Senate Bill 0908

    Florida Senate - 1998                                   SB 908

    By Senator Gutman





    34-763-98

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the death sentence; amending

  3         s. 921.141, F.S.; providing conditions under

  4         which a sentence of death may not be

  5         overturned; providing an effective date.

  6

  7  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

  8

  9         Section 1.  Subsection (4) of section 921.141, Florida

10  Statutes, is amended to read:

11         921.141  Sentence of death or life imprisonment for

12  capital felonies; further proceedings to determine sentence.--

13         (4)  REVIEW OF JUDGMENT AND SENTENCE.--The judgment of

14  conviction and sentence of death shall be subject to automatic

15  review by the Supreme Court of Florida and disposition

16  rendered within 2 years after the filing of a notice of

17  appeal.  Such review by the Supreme Court shall have priority

18  over all other cases and shall be heard in accordance with

19  rules promulgated by the Supreme Court. An imposed death

20  sentence may not be overturned because a codefendant in the

21  same case accepted a plea offer from the state in exchange for

22  trial testimony or an offer to testify and was not sentenced

23  to death.

24         Section 2.  This act shall take effect October 1, 1998.

25

26            *****************************************

27                          SENATE SUMMARY

28    Provides that an imposed death sentence may not be
      overturned because a codefendant accepted a plea bargain
29    and was not sentenced to death.

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