Florida/Georgia Personal Injury & Workers Compensation

...However, this fact sheds little light on the Eighth Amendment issue we undertake to decide here. In Ford itself, the State of Florida had a pre-existing ban on executing the insane. See Ford, 477 U.S. at 403, 106 S. Ct. at 2598 (referring to Fla. Stat. § 922.07 (1985) (proceedings when person under sentence of death appears to be insane); see also Goode v. Wainwright, 448 So. 2d 999, 1001–02 (Fla. 1984) (holding that an “insane person cannot be executed,” but that Florida’s statutory procedure embodied in Fla. Stat. § 922.07 does not violate due process)....

...ould not be entitled to relief. INSANE TO BE EXECUTED Griffin asserts that he is insane to be executed. Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.811(a) provides that "[a] person under sentence of death shall not be executed while insane to be executed." Section 922.07(1), Florida Statutes (2002), also provides that the Governor shall stay the execution when he is informed that the person under a death sentence may be insane....

...On October 30, 1996, the Governor of Florida signed a warrant for Medina’s execution, to be carried out between December 2 and 9, 1996. The Secretary for the Department of Corrections scheduled the execution for 7:00 a.m. on Thursday, December 5,1996. On December 2, 1996, counsel for Medina invoked Florida Statutes § 922.07, representing that Medina might be incompetent to be executed....

...[8] We distinguish the claim Johnston makes here from a claim of insanity as a bar to execution. In order for insanity to bar execution, the defendant must lack the capacity to understand the nature of the death penalty and why it was imposed. See § 922.07(3), Fla....

...determinations as to his competency. First, he requests that a hearing be held to determine whether he is competent to be executed. He argues that this judicial determination should be made in addition to and aside from that determination made under section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1983), by the governor's commission of psychiatrists....

...We also stated in Johnston: We distinguish the claim Johnston makes here from a claim of insanity as a bar to execution. In order for insanity to bar execution, the defendant must lack the capacity to understand the nature of the death penalty and why it was imposed. See § 922.07(3), Fla....

...dgment. Ford v. Strickland, 696 F.2d 804 (11th Cir.1983). Certiorari was denied in Ford v. Strickland, ___ U.S. ___, 104 S.Ct. 201, 78 L.Ed.2d 176 (1983). Thereafter proceedings to determine petitioner's mental competency were instituted pursuant to section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1983)....

...84, requiring petitioner to be executed between noon on May 25, 1984, and noon on June 1, 1984. Petitioner is currently scheduled to be executed on May 31, 1984. In addition to the proceedings that were instituted on behalf of petitioner pursuant to section 922.07, petitioner's counsel also filed a motion in the trial court for a hearing to determine petitioner's competency and for a stay of execution during the pendency thereof....

...Petitioner's counsel has also filed a separate brief in this proceeding requesting this Court to remand for a hearing in the circuit court to determine whether petitioner is presently insane. Petitioner argues that a separate judicial determination of sanity must be made apart from the statutory procedure in section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1983), which directs the governor to make such a determination....

...This is so, petitioner contends, because Florida has an established common law right to a determination of a prisoner's competency to be executed. However, when the early Florida decisions held that an application to the trial court must be made for a determination of sanity, section 922.07 had not been enacted....

...1984). Thus, the statutory procedure is now the exclusive procedure for determining competency to be executed. In Goode v. Wainwright, 448 So.2d 999 (Fla. 1984), we addressed this issue, agreed "that an insane person cannot be executed," and held that section 922.07 sets forth "the procedure to be followed when a person under sentence of death appears to be insane. The execution of capital punishment is an executive function and the legislature was authorized to prescribe the procedure to be followed by the governor in the event someone claims to be insane." Thus, in Goode we held that under section 922.07 the governor can make the determination; Goode does not stand for the proposition that the issue of sanity to be executed can be raised independently in the state judicial system....

...Davis's claim that his Eighth Amendment rights will be violated because he may be incompetent at the time of execution is premature and without merit as Davis is not under active death warrant at this time. See Hunter v. State, 817 So.2d 786, 799 (Fla. 2002); § 922.07, Fla....

...The court will begin with the pre- Ford requirements and then trace Martin's attempts to have Florida conform with the mandates in Ford. In Ford v. Wainwright, 477 U.S. 399, 106 S.Ct. 2595, 91 L.Ed.2d 335 (1986), the Supreme Court struck down the procedures outlined in Fla.Stat.Ann. § 922.07 (West 1985)....

...claimed was being developed by the Florida Bar, could be enacted. See Martin v. Wainwright, 497 So.2d 872, 873 (Fla.1986) (footnote omitted). The Supreme Court then instructed Martin's counsel to initiate the sanity proceedings set out in Fla.Stat. § 922.07 and if necessary to follow the review procedure provided in Fla.R.Crim.P....

...After the Supreme Court of the United States denied Martin's petition for certiorari seeking a review of the Florida Supreme Court's promulgation of Rule 3.811, Governor Martinez signed Executive Order No. 87-118 on August 3, 1987. This order appointed a commission of three psychologists pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 922.07....

