Since 2017, a death sentence in Florida must be supported by the unanimous decision of 12 members of a jury. Just one who opposes and the sentence automatically implies life imprisonment.
This brings as a consequence that many cases that are particularly shocking to public opinion end up being criticized against the judge, when it is not necessarily his responsibility.
The last one was that of Nikolas Cruz, author of a massacre that shook society in February 2018 and that victimized 14 students and three teachers in a Florida school. The 17-year-old was sentenced last November to life in prison because 3 of 12 jurors opposed the maximum sentence.
Sentenced to life in prison for the largest school massacre in Florida
This has led the governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, to insist on ending this practice. “Okay, let him have a big majority,” DeSantis told the Florida Sheriffs Association. “But you can’t just say that a person votes no. Maybe 8 out of 12 or something like that,” he added.
“You are in a situation where you have 12 jurors and only one jury vetoes it, then you end up not getting a sentence,” he stressed.
Referring to the massacre perpetrated by the young Cruz, DeSantis was wrong: “And I think you had an 11 to 1 decision, where all 11 said that he should receive the death penalty. One said no. And we don’t know what happened. But I do believe that there are people who sit on these juries who never intend to administer capital punishment.”
Three jurors did not vote for the death penalty.
Judge Elizabeth Scherer imposed the sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for each of the 17 counts of murder to which he had pleaded guilty, with consecutive sentences.
In addition, he imposed a sentence of life in prison with a minimum of 20 years to serve on 14 of the 17 counts of attempted murder, and life without the possibility of parole for the remaining three counts of attempted murder. All charges must be executed consecutively, the judge ruled.
Inmates on death row in Florida can choose electrocution or lethal injection. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, 30 inmates have been exonerated while on death row, more than in any other state in the country.
