Florida Governor Ron DeSantis earlier this year signed into law a bill which expands the death penalty and allows the imposition of death based on as few as 8 of the 12 jurors. This takes away the requirement for all jurors to be in agreement with the decision to put a convicted criminal to death.
Tallahassee is known for its high crime rates and controversial political shenanigans, but this bill could affect how future cases may go.
DeSantis has said his motive for passing the bill was due to the Parkland High School shooting that took place in 2018. DeSantis believes the death penalty was the only punishment that would fit the crime.
“I’m going to ask the Florida Legislature to amend that statue so that one juror doesn’t have a veto power over appropriate punishment,” DeSantis said before lawmakers introduced the legislation during this year’s session.
Jury foreman Benjamin Thomas told CBS Miami that his reason for voting against life in prison was due to the gravity of the crime at Parkland High, which claimed 17 lives.
“It really came down to a specific juror who believed he was mentally ill,” Thomas said. “She didn’t believe that because he’s mentally ill he should get the death penalty.”
The Parkland shooting sparked a nationwide debate and had families of the victims of the school shooting angered by the jury’s decision to vote for life in prison.
The former law which prevented the shooter from receiving the death penalty was passed in April 2023.
Several issues were discussed in opposition to HB 555, such as the U.S. Supreme Court case Hurst v. Florida, which ruled that the state’s death penalty was unconstitutional because it gave too much power to judges instead of juries.
DeSantis was able to change that decision in 2020, which reversed the decision not allowing unanimous jury recommendations.
Many people believe that the passage of HB 555 was overdue and was needed to be the standard in the court of law.
Ryan Petty, a father who lost his daughter Alaina in the Parkland shooting, was glad to hear updates on the bill.
“I think if you can get a supermajority of jurors to agree on what the penalties should be, then I think we’re honoring our criminal justice system, and we’re respecting the families who have lost loved ones and we’re dealing with these criminals in the way that they should be dealt with,” Petty said.
Alabama and Florida are the only states that do not require a unanimous decision in death penalty cases.