...The doctor's task was to examine the competency of Martin. The examination was scheduled for September 29, 1987. On September 24, 1987, Martin filed a petition for writ of quo warranto or for extraordinary relief in the nature of quo warranto in the Supreme Court of Florida. Martin sought a stay of the § 922.07 proceedings claiming that any use of § 922.07 was unconstitutional under Ford. In a summary order entered September 28, 1987, the Florida Supreme Court refused without opinion to stay Martin's § 922.07 examination. After this order was entered, Martin's counsel served notice upon the governor that he would not permit Martin to participate in the § 922.07 examination. He informed the governor that he believed Florida's procedure for determining competency to be executed still required deference to the governor's finding, and that was in violation of Ford. Nonetheless, the § 922.07 commission convened at Florida State Prison on September 29, 1987, as scheduled....

...Judge Osee Fagan of the Circuit Court of the Eighth Judicial Circuit, Bradford County, Florida, dismissed the petition on October 26, 1987. Judge Fagan found that he lacked jurisdiction under Rule 3.811, for the governor never made a competency determination as required by Fla.Stat. § 922.07. Martin appealed this finding to the Florida Supreme Court. On October 28, 1987, the Florida Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the mixed § 922.07/Rule 3.811 procedure....

...Dugger, 515 So.2d 185 (Fla.1987). The Florida Supreme Court also refused to find that Martin waived his claim of incompetency to be executed. The court noted that it was Martin's counsel's decision (not Martin's) to refuse to have Martin participate in the § 922.07 proceeding....

...Accordingly, the Florida Supreme Court entered a stay of Martin's execution until Martin's competency procedures were concluded. See Martin v. Dugger, 515 So.2d 185 (Fla.1987). On November 1, 1987, a new commission of psychiatrists evaluated Martin pursuant to the provisions of § 922.07. On that same day, the commission provided a five-sentence written report to the governor. This report concluded that Martin was competent to be executed under the criteria of § 922.07....

...file his motion. Fagan transcript at p. 4. He noted that "considerable material" accompanied the motion's filing. Judge Fagan stated that he reviewed all the matters that were submitted to him. Judge Fagan then noted that the procedures of Fla.Stat. § 922.07 had been followed....

...4. The meaning of insanity under the eighth amendment. The subject of this evidentiary hearing is Martin's competency to be executed. Because this is an independent review of this question in light of Ford, the standards established in Fla.Stat.Ann. § 922.07 are inapplicable....

...Justice O'Connor believed that the due process clause did not create a protected interest in avoiding the execution of a death sentence during incompetency. Id. (citing Solesbee v. Balkcom, 339 U.S. 9, 70 S.Ct. 457, 94 L.Ed. 604 (1950)). Justice O'Connor did find, however, that Florida law, largely espoused in Fla.Stat. § 922.07(3), did give the condemned prisoner a protected liberty interest, *1568 for this section mandated that the governor to stay the execution of an incompetent person....

...at § 921.141(5) (1977). See Proffitt v. Florida, 428 U.S. 242, 250 n. 8, 96 S.Ct. 2960, 2965 n. 8, 49 L.Ed.2d 913 (1976). The substance of these two subsections was not changed since Proffitt. See Fla.Stat. § 921.141(5) and (6) (1985). [5] Martin claims that Fla.Stat. § 922.07 and Fla....

...render it wholly invalid, for the Supreme Court has not recognized an overbreath doctrine outside the limited context of the First Amendment. Schall v. Martin, 467 U.S. 253, 268 n. 18, 104 S.Ct. 2403, 2412 n. 18, 81 L.Ed.2d 207 (1984). [6] Fla.Stat. § 922.07, as amended, provides (1) When the Governor is informed that a person under sentence of death may be insane, he shall stay execution of the sentence and appoint a commission of three psychiatrists to examine the convicted person....

...). (5) The Governor shall allow reasonable fees to psychiatrists appointed under the provisions of this section which shall be paid by the state. [7] Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.811 provides (a) Procedure for raising. When proceedings under section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1985), are initiated, and such proceedings result in a determination by the governor that the convicted person under death sentence has the mental capacity to understand the nature of the death penalty and why it is...

...at 1456 (citing La.Code Crim.P. art. 643 (1981)). [14] The record reflects that Judge Fagan's decision to have an evidentiary hearing was a sound one. The record reflects that a more than insignificant doubt existed as to whether Martin's mental state satisfied § 922.07's requirements....

...The mental state requirement here is not developed to perserve other constitutional rights. [23] As evidenced from the record, Florida did not apply properly the appreciation standard. Both Judge Fagan and the Florida Supreme Court claimed to have followed the standard espoused in Fla.Stat. § 922.07 (1987). This section defines competency as "does the defendant understand the nature and effect of the death penalty and why it is to be imposed upon him?" Id. While section 922.07's requirements are sufficient to satisfy the eighth amendment, the Florida courts applied section 922.07 in a constitutionally impermissible manner. Section 922.07's requirements are sufficient to satisfy the dictates of the eighth amendment....

