Recent Clay County Case: An Example of the Potential Effects of Proposed Statute
In late February, a Clay County jury determined Michael R. Jackson should be sentenced to life in prison without parole, not death. Under proposed legislation, the outcome could've been different.
The Original Trial
In 2010, a jury convicted Michael R. Jackson of first-degree murder and sexual battery for crimes that occurred in 2007.1 In the penalty phase, Jackson waived the presentation of mitigation, meaning he did not allow his attorneys to present evidence that made him seem less deserving of death. The jury voted 9-3 to recommend a sentence of death, and Jackson was sentenced to death.
Convictions Overturned on Appeal
On direct appeal,2 the Supreme Court of Florida reversed Jackson’s convictions, vacated the sentence of death, and remanded for a new trial. The reason: The Court determined that “reversible error occurred in the guilt phase of the trial, when the State introduced a lengthy videotape of Jackson's custodial interrogation in which the investigating officers repeatedly expressed their personal opinions about Jackson's guilt and the victim's character and family life.”
Before the trial, Jackson had “filed a motion to exclude his videotaped statement taken during his custodial interrogation,” which was denied. The Court explained:
Although parts of the tape were redacted, the videotaped interrogation was played to the jury during the State's case-in-chief. In this thirty-seven-minute videotaped interrogation, Jackson repeatedly denied knowing, raping, and killing Boyer despite the detectives' repeated expressions of their personal belief and knowledge that Jackson committed the murders.
Although Jackson was granted a new trial based on the video, it is worth noting that Jackson had also filed “a number of motions challenging the constitutionality of Florida’s capital sentencing scheme,” which were denied. Of course, six years after Jackson’s original trial, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that Florida’s capital sentencing scheme was, indeed, unconstitutional.
The Retrial
Jackson’s retrial just concluded in February 2023—over ten years after the Supreme Court’s opinion ordering a new trial. A news article states reported that “[j]ury selection for the trial began in April 2018 but was abruptly halted.”
Again, the jury found Jackson guilty of first-degree murder and sexual batter.
After the guilt phase, the trial proceeded to the penalty phase. This time, the penalty phase was different. Jackson allowed his attorneys to present evidence of mitigation—including, that
This likely made the difference for Jackson, as the jury ultimately did not unanimously determine that the aggravation outweighed the mitigation. Under the current statute, that ended the jury’s inquiry. Jackson will be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Victim’s Family Content with Outcome
A member of the victim’s family spoke with reporters after the trial, saying that she was content with the outcome. The victim’s sister explained that she wanted the death penalty for Jackson at the time of the original trial but, now, she doesn’t. She has forgiven Jackson.
Proposed Legislation
As Maria DeLiberato and I explained in an op-ed published in the Florida Time-Union today, Jackson’s sentence could’ve been different if the retrial had occurred later this year. If Jackson had been tried under proposed legislation that would make it easier to sentence defendants to death in the State of Florida, Jackson could have been sentenced to death.
Under the proposed legislation, the jury is not required to make a unanimous finding that the aggravation outweighs the mitigation—the finding that was determinative in Jackson’s retrial under the current statute. Instead, the jury is only required to find unanimously that one aggravating factor was proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Then, the jurors independently weigh the aggravation and mitigation and vote as to their sentencing recommendation.
As the proposed legislation currently stands, judges could sentence defendants to death if merely eight jurors vote to recommend death—the lowest standard in the country. If the proposed legislation had been in place when Jackson was re-tried, it is possible he would’ve again been sentenced to death.
Clay County Case No. 2007 CF 000293. The details of the crime are explained in the Florida Supreme Court’s 2012 decision.
Direct appeal is the first automatic appeal after a defendant is sentenced to death in the State of Florida.