Scott signed my death warrant. It doesn’t seem like it’s been that long since I was moved down to the very bowels of Q wing, where death watch is. But it has and the coming weeks will pass just as quickly; if not even more so.

Yesterday I received word that a long time friend of mine passed away. His name was Robert Preston ~ we called him “Tree Top” as he was that tall. I first met him about 30 years ago not long after I was first condemned to death. He had already been here years longer than I. He was easy to live around ~ not everybody is in here. Truth be told, I’m sure I have my own moments too.

Through the years we played volleyball, basketball, and other games too. Like so many others, we grew old together in this micro-community that is death row. But as is the only too common case, a while back Tree Top took a turn for the worse. They said it was cancer. Over the past year we were a few cells from each other and his health went quickly. A few month back, towards the end of summer, they took him to Lake Butler (North Florida Reception Center) for chemo treatment and he was gone for a while. When they brought him back, his once tall and lanky frame was barely a bag of bones and he could no longer even walk. He asked to be allowed to go back to the death row unit as he knew he was going to die soon and he wanted to die amongst friends. 

As the warden at Union Correctional Institution escorted me from that housing unit around noon of November 30 to take me to death watch, Tree Top was one of the first to holler at me ~ they all knew I wasn’t coming back. Once your death warrant is signed, you never come back. That’s just how it is. Years ago the politicians, in their never ending push to expedite executions, passed a law that made “death warrants” indefinite. This means that once a warrant is signed you stay on death watch until they either kill you or the courts grant some form of judicial relief.

Since they passed that law, only two people have survived a death warrant. Robert Trease technically remains under death warrant now for about 10 years on what is known as “Phase III.” Both Phase I and Phase II are when the warrant is active, meaning you either have an actual execution date set or are under a “temporary” stay. But Phase III is an inactive warrant status when a court has granted an indefinite stay and you’re moved back to the regular death row housing area and received your regular privileges until the court lifts that indefinite stay of execution.

Paul Johnson also survived a death warrant as when he was scheduled for execution in 2010 the Florida Supreme Court threw out his death sentences (all three of them) due to prosecutorial misconduct. He had been on death row since 1981 and was resentenced to death again in 2011. So, Paul is actually the only person to actually be removed from death watch status after a warrant was signed under this indefinite death warrant law.

As I write this today, there are two of us scheduled for execution. Oscar Bolin is down here on death watch with me. He is scheduled for January 7, 2016 and as the protocol, today they moved him from Phase I, which is general death watch (while on Phase I, we keep our personal property, TV, fan, etc in our cell and it's very much like regular death row housing) to Phase II. Phase II kicks in when you’re down to the last 7 days. While on Phase II, they remove all your property from your cell and place an officer in front of your cell whose only job is to continuously monitor your every movement 24 hours a day to make sure you don’t attempt to cheat the state by committing suicide ~ and a few have tried. Hopefully Oscar will be granted a stay in the next few days. (Note: Sadly, Oscar Bolin was executed February 7, 2016)

All this has me thinking about my own mortality and even beyond. I like to say that I’m spiritually comfortable and have been for years. If I were to lay down and go to sleep tonight never again to wake, I think I’d be in a better place, if for no other reason but that I cannot imagine any form of hell worse than what I’ve already been through for the past 32 years.

Death doesn’t really scare me. My basic theo-philosophy is pretty simple ~ I am unequivocally convinced that what we call life is the mortal condemnation of an eternal soul. When it comes down to it, nobody gets out alive and as far as I can tell the only real purpose of life is to nurture that eternal consciousness by striving to become something better than this inherently imperfect being that we are. I am not who I was 32 years ago; no more than any of us are. I’d like to think that my spiritual consciousness has grown and evolved into something better than it once was. So, death doesn’t scare me.

Rather, it’s getting there that causes me pain and torment. I don’t know what might yet lie ahead in coming weeks, but I find myself struggling with the uncertainty of those few weeks. I spent a lot of time thinking about Tree Top and how he slowly suffered until he finally succumbed to cancer and how hard that prolonged certainty of death must have been. So many others through the years died of similar “natural causes” and their slow death was anything but easy.