...The judge disqualified himself and appointed another judge to consider Medina's motions. On December 2, 1996, Medina's counsel wrote a letter to the Governor asking for a stay of execution in light of a mental health expert's assessment that Medina was not competent to be executed. The letter invoked the provisions of section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1995), which sets forth an executive procedure for determining competence to be executed, and therefore the Governor stayed the execution pending a psychiatric determination of competence for execution. Pursuant to section 922.07, the Governor appointed a commission of three psychiatrists to determine whether Medina understood the nature and effect of the death penalty and why it is being imposed upon him....

...A brief background of the facts in this case is necessary to analyze this issue. Provenzano's execution was originally set for Wednesday, July 7, 1999. On Monday, July 5, 1999, Provenzano submitted filings with the Governor claiming that Provenzano was insane to be executed, pursuant to section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1997). Section 922.07 states: Proceedings when person under sentence of death appears to be insane.— (1) When the Governor is informed that a person under sentence of death may be insane, the Governor shall stay execution of the sentence and appoint a commission of three psychiatrists to examine the convicted person....

...As pointed out in the factual background above, Provenzano did not allege that he was insane to be executed until the week of his scheduled execution. Of course, rule 3.811 only comes into play after a defendant has made sufficient allegations of insanity to the Governor, pursuant to section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1997). In order to prevent the type of last-minute filing that we encountered in this case, we urge the Legislature to consider establishing a timetable as to when a claim must be filed under section 922.07 in those cases where there is knowledge that such a claim exists....

...In another thorough and well-reasoned order, Judge Johnson stated: A person under sentence of death shall not be executed while he or she is insane. See Ford v. Wainwright, 477 U.S. 399, 106 S.Ct. 2595, 91 L.Ed.2d 335 (1986); Fla. R.Crim. P. 3.811. See also Martin v. Dugger, 686 F.Supp. 1523 (M.D.Fla.1988); § 922.07, Fla. Stat. In Florida, a person is considered to be "insane to be executed" if he or she "lacks the mental capacity to understand the fact of the impending execution and the reason for it." Fla. R.Crim. P. 3.811(b). See also § 922.070, Fla....

...When counsel for a death-sentenced individual has reason to believe that his or her client may be insane for purposes of execution, counsel may initiate proceedings with the Governor of Florida so that the individual's competency to be executed can be determined. See § 922.07, Fla....

...Fleming, and the other affidavits filed in support of Provenzano's motion, the State relies primarily on the unanimous report of Wade C. Myers, III, M.D., Alan J. Waldman, M.D., and Leslie Parsons, D.O., the three experts appointed by Governor Bush pursuant to section 922.07, Florida Statutes, to examine Provenzano's competency to be executed....

...[4] We note that this is the first time that Provenzano has raised a competency to be executed claim. [5] In the present case, the record contains a letter from Dr. Fleming, dated June 18, 1999, wherein she concludes that Provenzano is incompetent to be executed. Yet Provenzano did not file his section 922.07 claim until July 5, 1999, more than two weeks after receiving Dr....

[5] Fla. 1950, 46 So.2d 17. [6] 33 U.S.C.A. § 922. [7] Texas Employers' Ins. Ass'n v. Sheppeard, D

...get [him] killed,” and made unspecified statements about his case and imminent execution that Hammer characterized as “contradictory,” “bizarre,” and “irreconcilably irrational.” On May 22, 2013, the Governor, as required by Fla. Stat. § 922.07 , appointed a commission of three psychiatrists to evaluate Gore’s mental competence to be executed and granted a temporary stay of execution pending receipt of the commission’s report....

...Wainwright, 704 F.2d 593 (11th Cir.1983); Wainwright v. Goode, --- U.S. ----, 104 S.Ct. 378 , 78 L.Ed.2d 187 (1983); Goode v. Wainwright, 725 F.2d 106 (11th Cir.1984). 2 In our 1984 opinion we affirmed the denial of the writ. Then, pursuant to Florida Statute 922.07, the governor of Florida entered an executive order appointing a commission of three psychiatrists to examine Goode....

...me Court of Florida, and that court entered its opinion and decision April 2. Goode raised two issues for the first time: (1) that he is presently insane and that it violates the Constitution to execute an insane person, and (2) that Florida Statute 922.07 denies him procedural due process....

...ve trial counsel. This court rejected both contentions. 704 F.2d at 596-99 . Petitioner asserts that his substantive due process/eighth amendment claim is a newly ripened claim that could not be presented until the governor had gone through the Sec. 922.07 procedures. This theory assumes that the issue of insanity vel non barring execution is dependent upon the governor's implementation of the statutory procedures of Sec. 922.07....

...1987), the governor reappointed a panel of three psychiatrists to examine Martin. After the examination, the psychiatrists determined that Martin understood the nature of the death penalty and why it is to be imposed on him. The governor then certified his competency to be executed. See § 922.07, Fla....

