A Times Editorial

Death penalty critic

Gov. Jeb Bush's criticism of the death penalty doesn't make a difference to the system unless, of course, he decides to do something about it.

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 6, 2000

In a 14-page letter to the Florida Supreme Court remarkable for its sharp tone, Gov. Jeb Bush blames the court for the slow pace of executions. In truth, he should be looking closer to home.

Bush, through his lawyers, lashed out at the way the court handles capital cases, saying it contributes to the "unnecessary delay and legal gamesmanship" that surround death cases. The governor's finger-pointing came in response to a set of proposed rule changes offered by the court to expedite the way death penalty cases are handled. His summary rejection of the court's proposed amendments demonstrates he is more interested in marginalizing the court in the mind of the public than in constructively working to move capital cases along.

In the letter, Bush complains that victims' families now wait an average of 14 years for an execution to be carried out -- an 80 percent increase in delays since 1985. But what he doesn't say is that much of the delay is caused by the state's overzealous application of the death penalty, the state's obstructionist legal tactics and lapses in the under-resourced system the state has put in place.

In Florida, three of four death sentences are overturned on appeal. If the governor was serious about speeding up executions, he would call on the Legislature to narrow the category of death-eligible offenders only to those involved in incontrovertible cases. He would demand a change in the law to require a unanimous jury vote for every death sentence; he would call for an end to the jury override, and he would demand a cessation of death sentences imposed on juveniles and the mentally ill. By wiping those kinds of marginal death cases off court dockets, Bush would be freeing up substantial judicial resources, especially at the Florida Supreme Court. It would allow the remaining capital cases, such as Danny Rolling's, to move along much faster.

But Bush's letter to the court mentions none of those reforms. Instead, it complains about the level of due process afforded death-row prisoners and repeatedly defends the Death Penalty Reform Act of 2000, which was struck down by the court in April as unconstitutional. Bush's letter also doesn't acknowledge that excessive delays in the system are often caused by the state.

In an attempt to keep relevant documents from defense attorneys, the state frequently makes frivolous claims of public records exemptions. It challenges defense motions for evidentiary hearings, even when the law clearly calls for them. And these issues can take years to resolve.

Then, when the court tries to make constructive suggestions to expedite death cases, it is ignored. In April, for example, the court said prosecutors should pay for real-time court transcriptions that would speed up appeals substantially. The Legislature failed to make the appropriation.

Bush and the Legislature have set up the state's death penalty so they can continue to inveigh against delays in the system, while withholding the means of correcting it. Bush's letter is just another political salvo aimed at a court trying to do its job in the hostile territory of Tallahassee.

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