DueProcess Punishment
Does the Florida Supreme Court's exclusive reliance on a unanimous recommendation of death to find harmless error for violations of Hurst v. Florida, 136 S. Ct. 616 (2016), violate the Eighth Amendment under Caldwell v. Mississippi, 472 U.S. 320 (1985)?
QUESTIONS PRESENTED I. Does the Florida Supreme Court’s exclusive reliance on a unanimous recommendation of death to find harmless error for violations of Hurst v. Florida, 136 S. Ct. 616 (2016), in a pre—Hurst case in which the capital defendant’s advisory jury, after being instructed that the findings of fact and sentencing decision would be made by the judge alone, violate the Eighth Amendment under Caldwell v. Mississippi, 472 U.S. 320 (1985)? IL. Does the Florida Supreme Court’s application of an automatic harmless error rule to Hurst violations contravene this Court’s decisions holding a finding of harmless error cannot be automatic and mechanical, but must include consideration of the whole record, and must be accompanied by a detailed explanation based on the record? ii