...Doctors Lloyd Miller, Charles Mutter, and Umesh Mhatre conducted the examination. The prison charts and other medical reports were examined. It is the opinion of the undersigned that Nollie Lee Martin understands the nature and effect of the death penalty, and why it is to be imposed upon him as required by Section 922.07....

...2595 , 91 L.Ed.2d 335 (1986), that the Eighth Amendment prohibits a State from carrying out a sentence of death upon a prisoner who is insane. In order for insanity to bar execution, the prisoner must lack the capacity to understand the nature of the death penalty and why it is being imposed. See § 922.07(3), Florida Statutes (2012); Johnston v....

...d in that federal court proceeding. Id. at 1299. On November 20, 1984, Alvord petitioned this Court for a writ of extraordinary relief and requested a judicial determination of his competency to be executed separate from the existing procedure under section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1983)....

...supreme court and, even if the sentencing judge relied on a factor unavailable under state law, the procedures followed by the state court did not produce an arbitrary or freakish sentence forbidden by the eighth amendment. The governor, pursuant to section 922.07(1), Florida Statutes (1983), caused Goode to be examined on February 15, 1984, by a commission of three psychiatrists....

...court could inquire into and adjudicate the question of the petitioner's sanity or insanity since the judgment of conviction. This was the only method by which an insane person could be protected from execution. After Hysler the legislature enacted section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1983) (originally chapter 19554, section 268, Laws of Florida (1939)), setting forth the procedure to be followed when a person under sentence of death appears to be insane....

...l be considered at the same time as any proposed permanent rule. It is so ordered. McDONALD, C.J., and ADKINS, BOYD, OVERTON, EHRLICH, SHAW and BARKETT, JJ., concur. 3.811. Competency to be executed. (a) Procedure for raising. When proceedings under section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1985), are initiated, and such proceedings result in a determination by the governor that the convicted person under death sentence has the mental capacity to understand the nature of the death penalty and why it is...

...petent at the time of execution. Philmore acknowledges that a claim of incompetency to be executed cannot be asserted until a death warrant has been issued because the claim is not ripe, and that a defendant must submit this claim in accordance with section 922.07, Florida Statutes (2005)....

...On September 5, 2012, the Governor of Florida signed a warrant for Ferguson’s execution and prison officials scheduled the execution for October 16, 2012. Ferguson requested a hearing on his competency to be executed, and, as required by Fla. Stat. § 922.07, the Governor temporarily stayed the execution and appointed a commission of three psychiatrists....

...Before the Supreme Court ever recognized a constitutional bar on executing the mentally incompetent, Florida had a statutory bar on putting to death an inmate who lacked the “mental capacity to understand the nature of the death penalty and the reasons why it was imposed upon him.” Fla. Stat. Ann. § 922.07(2) (1985)....

...cy rule. In re Emergency Amendment to Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure (Rule 3.811, Competency to be Executed), 497 So.2d 643 (Fla. 1986). If Martin's counsel wish to pursue this claim, we direct them to initiate the sanity proceedings set out in section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1985), [1] and, if necessary, then to follow the procedure provided in rule 3.811....

...To do otherwise would, in my opinion, violate the dictates of Ford v. Wainwright, ___ U.S. ___, 106 S.Ct. 2595, 91 L.Ed.2d 335 (1986). NOTES [1] Because Martin's execution is scheduled for Nov. 18, 1986, time would appear to be of the essence in proceeding under § 922.07. We note that the governor may extend the warrant period under § 922.07(2)....

...Although neither Rule 3.720 nor its predecessor statute, Section 921.09, Florida Statutes (1969), define "insanity" in the sentencing context, we find no error in the employment by the trial court of the standard for insanity sufficient to preclude execution of the death penalty by the Governor. Section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1969), set forth the procedures to be followed by the Governor when insanity was alleged as a defense to the execution of the death penalty. That statute, like Section 921.09, provided no legal standard for the determination of insanity. However, by Chapter 70-339, Section 134, Section 922.07 was amended to provide, as it does today, that "when the Governor is informed that a person under sentence of death may be insane," he must determine sanity by deciding, based on expert opinion, whether the convicted person "has the me...

...as imposed upon him." The comment to this amendment indicates that it was intended to "set up standards for determining sanity" and to give the Governor "legal standards and professional guidelines for making his decision." In the same term in which Section 922.07 was amended, Section 921.09 was *868 repealed and replaced by Rule 3.740....

...inmate may petition the Governor to determine if he or she is insane and therefore not competent to be executed, we find that Muhammad‟s inmate and medical records are relevant to such a potential claim and should have been produced.17 17. See § 922.07, Fla....

...Competency to be Executed Grossman's final argument in his third successive postconviction motion is that executing him would be cruel and unusual punishment because he may be incompetent at the time of execution. The *1045 trial court dismissed this claim on the ground that the claim was premature under both section 922.07, Florida Statutes (2009), and Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.811(c)....

...grounds of the prisoner's insanity to be executed, shall be entertained by any court until such time as the Governor of Florida shall have held appropriate proceedings for determining the issue pursuant to the appropriate Florida statutes." See also § 922.07, Fla. Stat. (2009) (outlining procedures for Governor to follow when he or she is informed that a person under sentence of death may be insane). We conclude that the trial court properly dismissed this claim because under rule 3.811(c) and section 922.07, Grossman must exhaust his administrative remedies before he can raise this issue in court....

