No. 20-6851

Jeffrey Lee Atwater v. Florida

Lower Court: Florida
Docketed: 2021-01-13
Status: Denied
Type: IFP
IFP
Tags: burden-of-proof constitutional-rights criminal-procedure due-process ineffective-assistance ineffective-assistance-of-counsel mccoy-v-louisiana right-to-counsel sixth-amendment
Key Terms:
DueProcess HabeasCorpus Privacy
Latest Conference: 2021-03-19
Question Presented (from Petition)

1. Did Mr. Atwater show a violation of the right to determine the objective of his defense and his right to hold the State to its burden of proof of each element beyond, and to the exclusion of every reasonable doubt, as articulated by this Court in McCoy v. Louisiana, when he had explicitly entered a plea of not guilty and maintained his innocence to counsel?

2. Whether the Florida Supreme Court may de facto overrule this Court and create a requirement of a preemptory objection to unknown trial strategy of conceding guilt and/or a contemporaneous objection by an accused individual to his own counsel when silenced by court rules and without foreknowledge that counsel would waive his rights?

Question Presented (AI Summary)

Did Mr. Atwater show a violation of the right to determine the objective of his defense and his right to hold the State to its burden of proof of each element beyond, and to the exclusion of every reasonable doubt, as articulated by this Court in McCoy v. Louisiana, when he had explicitly entered a plea of not guilty and maintained his innocence to counsel?

Docket Entries

2021-03-22
Petition DENIED.
2021-02-25
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 3/19/2021.
2021-02-22
Reply of petitioner Jeffrey Atwater filed. (Distributed)
2021-02-12
Brief of respondent Florida in opposition filed.
2021-01-07
Petition for a writ of certiorari and motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis filed. (Response due February 12, 2021)

Attorneys

Florida
Amitabh AgarwalOffice of the Attorney General, Respondent
Jeffrey Atwater
Julie Ann MorleyLaw Office of the Capital Collateral Regional Counsel - Middle Region, Petitioner