And now here I am in relatively good health wondering whether in the following weeks they will put me to sleep like an unwanted dog. I find myself thinking that maybe that’s not such a bad way to go when I consider what the alternatives are, as my other option would be to have my death sentence reduced to life then slowly grow old until I eventually succumb to that prolonged agony of a “natural death” in prison.

You see, it’s really all about perspective ~ like everything else, it really comes down to how we choose to look at it. Tonight is New Year's Eve and I will go to sleep before that midnight hour. I have nothing to celebrate and yet I remain blessed. And despite this endless struggle to find meaning to all of this, that's what brings me peace. 

In the past few days I heard the voice of someone I love dearly and felt the pain that she felt. I had a visit with my daughter for the first time in years and watched as she smiled with uncompromised happiness as she told me about how my grandchildren spent their Christmas. And for the first time ever I was allowed to phone my youngest son on his birthday and as I was able to wish him Happy Birthday, I had a chance to talk to my other 3 grandchildren and they couldn’t see that tear in my eye as my youngest granddaughter Sophie spoke with such excitement at talking to her grandpa.

For all of this, I am incredibly blessed. Many people I don’t even know have sent me cards and letters wishing me well and letting me know that I am not alone. I am cast down into a hell few can begin to imagine and as that appointed hour of my own death draws near, I sit in this solitary cell alone and yet not alone. And I feel so incredibly blessed to have such wonderful people in my life ~ and I fear this process will cause them so much more pain than it will cause me. I wish I could hug each of them and let them know that no matter how it ends, it will be alright - Mike

Michael Lambrix #482053
Florida State Prison Q wing
7819 NW 228th street
Raiford Florida 32026-1100

Death Watch (Part III)

First of all, I want to thank everyone for the really nice holiday cards and all the positive thoughts as they really help me a lot and I'm truly blessed to know so many are with me - Mike

It’s still quite an adjustment to be in this cell. After so many years of living in close proximity to so many others, the absence of activity leaves me feeling even more isolated than what I’ve accepted to be “normal” for solitary confinement.

That’s an interesting term… “solitary confinement.” Just what do we mean when we say someone is in solitary confinement? There’s no doubt that each of us lives, and even slowly dies, in a small cell by ourselves. But each cell is on a larger wing with many other cells around. Although physically separated, we can still talk and in a limited way interact with others around us ~ if and when we choose to. And equally so, we can choose not to and retreat back into our own little world.

But it’s different down here on “death watch” where there are only 3 cells and at least for now just myself and Oscar Bolin, who is scheduled for execution in a week ~ hopefully he will receive a stay of execution before that. Unique to death watch, down here they post a guard in front of the cells all day and night so what little sense of privacy you have in a regular cell (where the guards generally are seen only when they make their 30 minute rounds, or when feeding us, or taking someone to visitation or the yard) is lost.

Funny thing about death watch is it’s micromanaged to the smallest detail and constantly under supervision of the bosses. Almost daily the duty warden will drop by unannounced and ask how we are doing and generally engage in small talk, which itself takes some getting use to as you just don’t see that on the regular wing. To be honest, I’ve never been treated better than I have since being placed on death watch. It’s a completely different attitude towards us and they actually go out of their way to treat us with respect and avoid negativity.

But here’s the thing, everything about this death watch experience leaves you in the constant and inescapable reality that they are counting down the days until they will kill you. Not even for a moment are you allowed to escape that reality. That presence of death hangs heavy over this environment and every little thing they do to make you comfortable (for lack of a better word) actually reminds you that you are in this solitary cell counting down your final days.

A few days ago as I came back from a visit, as I returned to the wing the death watch supervisor (a Lieutenant) measured me for my execution suit. It was done as if it was a casual event they routinely did and not unusual at all. And yet it was that effort to make it “normal” that itself pressed heavily on me and stuck in my mind for some time to come. I couldn’t help but think about what they might be thinking about ~ has measuring a man for his execution suit lost all significance to them and become what they consider “normal”?