...We adopted an emergency rule of criminal procedure pertaining to competency to be executed in response to Martin's petition. In re Emergency Amendment to Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure (Rule 3.811), 497 So.2d 643 (Fla. 1986). We directed Martin's counsel to follow the procedures set out in section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1985), and in rule 3.811, if necessary, and denied a stay of execution....

...Wainwright, 497 So.2d 872 (Fla. 1986), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 107 S.Ct. 1965, 95 L.Ed.2d 536 (1987). The governor then stayed the execution. On August 3, 1987 Governor Martinez signed an executive order appointing three psychiatrists to examine Martin pursuant to section 922.07 on September 29, 1987....

...After receiving the psychiatrists' letter outlining these facts and reporting their inability to conduct the requested examination, the governor signed Martin's third death warrant. Martin's counsel then filed a motion for determination of competency to be executed with the trial court. That motion argues that section 922.07 is inadequate to protect a mental incompetent's right not to be executed, thereby violating Ford v. Wainwright , The motion argues that rule 3.811's direction to first proceed under section 922.07 is improper and asks for the trial court to conduct a hearing de novo solely under rule 3.811. The state filed a motion to dismiss, arguing that our last opinion (497 So.2d at 873) directed Martin's counsel to follow the procedure set out in section 922.07 and rule 3.811, but that counsel thwarted the process by invoking the procedure and then refusing to allow Martin to be examined. The trial court agreed with the state and dismissed the motion, holding that by refusing to participate in the section 922.07 examination Martin had waived the operation of rule 3.811....

...We therefore find Hitchcock inapplicable to the instant case and deny the petition as having no merit. Turning back to the motion regarding competency to be executed, we reiterate that we directed Martin's counsel to follow the procedure set out in section 922.07, which is the trigger for activating rule 3.811. ("When proceedings under section 922.07 ......

...asis supplied.)) We realize that counsel disagrees with this procedure and would prefer one more in line with that postulated by Justice Marshall in Ford v. Wainwright . That part of Justice Marshall's opinion is not a majority opinion, however, and section 922.07 and rule 3.811 set out the procedure to be followed in this state....

...ons from the parties, including experts representing the prisoner." The rule, therefore, provides that a trial court should decide this issue without consideration of the governor's determination. We see no way that the combined procedure set out in section 922.07 and rule 3.811 gives undue deference to the executive....

...The last time Martin contended that he was incompetent to be executed, this Court adopted Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.811 as an emergency rule and specified that "[i]f Martin's counsel wish to pursue this claim, we direct them to initiate the sanity proceedings set out in section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1985), and, if necessary, then to follow the procedure provided in rule 3.811." Martin v....

...Martin sought to challenge the constitutionality of the Florida procedure at that time by filing a petition for certiorari, which was denied. Martin v. Dugger, ___ U.S. ___, 107 S.Ct. 1965, 95 L.Ed.2d 536 (1987). Thereafter, pursuant to the earlier request of Martin's lawyer invoking the provisions of section 922.07, the Governor appointed three psychiatrists to examine Martin. Martin's counsel then filed a petition for writ of quo warranto or for extraordinary relief in the nature of quo warranto seeking to stay the section 922.07 examination on the premise that rule 3.811 was unconstitutional because it required the trial court to give deference to the Governor's determination of competency to be executed. This Court denied Martin's petition on September 28, 1987. Upon advice of his lawyer, Martin then refused to participate in the section 922.07 examination, and as a result, the Governor was unable to make a determination of competency....

...Martin then purportedly invoked rule 3.811 by filing in the circuit court a motion for determination of his competence to be executed and for a stay of execution. The judge denied the motion, pointing out that by its own terms rule 3.811 is only effective after a section 922.07 finding is made. The judge ruled that by refusing to participate in the section 922.07 proceeding, Martin waived the operation of rule 3.811. I agree. Martin's lawyer now argues before this Court that he advised his client not to submit to the section 922.07 examination because he still believed rule 3.811 was unconstitutional on the ground previously asserted in his petition for quo warranto....

...As noted in the majority opinion, this position was unfounded. However, even if it could be said that the wording of the rule was sufficient to give Martin's counsel legitimate concern, the constitutional point could have been adequately preserved by permitting the section 922.07 examination to take place....

...be granted as a result of this legal maneuvering, which was its purpose in the first place. While I concur with the majority's interpretation of rule 3.811 and its rejection of the claim under Hitchcock v. Dugger , I dissent from the reordering of a section 922.07 examination....

...On September 5, 2012, Governor Rick Scott signed a death warrant for Ferguson and set the execution for Tuesday, October 16, 2012. On September 24, 2012, Ferguson submitted filings to the Governor, wherein he claimed that he is incompetent to be executed. As required by section 922.07, Florida Statutes (2012), the Governor temporarily stayed Ferguson’s execution on September 26, 2012, and appointed a commission of three psychiatrists to examine Ferguson....

