A man convicted of killing his girlfriend's son won't get any "special treatment," the judge tells him.
By TAMARA EL-KHOURY
Published August 30, 2005
CLEARWATER - In June, death row inmate Milo Rose asked the governor to sign his death warrant. Monday, he got rid of his lawyer.
In a handwritten request, Rose had asked Gov. Jeb Bush to sign his death warrant, hoping the request would bring new scrutiny to his case. Rose, 55, was convicted of the 1982 murder of his girlfriend's son, but he has maintained that he is innocent.
In a hearing Monday morning, Judge Susan Schaeffer granted Rose's request to represent himself. Rose said he wants to finish all proceedings at the state level.
"I think unfortunately, at this level, he does have a right to represent himself," Schaeffer said. "I don't like it because I don't think it's in Mr. Rose's best interest."
Schaeffer asked whether Rose understood what his request would mean.
"You don't get any special treatment from me if you choose to represent yourself," she told him. "You can't get a continuance or an extension simply because, "Gee, I'm representing myself, I need more time."'
She told him he does not need the legal skills or knowledge of a lawyer to represent himself but still has to follow the court's rules. She explained the disadvantages of not having a lawyer.
Schaeffer told Rose he could obtain another lawyer if he had specific grievances with his current one, Bjorn Brunvand.
But Rose didn't want another lawyer.
"I'm asserting my right to self-representation," he said.
Brunvand will continue to follow Rose's case if the state appeals Rose's request. Brunvand is also Rose's attorney at the federal level but said he expects Rose to assert his right to self-representation at that level as well.
"I think any time you choose to represent yourself it's a big mistake," Brunvand said. "Particularly in a case where the stakes are as serious as in this case."
Rose was convicted of killing Robert "Butch" Richardson, 30, on Oct. 18, 1982. Rose and Richardson, the son of Rose's girlfriend at the time, were leaving a Clearwater bar when Richardson fell down drunk, apparently unable to get up. Rose repeatedly slammed a 35-pound concrete block into Richardson's head in front of several witnesses.
In 1987, then-Gov. Bob Martinez signed Rose's death warrant, but Rose won a delay. His case has been in appeals since then.
Over the years, Rose has fired several lawyers and even asked Schaeffer to remove herself as the trial judge.
Monday, Schaeffer also considered Rose's request to stop DNA testing.
The testing, however, had already been completed. The results indicated that the blood stains on the T-shirt and jeans Rose wore the night of the murder were his own. The results also found unknown bloodstains on the jeans. Rose said he would not contest the results.