It was the same thing a few days later (in fact, yesterday) when the Assistant Warden came down here and casually sat down in front of my cell and told me that he had to discuss what I wanted for my last meal and other final arrangements. As if we were talking about the weather or some other trivial event, he proceeded to go through a small stack of papers, each one addressing a specific subject relevant to what seems to be a presumption that I will die. And I found myself responding in the same manner.

For about 30 minutes the Assistant Warden and I went through that stack of forms he had as if doing nothing more than planning a fishing trip. First it was discussing in detail what I would want for my last meal and I went with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner (turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes with giblet gravy and all the trimmings, with pumpkin pie and Rocky Road ice cream for dessert) as for many years now mom and I have had an agreement that when I walk out of prison she would celebrate my freedom by cooking a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. And I figure that if I don’t make it, I can at least have that meal and that thought of sharing it with my parents and loved ones will be nice.

After we went through what I wanted for my last meal, we then discussed my funeral arrangements and what I wanted to be done with my body after they killed me and who I wanted to leave my property to. I had to think about that for a moment, although my parents and I have previously discussed this issue and they already have a burial plot where we will all be together, the expense of a funeral will be incredibly hard on my parents right at a time they must deal with my death. However, my options are limited and I had to give a response so I told him my mom would handle those final arrangements.

This is all part of the process of deliberately putting someone to death by state sanctioned execution. Often we hear people debate whether the particular means of execution is cruel and unusual and how the history of botched executions causes the person subjected to execution physical pain.

But nobody ever talks about the psychological torment of forcing the condemned prisoner to go through this pre-execution process.

The irony of this is that one of the most common legal justifications used to impose the death sentence is that the victim suffered the fear of imminent death, often defined by a mere moment of realizing they would die. But they never talk about the weeks and even months that they put the condemned prisoner through as they await their own death.

I think this process ~ this collective death watch experience is deliberately designed to slowly erode that instinctive nature to survive, so that by the time the prisoner actually reaches that final step into the execution chamber not only does the condemned know what to expect, he (or she) has become part of that process itself and will passively go along with the process.

My point is this ~ everything they do once we are placed on death watch is part of a process that each detail has been meticulously calculated to minimize any resistance from the condemned prisoner. What does that say about who we are as a society that we will put so much thought into how we will deliberately kill another person? If someone was convicted of murdering another under virtually identical circumstances, we would not hesitate to call that person a “cold-blooded killer.” But what do we call it when we, as a society, are doing that much and more?

However, even as I recognize what’s going on around me, I still find a sense of peace within myself and have not succumbed to depression and hopelessness. Most days when they bring mail around I receive not only the cards and letters from my close friends who each try so hard to support me through this, but several cards from complete strangers who take the time out of their own busy days to offer me words of encouragement, and each one touches me deeply.

Physically I spent Christmas alone in this solitary cell on death watch; the truth is it was one of my best Christmas’ ever as for the first time in so many years I am in touch with members of my family and both my son and daughter. And my only Christmas wish to locate my son Daniel came true ~ a true miracle. And shortly my younger son and daughter will also come to visit ~ it will be the first time we have all been together.

Yes, I am facing death. But even in that cold shadow of death I bask in the warmth of the love of family and friends. And for that reason, I am blessed.

Michael Lambrix #482053
Florida State Prison Q2301
7819 NW 228th street
Raiford  Florida 32026-1100

Letter from Mike from Death Watch (Part II)

Mike thanks everybody who has sent him cards, letters of support, prayers and wishes! He much appreciates, and is deeply touched by,  any way you have reached out to him and feels blessed that so many people care about him. Any messages and comments you may want to leave here will be sent to Mike too.

Mike asks  you to read the page his son Cary Michael Lambrix has created, his son is trying to raise the money needed to visit his dad for the last time..


I’m now on my second week of my death watch experience with about two months yet to go until my scheduled execution. With the process they apply in determining whose death warrant to sign they had to know by signing my death warrant on November 30th and scheduling my execution for 6:00 pm on February 11, 2016 that it would mean that I will be down here on death watch through the Christmas and New Year’s Holidays. Obviously, Governor Scott and his staff had to know that both State and Federal Courts will be out for the holidays. So, why would they sign a death warrant at this time?