...er finding Ferguson sane to be executed. “In order for insanity to bar execution, the defendant must lack the capacity to understand the nature of the death penalty and why it was imposed.” Johnston v. State, 27 So.3d 11 , 26 n. 8 (Fla.) (citing § 922.07(3), Fla....

...Henry’s counsel opted not to file any petition for collateral relief in the state circuit court. Instead, on May 7, Henry’s counsel formally asked the Governor to authorize a determination of Henry’s sanity, and thus his fitness for execution, as provided in § 922.07 of the Florida Statutes....

...8:07–cv–406–T–23TBM, 2011 WL 397939 (M.D. Fla. Feb. 4, 2011). Henry’s current application for leave to file a second or successive habeas petition does not concern his conviction and sentence for the murder of Eugene. 3 In relevant part, § 922.07 states: (1) When the Governor is informed that a person under sentence of death may be insane, the Governor shall stay execution of the sentence and appoint a commission of three psychiatrists to examine the convicted person....

...tal capacity to understand the nature of the death penalty and why it was imposed on him or her, the Governor shall have the convicted person committed to a Department of Corrections mental health treatment facility. Fla. Stat. § 922.07. 5  Case: 14-12623 Date Filed: 06/17/2014 Page: 6 of 46 show an IQ test score of 70 or below before presenting any additional evidence of his intellectual disability....

...ts of Mr. Henry’s case. Both the Florida Supreme Court and the Majority of this panel rely on a recent report that was prepared by a panel of experts selected by the Governor of Florida to asses Mr. Henry’s fitness to be executed pursuant to § 922.07 of the Florida Statutes. See Henry v. State, No. SC14-1053, slip. op. at 4–7 (Fla. June 12, 2014); Maj. Op. at 5, 8–9, 22. Section 922.07 provides 38  Case: 14-12623 Date Filed: 06/17/2014 Page: 39 of 46 procedures to be followed “[w]hen the Governor is informed that a person under sentence of death may be insane.” Fla. Stat. § 922.07(1)....

...This statute addresses a question quite different from that of intellectual disability. Compare Panetti v. Quarterman, 551 U.S. 930, 127 S. Ct. 2842 (2007), and Ford v. Wainwright, 477 U.S. 399, 106 S. Ct. 2595 (1986), with Hall, 134 S. Ct. 1986, and Atkins, 536 U.S. 304, 122 S. Ct. 2242. Florida Statute § 922.07(1) is designed to aid in the determination of whether the defendant is competent to be executed....

...promptly issued a briefing schedule setting a deadline of May 19, 2014 for the completion of all proceedings in the state trial court. Mr. Henry’s counsel opted not to file anything and instead requested the Governor to make a determination about Mr. Henry’s fitness under § 922.07 of the Florida Statutes....

...Henry at the Florida State Prison and then issued a report on May 16, 2014, in which they opined Mr. Henry was competent to be executed. On May 20, 2014, the Governor issued an executive order lifting the temporary stay of execution he had entered pursuant to § 922.07....

...Background On May 13, 2013, Governor Rick Scott signed a death warrant for Gore and set the execution for Monday, June 24, 2013. On May 18, 2013, Gore’s state counsel submitted a letter to the Governor, stating that there is reason to believe Gore is insane to be executed. Pursuant to section 922.07, Florida Statutes (2012), the Governor temporarily stayed Gore’s execution and appointed a commission of three psychiatrists to examine Gore....

statutorily required to conduct certain proceedings. See § 922.07, Fla. Stat. (2000). If the Governor determines

...The competency of the defendant at both the time of trial and the time of the offense was in issue in these proceedings as is reflected in the reported opinions. In 1979, during the pendency of Alvord's 3.850 proceeding, the Governor of Florida invoked the provisions of section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1979), and directed that Alvord be examined by three psychiatrists to determine whether he understood the nature and effect of the death penalty and why it was to be imposed upon him....

...Alvord, through his counsel, objected and refused to cooperate in this procedure. On November 16, 1984, five days before oral argument in this cause, counsel for Alvord advised the governor of his belief that his client is presently insane and requested the governor to examine Alvord pursuant to section 922.07....

...On November 20, 1984, the governor issued Executive Order No. 84-214, granting this request and directed that a panel of psychiatrists *318 examine Alvord on Monday, November 26, 1984. In this proceeding, Alvord argues that, separate and apart from the procedure outlined in section 922.07, he is entitled to a judicial determination of whether he is competent to be executed....

...Wainwright, 731 F.2d 1482 (11th Cir.1984); Ford v. Wainwright, 451 So.2d 471, 472 (Fla. 1984). In our decision in Goode, we relied upon Solesbee v. Balkcom, 339 U.S. 9, 70 S.Ct. 457, 94 L.Ed. 604 (1950), and specifically rejected the contention that the statutory process set forth in section 922.07 was unconstitutional because due process was not provided through a judicial determination of competency in an adversary proceeding....

