Barnes Execution: Visitation & Call Records
A look at Barnes's visitation and call records for the past several years
The State plans to execute James Barnes this week—on Thursday, August 3, at 6:00 p.m. Barnes has waived all postconviction claims and discharged counsel ahead of his execution, so there is no litigation pending related to the execution. If completed, Barnes’s execution will be the fifth execution in Florida in 2023, and he will be the tenth volunteer executed in the State since executions restarted in 1979 after the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1976 decision in Furman v. Georgia. (A history of the volunteers executed in Florida is here.)
Public records obtained from the Department of Corrections dating back to 2014 show that Barnes had visitors (pen pals and friends) consistently between 2014 and 2019. However, the records do not show any visits since February 2019.
Call records for 2023 show that Barnes used the phone throughout the year up until June 19—three days before Governor DeSantis signed the warrant scheduling his execution. He made one call that day, which lasted just over four minutes. Before that, he made three calls on June 13 for a total of about 40 minutes.
The records do not show any calls or visits since the warrant was signed. (It is unclear whether these records include legal calls or visits.)
Prior TFDP Coverage on Barnes’s Case
Gov. DeSantis signing the warrant and the Florida Supreme Court’s Scheduling Order is covered here.
The background of Barnes’s case can be found here.
Analysis of the Scheduling Order in Barnes’s case is here.
James Barnes waiving his right to raise postconviction claims ahead of his execution is covered here.
A history of Barnes’s life can be found here: Part I and Part II.
Well actually 2 calls/week. But I know it for a fact, I’m president/founder of FCADP and we’re actually advocating on this restriction.
“ Inmate are allowed to make two social calls, of their choice if people are on approved list, per week by them sending a request to the Warden.” That was from the DOC back in May.
By the way thank you for your work.
Well, for your information, when death warrants are signed, inmates in FL are transferred to FSP. They are then entitled to only 1 call per week with warden’s approval for each call, and these calls can be made to a very restricted list of people, the people James Barnes used to call may not be on that list and he may not be able to call anyone.