You know it really doesn’t bother me personally as I wasn’t exactly expecting much of a Christmas anyways. If Governor Scott and his staff thought by putting me under an active death warrant over the holidays would somehow inflict that added measure of misery to a man they intend to kill, then they are wrong as it won’t really bother me. In some ways, I will actually have a better Christmas now.

But what does bother me is how this will affect my family and friends, all of whom did nothing to deserve this. Talk about a heart of stone and the Grinch that stole Christmas. I’ll bet Governor Scott gave absolutely no thought whatsoever to the pain he inflicted upon my parents and children and sisters and my dearest friends who give so much of themselves to support me. Nobody ever thinks about how all of this affects those closest to the condemned.

The last time I was on death watch in late 1988 it was so much easier as I had no one. ( Read about Mike's stay of execution in 1988) My family and I were estranged and I had no close friends. Even my three children were then too young to know what was going on. But in the years since then I’ve grown close to my mother and stepfather, who for many years now visit regularly. And my kids are now grown with kids of their own. And I’m truly blessed with my small group of close friends who so selflessly give so much of themselves to be there for me. Already this is causing them so much pain.

Now I find myself wishing that I were alone again as I don’t want them to have to go through all of this. Last week when my parents came to visit for the first time since my execution date was scheduled, I could see the pain in my mother’s eyes and how much this was taking out of her. My sisters came with them. I had not seen them in a few years and I could only watch helplessly as they struggled to fight back the tears and I just wanted to hug them through it. Once I went on death watch I was no longer allowed regular visits, but all visits are now non-contact (through glass). I tried to joke around and make them laugh, but I know they saw right through me… tears of a clown. I struggle with that conflict ~ I want so much to see them, but I don’t want them to be hurt by what is yet to come. Everybody keeps asking me how I’m doing but it’s how they’re doing that concerns me the most. 

When that visit ended I was escorted back to the death watch floor and before putting me back in my solitary cell they measured me for the execution suit. You gotta love the irony of that ~ for 32 years I had to wear whatever clothes they would provide, only too often baggy pants and bright orange shirts. But now that they intend to kill me they want to buy me a nice new suit that will be custom tailored to fit me. I guess it’s sort of like dressing a turkey up for the holiday feast… I got to look good when they lay me out on the gurney in front of the witnesses. It just wouldn’t be proper to kill a man while he is dressed in baggy pants and a bright orange shirt. When it comes down to it, it's all about the ritual, and perhaps that’s the most tragic commentary of all ~ they’ve carried out this ritual of death so many times that they’ve perfected every detail and nothing is left to chance.

I once read about how during the Holocaust, the Nazi's went to great pains to methodically record every detail of their process. The records were so meticulous that they even kept records of the records. And it’s the same on death watch here, as an officer is assigned to the cell front whose only job is to meticulously record in a green log book, marked with my own name, everything I do. Even as I write this he sits not more than ten feet away with that log book in his hands undoubtedly writing down that I am sitting at my small desk writing. It’s not personal ~ it’s merely his job. If he didn’t do it, someone else would have to.

The truth of the matter s that I’ve never been treated better by the prison staff than I am now. From the warden on down, there’s not even so much as a suggestion of malice in any of them. Given my previous experience on death watch years ago, I expected some to deliberately go out of their way to taunt us as they did back then, but this warden has no tolerance for such misconduct.

The cell I’m now in is huge and took sometime to get used to. I don’t know what the exact measurements are but I’d guess that it’s about eight foot by 12 foot, give or take a few inches. As long as I remain on “Phase II” my personal property stays in the cell with me, including my T.V. and MP3. My music continues to be my escape from all else around me and it’s a comfort to have.

A few night after I was moved down to death watch the light in my cell went out. Not long after that the toilet clogged up. I’m told that this particular cell had not been used in a while as the Governor usually only has one person under an active death warrant at a time. There’s only three cells down here and Oscar Bolin is in the first cell about 10 feet away. Both the light switch and the toilet were fixed the next morning.

