Owen Warrant Litigation: Notice of Appeal filed at Florida Supreme Court
Owen has filed a Notice of Appeal in the Florida Supreme Court, appealing three of the trial court’s Orders issued last week.
Around 6:00 p.m. last night, Owen’s Notice of Appeal was posted to the docket at the Florida Supreme Court. Per the Notice, Owen appeals three of the trial court’s rulings:
These orders on appeal as well as the underlying motions and responses are available in the Record on Appeal, which is available on the Florida Supreme Court docket.
It does not appear that Owen filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus.
ICYMI: The Governor issued an Executive Order yesterday temporarily staying Owen’s execution pending a determination of Owen’s competency for execution. More here.
The background of Owen’s case can be found here.
Order Denying Postconviction Motion
The first order at issue is the trial court’s Order denying Owen’s fourth successive postconviction motion, which was filed May 17. In the motion, Owen set forth two claims:
On the first claim, the trial court determined that the claim was previously addressed by the Florida Supreme Court and U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and is, otherwise, time-barred.
On the second claim, the trial court determined that the claims are procedurally barred because they were previously raised and waived. Further, the trial court determined that the newly discovered evidence does not meet the two-prong standard for relief.
Thus, the Court denied Owen’s motion:
This Order is in the Record starting at page 2078.
Order Denying Motion for Determination of Competency
The second order at issue is the trial court’s Order denying Owen’s motion for a determination of competency, which was filed May 17. The trial court stated the applicable standard as:
In a two-page Order, the trial court denied Owen’s motion based on the Court’s determination that there are not any “factual matters at issue requiring the Defendant’s input”:
This Order is in the Record starting at page 2072.
Order Denying Imaging
The last order at issue in Owen’s appeal is the trial court’s order denying Owen’s Motion for MRI and PET Scan, which was filed May 17.
The trial court summarily denied the motion in an Order not much longer than one page. This is the pertinent part of the Order:
This Order is in the Record starting at page 2075.
Per the Supreme Court’s Scheduling Order—which has not been amended in light of the Governor’s temporary stay—Owen’s Initial Brief is due by 9:00 a.m. Wednesday. The State’s Answer Brief is due Friday at 3:00 p.m. Owen’s Reply Brief is due Tuesday (May 30) by 3:00 p.m.
My thoughts are with everyone involved in the warrant and execution process.