Lebron v. State

135 So.3d 1040

Jermaine LEBRON, Appellant,

v.STATE of Florida, Appellee.

No. SC12–677.

Supreme Court of Florida.

Jan. 30, 2014.

Rehearing Denied April 9, 2014.

J. Edwin Mills, Orlando, FL, for Appellant.

Pamela Jo Bondi, Attorney General, Tallahassee, FL; Kenneth S. Nunnelley, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Daytona Beach, FL, for Appellee.

PER CURIAM.

Jermaine Lebron seeks review of an order of the circuit court that denied his motion to vacate a judgment of conviction of first-degree murder and a sentence of death under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.851. We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 3(b)(1), Fla. Const.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

A jury convicted Jermaine Lebron of the 1995 first-degree murder and robbery with a firearm of Larry Neal Oliver. See Lebron v. State, 799 So.2d 997, 1004 (Fla.2001)( Lebron I ). In affirming Lebron's convictions, this Court detailed the facts surrounding the murder:

According to eyewitnesses, [Oliver, who worked with one of Lebron's acquaintances, Danny Summers,] had been lured to a house in Osceola County (the “Gardenia house”) where Lebron and several others were staying after Lebron offered to sell [Oliver] some “spinners” for his truck. Shortly after [Oliver] arrived at the home, Lebron called to him to come toward the back bedrooms. As [Oliver] entered the hallway leading to the bedrooms, he was forced to lie face down, and was shot at short range in the back of the head.... Money, checks, and a credit card were taken from [Oliver], and stereo equipment was stripped from his truck. Lebron directed others present at the time to burn [Oliver's] identification papers, to dispose of [his] body, and to clean up the area where [he] had been shot.

Over the next several days, Lebron and some of the others used [Oliver's] credit card, pawned his stereo equipment, and cashed his checks. An attempt was also made to burn [Oliver's] truck.... Shortly thereafter, Lebron left for New York City, the place where “Legz Diamond,” a topless juice bar owned by his mother, was located.

[Oliver's] body was later discovered in a rural area near the Walt Disney World property. Although the body was covered with a blanket and some shrubs, it was still visible from the road.

The medical examiner, Dr. Julia Martin, performed the autopsy on Oliver's body after it was discovered. She testified that ... [t]here were no bruises to the hands consistent with defensive wounds. The cause of death, which was instantaneous, was from a shotgun wound to the head.

After Lebron left for New York, the others having knowledge of the event reported the murder to law enforcement officers.... All of the witnesses other than the Tocci brothers gave statements which were consistent throughout, and also consistent with what the police were able to verify with evidence and other statements (such as where the body was hidden; where the truck was burned; how the checks were cashed; and where Oliver's property was pawned).

At about the same time, a crime-scene investigation was being conducted by the Osceola County Sheriff's Department. Investigators observed several drops of what appeared to be dried blood in a big area at the southeast bedroom door of the home where the event allegedly occurred. They also discovered what appeared to be blood that had some foreign substance on it. The area was at least twelve to fourteen inches in diameter. A very strong stench of dried blood was detected immediately upon entering the residence.

Plastic balls were found inside the southeast bedroom, along with sponges and pellets. A spent Winchester twelve-gauge pheasant shotgun shell was found in a drawer in another bedroom. In a third bedroom, the police found four shotgun shells and the decedent's ring in a pair of sneakers.

Shortly after these eyewitness reports were made to law enforcement, Lebron, accompanied at the time by Stacie Kirk and Howard Kendall (who was involved in burning Oliver's truck), was apprehended in a car parked on the street outside of Legz Diamond, and arrested. Incident to the arrest, a search of the vehicle was conducted, and a day planner was recovered from the center console underneath the dashboard between the passenger seat and the driver's seat. Upon opening the planner, an identifying card with the name “Larry N. Oliver” was found. Detective Rodriguez retrieved the planner and secured it for safekeeping. He also found four shotgun shells in the center console.

Id. at 1001–02.

