海角大神

The Florida Supreme Court will decide Tuesday whether 389 inmates awaiting execution are to remain on death row.聽

The US Supreme Court ruled on the case Hurst v. Florida on Jan. 12, striking down Florida鈥檚 death penalty system as unconstitutional in an 8 to 1 vote. While the Constitution mandates jury-appointed sentences for the accused, Florida state law authorized judges to issue the death penalty, even if the jury recommends otherwise.

Under Florida鈥檚 past system, a jury decides if the defendant is guilty of a capital crime and then issues an advisory sentence. The trial judge then gives 鈥済reat weight鈥� to the jury鈥檚 recommendation, but ultimately the judge makes the final call on capital punishment. Also particular to Florida, unanimity is not required: the jury can recommend a death sentence by a majority vote.

But after reviewing the sentencing timeline of Timothy Hurst, convicted of murdering an assistant manager at Popeye鈥檚 Fried Chicken in 1998, the highest court ruled against the practice of vesting the ultimate decision in Florida鈥檚 judges.聽

鈥淲e hold this sentencing scheme unconstitutional,鈥� Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in the majority opinion last month. 鈥淭he Sixth Amendment requires a jury, not a judge, to find each fact necessary to impose a sentence of death.鈥澛�

Capital punishment opponents see this ruling as a victory.聽

鈥淛uries across the country have become increasingly reluctant to vote in favor of death,鈥� Cassandra Stubbs, director of the American Civil Liberties Union鈥檚 Capital Punishment Project, said in a statement.聽

But as effects from the Hurst ruling continue to reverberate, opponents will likely see even more victories.聽

Florida鈥檚 highest court will decide Tuesday if the ruling applies retroactively, affecting the state鈥檚 current 389 death row inmates.听听

Dozens of conviction appeals have already been filed, and it鈥檚 possible the Hurst ruling could reduce the death sentences聽to life in prison. Capital punishment opponents are hopeful, knowing that the Florida鈥檚 Supreme Court will have to respond to that deemed the death penalty unconstitutional as it was practiced at the time.

鈥淔lorida鈥檚 response was to vacate every single death sentence, no matter when it had been entered, and ,鈥� Martin McClain, a defense lawyer for one inmate appealing his conviction after Hurst, told NPR. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what you do when your statute for imposing a death sentence has been rendered unconstitutional.鈥澛犅�

And Florida was one of three states with the judge jurisdiction provision: Alabama and Delaware still authorize advisory sentences by juries and final decisions by judges in capital punishment cases.聽

While neither state has seen immediate repercussions, experts say Hurst-induced change is likely coming.聽

鈥淚t鈥檚 my opinion that it of Delaware鈥檚 death penalty scheme,鈥� Brendan O鈥橬eill, Delaware鈥檚 chief defender, told Delaware Online.聽

And Evan Mandery, a death penalty scholar, has said it is the Hurst ruling unscathed.聽

For death penalty opponents, Florida鈥檚 majority jury provision is likely next on the to-do list. State Senator Thad Altman (R) has tried for years to require unanimous jury sentences because he feels unanimity depends on a level of deliberation warranted by death penalty cases.聽

鈥淭he Legislature here is ,鈥� Sen. Altman told The New York Times. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 want to be perceived as being soft on crime in any way and make it more difficult to sentence someone to death.鈥澛�

The statistics back up Sen. Altman鈥檚 claims.聽

Florida has conducted , putting the state in fourth place behind Texas, Oklahoma and Virginia. And as of July 1, 2015, Florida had 400 inmates on death row, second only to California with 746.听听

In 2014, Duval County, which includes the city of Jacksonville, handed down more death sentences per capita than any other place in America.聽

鈥淲e live in a conservative county鈥� that values personal responsibility, which means that people here also value personal accountability,鈥� Florida Assistant State Attorney Bernie de la Rionda tells 海角大神鈥檚 Patrik Jonsson.听听