Florida Senate - 2013                                   SJR 1740
       
       
       
       By Senator Negron
       
       
       
       
       32-01273A-13                                          20131740__
    1                       Senate Joint Resolution                     
    2         A joint resolution proposing an amendment to Section 2
    3         of Article V and the creation of a new section to
    4         Article XII of the State Constitution to prohibit a
    5         court from requiring or authorizing collateral or
    6         postconviction judicial review of a capital case
    7         except as provided for by general law and providing an
    8         effective date.
    9  
   10  Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   11  
   12         That the following amendment to Section 2 of Article V and
   13  the creation of a new section in Article XII of the State
   14  Constitution are agreed to and shall be submitted to the
   15  electors of this state for approval or rejection at the next
   16  general election or at an earlier special election specifically
   17  authorized by law for that purpose:
   18                              ARTICLE V                            
   19                              JUDICIARY                            
   20         SECTION 2. Administration; practice and procedure.—
   21         (a) The supreme court shall adopt rules for the practice
   22  and procedure in all courts including the time for seeking
   23  appellate review, the administrative supervision of all courts,
   24  the transfer to the court having jurisdiction of any proceeding
   25  when the jurisdiction of another court has been improvidently
   26  invoked, and a requirement that no cause shall be dismissed
   27  because an improper remedy has been sought. The supreme court
   28  shall adopt rules to allow the court and the district courts of
   29  appeal to submit questions relating to military law to the
   30  federal Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces for an advisory
   31  opinion. Rules of court may be repealed by general law enacted
   32  by two-thirds vote of the membership of each house of the
   33  legislature.
   34         (b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), postconviction or
   35  collateral review of capital cases resulting in a sentence of
   36  death shall be governed exclusively by, and to the extent
   37  provided by, general law.
   38         (c)(b) The chief justice of the supreme court shall be
   39  chosen by a majority of the members of the court; shall be the
   40  chief administrative officer of the judicial system; and shall
   41  have the power to assign justices or judges, including
   42  consenting retired justices or judges, to temporary duty in any
   43  court for which the judge is qualified and to delegate to a
   44  chief judge of a judicial circuit the power to assign judges for
   45  duty in that circuit.
   46         (d)(c) A chief judge for each district court of appeal
   47  shall be chosen by a majority of the judges thereof or, if there
   48  is no majority, by the chief justice. The chief judge shall be
   49  responsible for the administrative supervision of the court.
   50         (e)(d) A chief judge in each circuit shall be chosen from
   51  among the circuit judges as provided by supreme court rule. The
   52  chief judge shall be responsible for the administrative
   53  supervision of the circuit courts and county courts in his
   54  circuit.
   55                             ARTICLE XII                           
   56                              SCHEDULE                             
   57         SECTION 34.Postconviction or collateral review of capital
   58  cases resulting in a sentence of death.—The amendment to Section
   59  2 of Article V requiring postconviction or collateral review of
   60  capital cases resulting in a sentence of death to be governed
   61  exclusively by, and to the extent provided by, general law shall
   62  take effect July 1, 2015, and shall only apply to capital cases
   63  in which the conviction and sentence of death have been affirmed
   64  on direct appeal on or after July 1, 2015.
   65  
   66         BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be
   67  placed on the ballot:
   68                      CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT                     
   69                        ARTICLE V, SECTION 2                       
   70         POSTCONVICTION DEATH PENALTY PROCEEDINGS.—Proposing an
   71  amendment to the State Constitution requiring postconviction or
   72  collateral review of capital cases resulting in a death sentence
   73  to be governed exclusively by, and to the extent provided by,
   74  general law.
   75  
   76         Under the current constitution, only the Supreme Court can
   77  adopt rules relating to the practice and procedure in courts.
   78  This includes rules relating to the postconviction or collateral
   79  review of capital cases resulting in a death sentence. As such,
   80  the timeframes for filing motions in such cases are governed by
   81  Supreme Court rule.
   82  
   83         By this amendment, postconviction or collateral review of
   84  capital cases resulting in a death sentence will be governed
   85  exclusively by, and to the extent provided by, general law.
   86  
   87         A general law in Florida is enacted if passed by a majority
   88  of members voting in each of the two legislative chambers and
   89  then either signed by the Governor or, if vetoed by the
   90  Governor, passed by a two-thirds vote of the members voting in
   91  each of the two legislative chambers.
   92  
   93         The proposed amendment takes effect July 1, 2015, and
   94  applies to capital cases in which the conviction and sentence of
   95  death have been affirmed on direct appeal on or after July 1,
   96  2015.