Additional Resources

Mar 31, 2023
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The purpose of this page is to provide additional resources related to Florida’s death penalty and capital punishment more broadly for those who are interested in learning more and getting involved. For the most part, I’ve included resources that I have authored personally.

Series from Tracking Florida’s Death Penalty

Hurst v. Florida Series

In 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court held that Florida’s capital sentencing statute was unconstitutional. Chaos ensued. This five-part series explains what happened and how it affected capital sentencing in the state.

  1. Part I - the background that led to Hurst v. Florida

  2. Part II - the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Hurst v. Florida and the Florida Supreme Court’s decision on remand

  3. Part III - the Florida Supreme Court’s decisions interpreting and applying Hurst

  4. Part IV - Florida’s courts address a wave of legislation after Hurst

  5. Part V - the change in the U.S. Supreme Court and Florida Supreme Court and the overturning of Hurst II

In addition, this post has a timeline summarizing the information in the five-part series.

Prison Tour Series

In March 2023, I had the opportunity to attend the Judge Marvin Mounts Prison Tour, on which we toured six facilities within the Florida Department of Corrections prison system. This series explains my experience and what I learned:

  • Preface to the series

  • Part I - Lake Correctional Institution and Sumter Correctional Institution

  • Part II - Lowell Correctional Institution and Reception and Medical Center

  • Part III - Union Correctional Institution and Florida State Prison

Execution by Jury Override Series

This series reviews the cases of those executed in Florida as a result of jury override.

Refer a friend

Information about Capital Punishment

  • The Florida Department of Corrections maintains a roster of Florida’s death row inmates online. The Department also maintains a list of completed executions.

  • The Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC) is a great resource for research, data, and statistics related to capital punishment across the country.

  • The Marshall Project has some great articles and information related to the death penalty. This article discusses the terminology used when discussing incarcerated individuals.

News

Law Review Articles

  • Melanie Kalmanson & Bridget Maloney, Repairing the “Sea of Disorganized” Procedures for Determining Competency for Execution, L. & Psy. R. (forthcoming 2024). Read here.

  • Melanie Kalmanson, The Eighth Amendment’s Time to Shine: Previewing Florida’s Imminent Constitutional Crisis in Capital Punishment, 74 U. Fla. L. Rev. Forum (2023). - This article discusses Eighth Amendment concerns with Florida’s 2023 capital sentencing statute. Read here.

  • Melanie Kalmanson & Nathan Molina, Ring and Hurst Retroactivity: Deconstructing Divergent Doctrines, Conn. Pub. Interest L.J. (2023) - This article reviews and explains the caselaw surrounding the retroactivity of Ring v. Arizona (2002) and Hurst v. Florida (2016). Read here.

  • Melanie Kalmanson, Somewhere Between Death Row and Death Watch: The Procedural Trap Capital Defendants Face in Raising Execution-Related Claims, U. Penn. J.L. & Pub. Affairs (2020) - This article discusses the difficulties capital defendants face in raising and litigating warrant- and execution-related claims. Read here.

  • Melanie Kalmanson, Storm of the Decade: The Aftermath of Hurst v. Florida & Why the Storm Is Likely to Continue, U. Miami L. Rev. Caveat (2020) - This article reviews outstanding issues following the Florida Supreme Court’s decision in Hurst on remand. Read here.

    • The article cited above was the sequel to Professor Craig Trocino and Chance Meyer’s article, Hurst v. Florida’s Ha’p’orth of Tar: The Need to Revisit Caldwell, Clemons, and Proffitt, U. Miami L. Rev. (2016), which was published between Hurst v. Florida and Hurst. Read here.

  • Melanie Kalmanson, The Difference of One Vote or One Day: Reviewing the Demographics of Florida’s Death Row After Hurst v. Florida, U. Miami L. Rev. (2020) - This article reviews the demographics of Florida’s death row when the U.S. Supreme Court decided Hurst v. Florida in 2016, including how they fared in light of the Court’s decisions interpreting and applying Hurst. Read here.

    • Hannah L. Gorman & Margot Ravenscroft, Hurricane Florida: The Hot and Cold Fronts of America’s Most Active Death Row, Columbia Human Rights L. Rev. (2020) - This article is similar to the one above. If there is any conflict, I defer to Hannah. Read here.

  • Melanie Kalmanson, Steps Toward Abolishing Capital Punishment: Incrementalism in the American Death Penalty, William & Mary Bill Rights J. (2020) - This article discusses how capital punishment has been incrementally narrowed since Furman v. Georgia and the probably next steps in the incremental process toward abolition. Read here.

Podcasts

Books

Get Involved

If you are an attorney and are interested in representing someone sentenced to death, consider contacting the American Bar Association Death Penalty Representation Project. The Project’s mission is to “improve the quality and availability of legal representation for persons facing  possible death sentences.” The Project does not take a stance on advocating for or against capital punishment. The Project is a great resource for connecting capital defendants across the country with pro bono counsel.

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