...t, when Alvord was found competent to stand trial, the trial court had full knowledge of his previous adjudication of not guilty by reason of insanity and his subsequent commitment. The governor is proceeding to make a competency determination under section 922.07 and we find neither an abuse of his authority nor a denial of due process....

...However, this fact sheds little light on the Eighth Amendment issue we undertake to decide here. In Ford itself, the State of Florida had a pre-existing ban on executing the insane. See Ford, 477 U.S. at 403, 106 S. Ct. at 2598 (referring to Fla. Stat. § 922.07 (1985) (proceedings when person under sentence of death appears to be insane); see also Goode v. Wainwright, 448 So. 2d 999, 1001–02 (Fla. 1984) (holding that an “insane person cannot be executed,” but that Florida’s statutory procedure embodied in Fla. Stat. § 922.07 does not violate due process)....

...However, this fact sheds little light on the Eighth Amendment issue we undertake to decide here. In Ford itself, the State of Florida had a pre-existing ban on executing the insane. See Ford, 477 U.S. at 403, 106 S. Ct. at 2598 (referring to Fla. Stat. § 922.07 (1985) (proceedings when person under sentence of death appears to be insane); see also Goode v. Wainwright, 448 So. 2d 999, 1001–02 (Fla. 1984) (holding that an “insane person cannot be executed,” but that Florida’s statutory procedure embodied in Fla. Stat. § 922.07 does not violate due process)....

...da Supreme Court issued Rule 3.811 as an emergency rule meant to bring the Florida competency rules in line with Ford . The Florida Supreme Court denied the habeas petition, and directed Martin to initiate the sanity proceedings set out in Fla.Stat. § 922.07 if he wished to pursue the claim further. Martin v. Wainwright, 497 So.2d 872, 873 (Fla.1986). Under this statute, the Governor is obligated to appoint a panel of three psychiatrists to evaluate the petitioner’s competency to be executed. Believing the § 922.07 proceedings were unconstitutional under Ford, supra, Martin’s counsel advised the Governor that he would not allow Martin to participate in these proceedings....

...On October 15, 1987 the Governor signed another death warrant for Martin. The Florida Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Florida competency determination procedures, construing the new rules to allow for judicial consideration of the Governor’s ultimate determination. Accordingly, a new § 922.07 proceeding was initiated, and the panel of psychiatrists found Martin competent to be executed....

...re filing the petition now under consideration 1 . However, the state does not explain to us just what Ford should have filed and when. On October 20, 1983, Ford, through his attorneys, sought exhaustion of state remedies pursuant to Florida Statute § 922.07. This was after the mandate issued from this court on October 6, 1983. The Governor did not render a decision with respect to the § 922.07 proceeding until he signed the death warrant. If Ford had filed a petition for an evidentiary hearing with respect to insanity in the state courts, he would most probably have been met with a ruling that Ford’s sole relief was pursuant to Florida Statute § 922.07....

...The 2012 State Commission Competency Proceedings On September 5, 2012, the Governor of Florida signed a warrant for Ferguson’s execution and prison officials scheduled the execution for October 16, 2012. Ferguson requested a hearing on his competency to be executed, and, as required by Fla. Stat. § 922.07, the Governor temporarily stayed the execution and appointed a commission of three psychiatrists....

...a constitutional bar on executing the mentally incompetent, Florida had a statutory bar on putting to death an inmate who lacked the “mental capacity to understand the nature of the death penalty and the reasons why it was imposed upon him.” Fla. Stat. Ann. § 922.07(2) (1985)....

ADKINS, Justice. Aubrey Dennis Adams seeks a stay of execution on the grounds that he is incompetent to be executed. A panel of three psychiatrists has been appointed by the governor under the authority of section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1985)....

...V, § 3(b)(1), Fla. Const. Petitioner challenges the statutory procedure authorizing a non-adversarial executive determination of competency to be executed as violative of due process. We have considered and rejected such attacks on the validity of 922.07....

...was denied. See Medina v. Singletary, ___ U.S. ___, 116 S.Ct. 2505, 135 L.Ed.2d 195 (1996). The Governor of Florida signed a death warrant on October 30, 1996, scheduling Petitioner's execution for December 5, 1996. On December 2, 1996, pursuant to section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1995), Petitioner wrote a letter to the Governor asking for a stay of execution on the basis of a mental health expert's assessment that Petitioner was not competent to be executed....

...SC2023-0732, 2023 WL 3813490 (Fla. June 5, 2023), for a detailed factual and procedural account of this case. counsel then submitted a letter to the Governor stating that there are reasonable grounds to believe Owen is insane to be executed. Following section 922.07, Florida Statutes (2022), the Governor appointed a commission of three psychiatrists to examine Owen and temporarily stayed Owen’s execution....

...03-81152-CIV, 2007 WL 9719051, at *1-2 (S.D. Fla. Sept. 6, 2007), aff'd sub nom. Owen v. Sec’y, Dep’t of Corr., 568 F.3d 894 (11th Cir. 2009). 11. Owen’s counsel has since submitted a letter to the Governor stating that Owen appears to be insane. Following section 922.07, Florida Statutes (2022), the Governor appointed a commission of three psychiatrists to examine Owen and temporarily stayed execution of the sentence pending receipt of the commission’s report....