When I read about how the Nazi’s killed the Jews at their own infamous death camps, I recall how they would place the condemned prisoners in long lines that led to long buildings and they would be told that it was a shower. Presumably they had no idea they were actually being led to their deaths in industrial sized gas chambers and spared that agony of imminent death until that final moment when once secured in the the large chambers instead of a shower they were gassed. I wonder how many moments passed between the realization of imminent death and death itself?

But here in America we are far too civilized and humane to keep a condemned man in a state of ignorant bliss until that final moment. Instead, when Governor Scott signed my warrant on the morning of Monday November 30, 2015 and the warden then read my warrant to me, instructing me to then initial the death warrant as an acknowledgement that I received it, I was told that in precisely 73 days on the evening of Thursday February 11, 2016 I would be led into the execution chamber and then strapped into a gurney facing a glass window. At least 20 witnesses will watch as they insert I.V. tubes in both of my arms and upon signal by the warden, they will then pump that lethal cocktail of drugs into my arms and stand around until they pronounce me dead. 

The Nazi’s went to great lengths to spare those condemned to death the knowledge that they would soon die. Their machine of death was as cold and calculating as any ever devised by the mind of man at his most evil. But here in America we don’t engage in any such pretense. Rather, we want those we condemn to death to know it’s coming and the process is meticulously structured in such as a way that not even for a moment  throughout the prolonged “death watch” process will the condemned escape the reality that the clock on the wall is counting down his last days, hours, and then minutes. The agony of imminent death will not be escaped . And we call that humane - Mike

Michael Lambrix #482053
Florida State Prison Q2301
7819 NW 228th street
Raiford  Florida 32026-1100

Message from Mike Lambrix to his friends - from Death Watch

Dear friends,

As all of you know, on Monday November 30 - only hours after the US supreme Court declined review of my new evidence actual innocence appeal, Florida governor Rick Scott signed my death warrant, scheduling my execution for February 11, 2016 at 6:00 PM.

I was immediatelt transferred to the "death watch" housing area on the bottom floor of Florida State Prison, joining Oscar Bolin who is scheduled for execution on January 7, 2016. We are the only two on death watch. All of you, please keep Oscar in thoughs and prayer that something will come through to stop his scheduled execution.

Let me begin by saying I'm alright, you'all should not worry about me. I've known this was coming and I'm both mentally and intellectually ready. By far, my greatest worry right now is how this will affect those closest to me and I truly wish that I could give each of you a big hug right now and hug you all right through all this :-) (big smile). Since all of you closest to me know me only too well, you already know that I work best under pressure and true to form, since they moved me to death watch on Monday, November 30 I've been burning up my ink pen :-) (another smile)

First, let me say that death watch isn't all that bad, as it's like a whole other world down here. I've spent the last 32 years in a 6 foot by 9 foot cage and now I'm in a huge 8 foot by 12 foot cell that's actually super clean. As long as I remain on phase 2 death watch, I'm allowed to keep all my property in my cell as long as it all fits in the one footlocker, so I had to spend 2 days going through my property and sort out all that accumulated through the years - I threw away 2 full boxes of paperwork and old letters and I can't really complain. Like most of us on the row we are allowed so very little and what we do get is hard to let go and we become basically "pack rats". In time it accumulates, so finally being forced to reduce all that's piled up is somewhat liberating. But equally so I will miss being able to re-read old letters from those closest to me. When those moments come, often late at night when I can't sleep, being able to re-read special letters was a form of comfort. They were hard to let go, and that's why so many piled up through the years.

To summarize the death watch procedure; I will no longer be allowed regualr contact visits and will instead only be allowed non-contact (behind glass) visits on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM - but only those on my approved visiting list will be allowed and I can have up to 12 hours each week over those 3 days. All visits must be scheduledat least 24 hours ahead through warden Palmer's office.

