Grover B. Reed v. State of Florida
Grover B. Reed v. State of Florida
Opinion of the Court
We have for review Grover B. Reed's appeal of the postconviction court's order denying Reed's motion filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.851.
FACTS AND BACKGROUND
Reed was sentenced to death following a jury's recommendation for death by a vote of eleven to one. Reed v. State ,
On January 12, 2017, Reed filed the successive postconviction motion at issue in this case seeking relief pursuant to the United States Supreme Court's decision in Hurst v. Florida , --- U.S. ----,
After receiving Judge McCallum's order denying his motion, Reed filed a motion to disqualify Judge McCallum.
Judge McCallum was employed by the Duval County State Attorney's Office from 1986 until her appointment as a county judge in 1994. During her tenure with the State Attorney's Office, Judge McCallum handled capital prosecutions and was part of the team of capital attorneys. In at least one case during that time, she represented the State at a *720capital trial and penalty phase that resulted in a death sentence. Thomas Moore, the defendant in that case, is currently still on death row.
Mr. Reed was tried and convicted in late 1986. A death sentence was imposed in January of 1987. Postconviction proceedings involving capital prosecutors from the State Attorney's Office were ongoing in the early 1990's. Throughout this time period Judge McCallum was employed by the State Attorney's Office, handling capital prosecutions, and working with the attorneys who prosecuted Mr. Reed and represented the State in collateral proceedings. As part of the capital team during her tenure with the State Attorney's Office, each capital prosecutor including Judge McCallum had input in the decision making in each other's cases .
... While Mr. Reed's [successive postconviction] motion sought specifically to vacate his death sentence, a finding that he was entitled to collateral relief would mean that in the capital cases that Judge McCallum prosecuted between 1986 and 1994 that resulted in the imposition of a death sentence, relief would likely have to also be granted. A ruling in Mr. Reed's case would impact the death sentences that Judge McCallum successfully sought and which have yet to be carried out. As a result, Judge McCallum's ruling on Mr. Reed's motion would impact the death sentences that she was successful in obtaining and which are still intact and have yet to be carried out.
(Emphasis added.)
On March 22, 2017, Judge McCallum denied Reed's motion to disqualify as legally insufficient. Acknowledging Reed's allegation that she "was an Assistant State Attorney working on capital cases at the time of his postconviction proceedings," Judge McCallum concluded that Reed's allegations were "speculative" and "cursory" and neither "allege[d] any specific instances of prejudice or bias of the Court" nor "an objectively reasonable fear that he will not receive a fair hearing."
Reed appealed to this Court. This Court stayed Reed's appeal pending the disposition of Hitchcock v. State ,
In the briefs filed in response to this Court's order, Reed argued that: (1) Judge McCallum erred in denying his motion to disqualify; (2) he is entitled to reevaluation of his prior postconviction claims in light of Hurst and its progeny; and (3) his death sentence violates the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution under the United States Supreme Court's decision in Johnson v. Mississippi ,
ANALYSIS
At the outset, the State argues that Reed's motion to disqualify was untimely. Because the postconviction court denied Reed's claim to Hurst relief without holding a Huff
On the merits, we review the postconviction court's denial of Reed's motion to disqualify de novo. See Barnhill v. State ,
Reed relies on Williams v. Pennsylvania , --- U.S. ----,
While Judge McCallum was not the assigned prosecutor on Reed's case, she was actively prosecuting capital cases during the time period when Reed's prosecution was ongoing. It was alleged that she was a part of the team of capital prosecutors and that, "as part of the capital team during her tenure with the State Attorney's Office, each capital prosecutor including Judge McCallum had input in the decision making in each other's cases." Considering the unique aspects of death penalty cases, including the very decision to seek the death penalty, we conclude that, in these narrow circumstances, Reed's motion was legally sufficient to require Judge McCallum to recuse herself from Reed's case. See
CONCLUSION
For the reasons explained above, we reverse the postconviction court's order denying Reed's motion to disqualify and remand for reassignment to another judge for evaluation of Reed's claims.
It is so ordered.
*722PARIENTE, QUINCE, POLSTON, LABARGA, and LAWSON, JJ., concur.
CANADY, C.J., specially concurs with an opinion.
LEWIS, J., concurs in result.
This Court has jurisdiction. See art. V, § 3(b)(1), Fla. Const. To the extent that Reed alternatively filed his motion pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.800(a), Reed's filings in this Court state that Reed is appealing the denial of his rule 3.851 motion and raise no argument pursuant to rule 3.800(a).
Reed's Initial Brief to this Court explains that Judge Mahon "was still presiding" over Reed's case when he filed the postconviction motion at issue in this case, and "[t]here was no notice of a judicial reassignment." Initial Br. of Appellant, at 2.
Huff v. State ,
To the extent Reed argues that the postconviction court erred by not holding a case management conference or Huff hearing, we deny this claim. See Marek v. State ,
Concurring Opinion
I concur with the majority's decision except that I would not rely on "the unique aspects of death penalty cases." Majority op. at 721.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Grover B. REED, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
- Cited By
- 3 cases
- Status
- Published