No. 19-7625

Robert L. Swinton, Jr. v. Florida

Lower Court: Florida
Docketed: 2020-02-12
Status: Rehearing
Type: IFP
Response WaivedRelisted (2)IFP
Tags: appeal constitutional-rights criminal-procedure criminal-procedure-appeal due-process ineffective-assistance-of-counsel right-to-counsel sentencing sentencing-errors sentencing-guidelines sixth-amendment structural-error
Latest Conference: 2020-06-25 (distributed 2 times)
Question Presented (from Petition)

(1) Is it structural error when sentencing errors were corrected by appeals court on direct appeal without defense counsel, and a constitutional denial of counsel on direct appeal when counsel withdrew and the petitioner was not informed by appeal counsel that he was withdrawing from the direct appeal, where the petitioner was oversentenced on the face of the record and has not been afforded any opportunity for review of this issue ?

(2) Would it be a U.S. First Amendment violation, due process violation and a miscarriage of justice if no court addressed the petitioner's Presentencing Investigation Report and Sentencing Guidelines Scoresheet prepared by probation, applied to the petitioner at sentencing to establish his minimum and maximum mandatory guideline sentence, that supports the fact that he was oversentenced and denied all redress ?

(3) Is it an unreasonable application of the U.S. Sixth Amendment, applied to the States by the U.S. Fourteenth Amendment, and U.S. Supreme Court precedent for courts to deny review of all Ineffective Assistance of Appeal Counsel claims of abondonment leading to the forfeiture of all meritous Ineffective Assistance of Trial Counsel claims by a pro se litigant to excuse all procedural bars ?

Question Presented (AI Summary)

Whether sentencing errors were corrected by appeals court on direct appeal without defense counsel, and whether there was a constitutional denial of counsel on direct appeal

Docket Entries

2020-06-29
Motion for leave to file a petition for rehearing filed by petitioner DENIED.
2020-06-09
Motion DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 6/25/2020.
2020-05-07
Motion for leave to file a petition for rehearing filed by petitioner.
2020-03-23
Petition DENIED.
2020-03-05
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 3/20/2020.
2020-03-02
Waiver of right of respondent Florida to respond filed.
2020-02-01
Petition for a writ of certiorari and motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis filed. (Response due March 13, 2020)

Attorneys

Florida
Carla Suzanne BechardOffice of the Attorney General, State of Florida, Respondent
Robert L. Swinton
Robert Lee Swinton Jr. — Petitioner