Although for obvious reasons I cannot discuss what legal actions will be pursued before they are actually filed I can tell you this - I am confident that my legal challenges will be succesful and am impressed by the unexpected way so many lawyers dropped everything else they were doing to quickly join my legal team as soon as they signed my death warrant. Hopefully, as legal actions are filed, we will be able to quickly post them on my website www.southerninjustice.net

But make no mistake about it, I am taking this seriously and there's absolutely no doubt in my mind that they would kill me despite my innocence. If I've learned anything over the past 32 years it is that few people out there have any clue as to just how corrupt our legal system really is and they will kill the innocent.

We really do have a lot going on and good reason to believe that I will win - and so it really comes down to that age-old saying: "Hope for the best and prepare for the worst". I am allowed regular mail and will welcome all mail..and send me some good jokes so I can have a laugh too! With thoughts and love - Mike

Michael Lambrix #482053
Florida State Prison Q2301
7819 NW 228th street
Raiford  Florida 32026-1100




Mike, Christmas 2014

                                         

December 16th, 2015
Founder of the oldest penpal organisation in Europe, "astounded" that Florida considers executing his friend of 25 years Mike Lambrix, without granting a clemency review
http://www.save-innocents.com/15-december-2015-jan-arriens-…

Clemency counsel for Mike Lambrix objects to the denial of clemency and requests a stay of execution to allow time for the full Executive Clemency Board to conduct a hearing.
http://www.save-innocents.com/press-release-michael-lambrix…

The Mosquito

It's that time of year and especially here in Northern Florida we know to expect the onslaught of those micro winged demons that seemingly only exist to eagerly feed off our flesh. More often than not, they will lay in wait until we drift off to sleep, and only then descend down from the dark shadows.

Although we are now allowed a simple small plastic fan to elevate the heat and humidity of the semitropical summers, it still remains too hot to sleep under a blanket or even a sheet. With few exception, we each fall into our fit full sleep wearing nothing more then a pair of boxer shorts - some even choose to wear nothing at all. It's the humidity that makes these long summer months unbearable, and that humidity begins to climb in May then reaches its climax by July and through
August, into September.

Even after 30 years I'm not used to it. Some say that humans are like cockroaches, as we possess the ability to adapt to our environment and survive. I've even said it myself more than once, and for the most past it's true. Looking back to the young man I once was when i first came to Florida death row in the early spring of 1984, I know that I've adapted to this environment and found a way to survive even as too many others around me were broken and died. I am a survivor, although I remain uncertain as to whether that is a blessing or a curse as I know only too well that my misery and suffering will relentlessly continue as long as I still draw any breath and my reprieve will only come after I've drawn my last breath.

Lately I have found myself thinking a lot about death - my death. I suppose that's understandable given the fact that late last year I went through what we call "pre-warrant clemency" which is when the governor assigns the condemned man a lawyer and then they go through that predictable pretense of contemplating whether the condemned man is worthy of mercy and compassion by grant of clemency from the governor, sparing his life.

But in 30 years not even one Florida prisoner has had his life spared by a grant of clemency. It's all a deliberate pretense. Once this morbid charade has been played out, then your name is added to that growing list of those the governor will sign a death warrant on, scheduling your imminent execution. My pre-warrant clemency was submitted in early December, 2014 (click here to read the clemency petition) and it has been undoubtedly denied just as all are without even so much as a meaningful opportunity to present the evidence to be properly considered.

Florida has significantly increased the number of executions carried out in recent years as the current pro-death governor (Rick Scott) is determined to kill more prisoners than any governor in Florida ever has. And once the next execution is carried out, he will have accomplished that goal. There is little doubt that he will then proceed to far surpass it, as governor Scott will be in office until January 2019.

But executions in Florida are on a temporary hold pending review by the Supreme Court on whether the initial lethal injection drug (Midazolam) is sufficient to render the intended victim unconscious before the following two drugs are administered. Legally, if the condemned prisoner is not unconscious before the following two drugs are administered, intended to inflict death, then the prisoner will undoubtedly experience pain and that form of execution would constitute "cruel and
unusual punishment", which is prohibited under long standing Federal law.