...Owen is ‘unable to provide legal counsel with any significant assistance at the present time.’ ” Initial Brief of the Appellant at 55-56 (quoting Dr. Eisenstein’s report). - 18 - relevant only to his invocation of section 922.07(1), Florida Statutes, 20 and his appeal of the circuit court’s denial of his Motion for a Determination of Competency under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.851(g), respectively. The circuit court correctly determined that Owen’s brain damage claim is untimely....

...2  Case: 13-12834 Date Filed: 06/27/2013 Page: 3 of 13 that Hammer characterized as “contradictory,” “bizarre,” and “irreconcilably irrational.” On May 22, 2013, the Governor, as required by Fla. Stat. § 922.07, appointed a commission of three psychiatrists to evaluate Gore’s mental competence to be executed and granted a temporary stay of execution pending receipt of the commission’s report....

...Ruthell Henry with an execution date of June 18, 2014. At a hearing in the circuit court, defense counsel, with Henry’s approval, waived judicial postconviction proceedings and announced the intent to pursue a determination of Henry’s competency under section 922.07, Florida Statutes (2013). Under this statute, the Governor appoints three experts to examine the defendant to determine “whether [the convicted person] understands the nature and effect of the death penalty and why it is to be imposed upon him or her.” § 922.07(1), Fla....

...one doctor over all the years of litigation has ever opined that Henry was mentally retarded or intellectually disabled. Moreover, three doctors recently evaluated -5- Henry to determine his competency under section 922.07 and concluded as follows: Mr....

...That determination resulted in the district court’s dismissal of Ford’s petition on March 22, 1984. Ford’s merits appeal and all collateral attacks to that point had been concluded with results unfavorable to him. Before resolution of his first federal habeas procedure Ford invoked the procedures of Fla.Stat. § 922.07 (1983)....

...Either by statute or case law, states that authorize the death penalty uniformly prohibit the execution of presently insane persons. The origin of the rule is in the common law. Its initial justification is obscure. 3 Florida’s prohibition is incorporated in Fla.Stat. § 922.07 (1983), which prescribes both the test of insanity and the procedure for determining the sanity of a person under a death sentence. The test is whether the prisoner has the mental capacity to understand the nature of the death penalty and the reason it is to be imposed on him. Fla.Stat. § 922.07(2) (1983)....

...Wainwright, 704 F.2d 593 (11th Cir.1983); Wainwright v. Goode, - U.S. -, 104 S.Ct. 378 , 78 L.Ed.2d 187 (1983); Goode v. Wainwright, 725 F.2d 106 (11th Cir.1984). In our 1984 opinion we affirmed the denial of the writ. Then, pursuant to Florida Statute 922.07, the governor of Florida entered an executive order appointing a commission of three psychiatrists to examine Goode....

...me Court of Florida, and that court entered its opinion and decision April 2. Goode raised two issues for the first time: (1) that he is presently insane and that it violates the Constitution to execute an insane person, and (2) that Florida Statute 922.07 denies him procedural due process....

...o waive trial counsel. This court rejected both contentions. 704 F.2d at 596-99 . Petitioner asserts that his substantive due process/eighth amendment claim is a newly ripened claim that could not be presented until the governor had gone through the § 922.07 procedures. This theory assumes that the issue of insanity vel non barring execution is dependent upon the governor’s implementation of the statutory procedures of § 922.07....

...d two more successive postconviction motions in 2025. The circuit court denied each of those motions, prompting two appeals. While these appeals were pending, Hutchinson sent a letter to the Governor asking that he be declared “insane” under section 922.07, Florida Statutes (2024). As required by that statute, see § 922.07(1), the Governor stayed the execution and appointed a three-person commission to evaluate Hutchinson’s sanity—that is, whether he “understands the nature and effect of the death penalty and why it is to be imposed upon him.” Id....

...Weekly at S60; Barwick, 361 So. 3d at 789. To this end, the dissent notes that we did not receive notification from anyone—including Hutchinson’s attorneys and the Office of the Attorney General—that Hutchinson had asked Governor DeSantis to find him insane under section 922.07, Florida Statutes (2024) (giving the Governor authority to declare a death- row inmate “insane” for purposes of execution). Nor were we told about the mandatory stay until its dissolution (which happened after the Governor denied relief). See § 922.07(1)....

...Weekly at S60; Barwick, 361 So. 3d at 789. To this end, the dissent notes that we did not receive notification from anyone—including Hutchinson’s attorneys and the Office of the Attorney General—that Hutchinson had asked Governor DeSantis to find him insane under section 922.07, Florida Statutes (2024) (giving the Governor authority to declare a death- row inmate “insane” for purposes of execution). Nor were we told about the mandatory stay until its dissolution (which happened after the Governor denied relief). See § 922.07(1)....

ordered a competency evaluation pursuant to section 922.07, Florida Statutes (1983). Alvord then filed