Lebron's first trial resulted in a mistrial due to a jury deadlock. Id. at 1001. During the guilt phase of the second trial, the jury found the following on special verdict forms: (1) Lebron was guilty of first-degree felony murder; (2) Oliver was killed by someone other than Lebron; (3) Lebron did not possess a firearm during the commission of the felony murder; (4) Lebron was guilty of robbery with a firearm; and (5) Lebron possessed a firearm during the commission of the robbery. Id. at 1004. During the penalty phase for this proceeding, the jury recommended the death penalty by a vote of seven to five and the trial court sentenced Lebron to death. Id. at 1006–08. In 2001, this Court affirmed Lebron's convictions but vacated the death sentence and remanded for a new penalty phase because the trial court erred when it: (1) found the felony probation aggravating factor, in violation of the ex post facto doctrine; and (2) rejected the minor participant mitigating factor based on an improper finding that Lebron shot Oliver, which was contrary to the special finding of the jury that someone other than Lebron shot Oliver. Id. at 1020–22.¹

After a second penalty phase, a jury again recommended the death penalty by a vote of seven to five. Lebron v. State, 894 So.2d 849, 852 (Fla.2005)( Lebron II ). The trial court again sentenced Lebron to death. Id. In 2005, this Court vacated that death sentence and remanded for a third penalty phase because we concluded that the probative value of the evidence presented to establish the prior violent felony aggravating factor was far outweighed by its prejudicial effect. Id. at 853–56.

After a third penalty phase ended in a mistrial, a fourth penalty phase was held on August 16, 2005. Lebron v. State, 982 So.2d 649, 656 (Fla.2008)( Lebron III ). During that proceeding, the State presented the testimony of Detective Andrew Lang, who provided a summary of the facts surrounding Oliver's murder. Id. The State also presented victim impact evidence from Oliver's mother and exhibits which included: (1) proof of Lebron's prior violent felony convictions; (2) pictures of the deceased Oliver and the hallway at the crime scene; and (3) evaluations of mental health professionals who analyzed Lebron. Id. at 656.

The defense presented only Jocelyn Ortiz, Lebron's mother, who testified with regard to her relationship with Lebron and his troubled childhood. Id. The defense also introduced exhibits which included: (1) the charges and convictions of the other individuals involved in the Oliver murder; (2) reports with regard to Lebron's prior arrest in New York for attempted robbery (which disclosed that he was seventeen at the time, and that a codefendant possessed a gun during the crime); and (3) reports addressing Lebron's attendance and performance at various schools and group homes during his teenage years. Id.

Again, the jury returned a recommendation of death by a vote of seven to five. Id. The jury found that three aggravating factors had been established, for which the trial court required the jurors to record a numerical vote for each: (1) Lebron had been convicted of a prior violent felony (twelve to zero); (2) the murder of Oliver was committed while Lebron was engaged in a robbery (twelve to zero); and (3) the murder of Oliver was committed for financial gain (nine to three). Id. at 656 n. 4. The jury also found the following with regard to mitigation: (1) Lebron was not merely an accomplice whose participation was relatively minor (twelve to zero); (2) Lebron's age was not a mitigating factor (twelve to zero); (3) no aspect of Lebron's character, record, or background was a mitigating factor (nine to three); and (4) no other circumstance of the murder was a mitigating factor (twelve to zero). Id. at 656 n. 5.

On October 20, 2005, the trial court conducted a Spencer² hearing. Id. at 657. During that hearing, the trial court considered the testimony of State witness Howard Kendall, who testified regarding Lebron's involvement in a separate and unrelated criminal trial that involved victim Roger Nasser.³ The defense presented various school records and asserted that the aggravating factors should receive limited weight because: (1) this Court does not typically give great weight to either the during the course of a robbery or the pecuniary gain aggravator, and here, the robbery also benefited other individuals involved in its commission; (2) when Lebron committed the attempted robbery in New York, he was a juvenile and an accessory as evidenced by his probation sentence, and the main culprit used a gun that contained blanks; (3) Lebron was provoked by Brandi Gribben's threats, which mitigates the aggravated assault that he committed against her; ⁴ and (4) Lebron did not possess a firearm when he robbed and kidnapped Nasser. Id. Conversely, the State presented a summary of psychological reports and asserted that Lebron unjustifiably murdered Oliver. Id.

On December 27, 2005, the trial court for the third time sentenced Lebron to death. Id. The court found that the State had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that: (1) Lebron was previously convicted of a violent felony; and (2) the capital felony was committed while Lebron was engaged in or an accomplice in the commission of a robbery (the court merged this aggravating factor with the financial gain aggravating factor). Id. The trial court did not assign these aggravating factors a particular weight, but rather found them to be...