A decision on that pending case will be rendered no later than the end of June. The prevailing consensus among legal experts is that the Supreme Court will reject this claim by a marginal 5 to 4 vote, finding that, absent proof that prison officials consciously intended to inflict pain, the inadvertent infliction of physical pain through the alleged failure to render the intended victim unconscious is not sufficient to establish an Eight Amendment violation.

Quite simple, a "botched" execution, no matter how horrid and no matter how much pain the condemned prisoner may have suffered, is not enough - there must be a subjective intent to inflict pain before it arises to that level of becoming a constitutionally intolerable infliction of "cruel and unusual punishment".

Once that issue is decided, it is anticipated that Florida will then again to proceed to carry out its record number of state-sanctioned executions, and as early as July the governor will again proceed to sign a record number of death warrants and I have every reason to believe that my own name is towards the top of that list and that in the foreseeable future (before the end of the year) I will once again be transferred to the Florida State Prison (where executions are carried out) and placed on death watch with no more then 4-5 weeks to go before the state of Florida will proceed to put me to death despite substantial evidence of my innocence.

These are the thought I struggle to escape as I lay on my bunk trying to sleep. But arguably May is the worst month of all, as it takes some time to adjust to the change of seasons. Just a few weeks ago it was almost freezing and I had to hide under a heavy wool blanket to sleep. But now the nights are both warm and humid and for the first time in months I find myself lying there long into the night wearing nothing but my boxer short as that small electric fan sends a gentle breeze my way and still I could not compel myself to sleep.

Then I heard it, that unmistakable buzzing of a small mosquito as it flew close to my head. In the darkness I could not see it, but the minute it would deliberately dive-bomb down around my head, perhaps deriving some sense of pleasure from inflicting that knowledge upon me that it intended to feed off my flesh and resistance would be futile.

Again and again I tried to swat this malicious winged beast from the air, but missed each time. It certainly was a crafty little devil, obviously able to avoid my best efforts and even enjoying this game it played as if biting me and drawing my blood was merely only a reward for a game well played.

Forcing me to anticipate that inevitable infliction was the true intent and instinctively this mosquito knew that tormenting its intended victim would inflict far more then that final act as it is that awareness of imminent infliction that outweighs that final, even merciful, act itself.

As I continued to do my very best to put a stop to this act of insane depravity that only something as evil as a winged beast from the very bowels of hell could inflict, I couldn't help but realize that what this mosquito was doing to me was no different than what the state of Florida planned to do - it wasn't enough to merely put me to death, as part of their ritual was to first make me aware that they intended to kill me and that before I would die, they would demand that I first suffer immense pain.

And as I thought these thoughts, I heard that buzzing once again and in that instant, I killed that beast. At least that mosquito would torment me no more.

Will U.S. Supreme Court rule Florida’s death penalty unconstitutional?

By Martin Dyckman -

Mar 13, 2015

For 13 years, Florida’s death penalty process has been on thin ice at the U.S. Supreme Court. The Legislature has pretended not to notice even though the state Supreme Court sent an early warning.

Now, the ice is cracking.

On Monday, the high court agreed to consider whether Florida’s law conflicts with its 2002 opinion in Ring v. Arizona that the jury, not the judge, must determine the existence of aggravating factors to support a death penalty.

Florida law leaves that to the judge, along with the power to condemn a defendant even without a unanimous jury recommendation for death. Only Alabama has a law like that.

Although juries are told they must find aggravating factors in order to recommend death, there’s no provision for specifying the factors or even how they voted. The judge is left to infer what they found.

If the U.S. Supreme Court rules Florida’s peculiarities to be unconstitutional, many if not most of Florida’s 393 death row inmates might have their sentences–though not their convictions–overturned. The case is scheduled for argument during the court’s term beginning in October 2015.

The court could decide the case on narrower grounds. Convicted murderer Timothy Hurst, who slashed and stabbed a restaurant co-worker at Pensacola, is also challenging Florida’s refusal to have the jury rather than the judge determine whether he is mentally retarded and ineligible for the death penalty.

Then, too, it takes the votes of only four justices to accept an appeal. There might not be a fifth to do anything but uphold Hurst’s conviction and sentence.

For now, however, Florida legislators who favor the death penalty have a decision to make. Do they enact legislation to require unanimous jury votes and specific findings? That would moot the Hurst case with respect to future convictions, but it might lend strength to his claim. Or do they sit on their hands, pretending that the situation in Washington isn’t serious?

The moral aspect is a separate and compelling question. Nearly every other state has addressed it either by having no death penalty, by repealing it, or by requiring the jury to be unanimous before a life is taken, which is also federal law.

In 27 of the 31 death penalty states, according to a Florida Senate staff report, “the jury’s decision to impose life imprisonment is final and may not be disturbed by the trial judge under any circumstances.

If jurors don’t have to be unanimous, do they spend enough time and moral capital on debating life versus death? A 2006 American Bar Association report cautioned Florida that they don’t.

In Tallahassee, both the House and Senate have identical bills to conform to Florida’s procedure by requiring specific jury findings and a unanimous vote. SB 664 by state Sen. Thad Altman, R-Rockledge, is on the Criminal Justice Committee agenda but was passed by Tuesday for testimony on the prison scandals. It remains on the agenda for next week. House Bill 139, by state Reps. Javier Rodriguez, D-Miami, and Clovis Watson Jr., D-Gainesville, has yet to be scheduled by the first of three committees to which it is assigned. The legislators had filed the same bills last year to no effect.

“If you want the Supreme Court to invalidate the death penalty, just sit on your hands,” Rodriguez says.

Death row inmates have raised the Ring decision in scores of unsuccessful appeals to the Florida Supreme Court, which has never agreed that it applies here. Individual justices have repeatedly said that it does. When Hurst’s public defenders argued it last year, the court’s majority said in effect, “That’s our position and we’re sticking to it.”

But it was a rare split decision, 4-3, in which the minority agreed with Hurst.

“I continue to believe that, in light of Ring, Florida’s death penalty statute, as applied in circumstances like those presented in this case where there is no unanimous finding as to any of the aggravating circumstances, is unconstitutional,” wrote Justice Barbara Pariente in a dissent signed also by Justices James E. C. Perry and Jorge Labarga.

The Florida law spells out 16 aggravating circumstances, among them the defendant having a prior felony conviction or committing the murder in the course of a robbery. Some can be assumed automatically–for example, conviction of another crime is a matter of record–but most have to be supported by testimony for the judge to invoke them.

In Hurst’s sentencing order, as Pariente pointed out, there were only two aggravators: a murder that was “heinous, atrocious and cruel” and committed in the course of a robbery. But although testimony suggested that Hurst had robbed the restaurant, he wasn’t convicted on any such count, and there was no way to know whether the jurors believed the killing could also be characterized as “heinous, atrocious and cruel.”

Because the jury voted only 7-5 for death, “the slimmest margin permitted,” Pariente wrote, “it is actually possible that there was not even a majority of jurors who agreed that the same aggravator applied.”

The Florida law provides for automatic Supreme Court review of every capital conviction and death sentence. According to the clerk’s office, of 296 cases heard from 2000 through 2012, only 60–that’s a mere 20 percent–involved unanimous jury death recommendations. The court upheld 38 of them. In 32 cases, the jury votes were 7 to 5 and the court sustained only 17, barely half.

In refusing to apply Ring, the Florida Supreme Court noted in a 2005 case that the U.S. Supreme Court had upheld the state’s law against challenges of a similar nature. But those cases came before Ring, and the high court hasn’t spoken on Florida’s situation since.

In the 2005 case, Justice Raul Cantero’s majority opinion suggested that “in light of developments in other states and at the federal level, the Legislature should revisit the statute to require some unanimity in the jury’s recommendations…

“We ask the Legislature to revisit it to decide whether it wants Florida to remain the outlier state.”

That’s apparently what the Legislature did want. If Hurst wins in Washington, chaos in Florida could be their reward.

Martin Dyckman is a retired associate editor of the St. Petersburg Times. He lives in western N.C.