Dennis v. State

• Decision Date: 08 March 2013
• Docket Number: Nos. SC09–1089,SC09–2289.,s. SC09–1089
• Citation: 109 So.3d 680
• Parties: Labrant D. DENNIS, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee. Labrant D. Dennis, Petitioner, v. Kenneth S. Tucker, etc., Respondent.
• Court: Florida Supreme Court

109 So.3d 680

Labrant D. DENNIS, Appellant,
v.
STATE of Florida, Appellee.
Labrant D. Dennis, Petitioner,
v.
Kenneth S. Tucker, etc., Respondent.

Nos. SC09–1089, SC09–2289.

Supreme Court of Florida.

Dec. 20, 2012.
Rehearing Denied March 8, 2013.

[109 So.3d 687]

Neal Andre Dupree, Capital Collateral Regional Counsel, Suzanne Myers Keffer, Chief Assistant Capital Collateral Regional Counsel and Paul Edward Kalil, Assistant Capital Collateral Regional Counsel, Fort Lauderdale, FL, for Appellant/Petitioner.

Pamela Jo Bondi, Attorney General, Tallahassee, FL and Sandra Sue Jaggard Assistant Attorney General, Miami, FL, for Appellee/Respondent.

PER CURIAM.

Labrant Dennis appeals the denial of his motion to vacate his convictions of first-degree murder and sentences of death filed under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.851 and petitions this Court for a writ of habeas corpus.¹ For the reasons that follow, we affirm the denial of his postconviction motion and deny his habeas petition.

[109 So.3d 688]

I. BACKGROUND

The facts of this case were fully set out in this Court's opinion on direct appeal. Dennis v. State, 817 So.2d 741 (Fla.2002). Briefly, “[o]n the morning of April 13, 1996, University of Miami football player Earl Little arrived at his on-campus apartment.” Id. at 744. When Little opened his apartment door, he discovered his roommate and teammate, Marlin Barnes, on the floor leaning against the door. Id. Marlin was badly beaten and bloody, but still breathing. Id. at 744–45. The police later found Timwanika Lumpkins also beaten, but still breathing, in a bedroom. Id. at 745. Barnes was pronounced dead at the scene, and Lumpkins was later pronounced dead at the hospital. Id. According to the medical examiner, both Barnes and Lumpkins died from massive head trauma, and both had defensive wounds to their hands. Id. at 749–50.

In the living room where Barnes was discovered, the police found wooden and metal fragments, which were later determined to be from a shotgun. Id. at 745, 749. Joseph Stewart, an acquaintance of Dennis, testified that, on April 7, he had loaned Dennis an old sawed-off shotgun, which had a wood-type grill. Id. at 747. After Dennis returned the gun to Stewart, Stewart noticed that the gun had been considerably damaged. Id. Stewart also discovered a knife and black clothing in the duffel bag containing the gun. The police recovered the shotgun and knife from the sewer drain where Stewart had disposed of them. Id. at 748. Barnes' and Lumpkins' wounds were consistent with having been inflicted by this shotgun. Id. at 750.

The evidence presented at trial revealed that Dennis, Lumpkins, and Barnes had been at the same club earlier that night. Id. at 746. Barnes drove to the bar in his roommate's Ford Explorer. Id. at 748. However, after discovering that the tires had been punctured, Barnes had the truck towed back to his apartment. Id. A gas station attendant testified that someone generally matching Dennis' description was parked at the station, which was across from where the Explorer had been parked. Id. at 746–47. The gas station attendant identified Dennis' girlfriend's car as the car in which the person matching Dennis' description waited. Id. at 747. And the knife retrieved from the sewer drain was “consistent with the puncture marks on the tires of the Explorer.” Id. at 749.

The jury found Dennis guilty of two counts of first-degree murder, one count of burglary with assault or battery while armed, and one count of criminal mischief. Id. at 748, 750. At the penalty phase, Dennis' mother and grandmothers testified regarding his positive relationships with his family and his children. Id. at 750. Following the penalty phase, the jury recommended death sentences for both murders by a vote of eleven to one. Id. The trial court followed the jury's recommendation, finding that the aggravating circumstances ² outweighed the mitigating circumstances. ³

[109 So.3d 689]

On direct appeal, this Court affirmed Dennis' convictions and death sentences.⁴Id. at 767. Thereafter, the United States Supreme Court denied Dennis' petition for writ of certiorari. Dennis v. Florida, 537 U.S. 1051, 123 S.Ct. 604, 154 L.Ed.2d 527 (2002) (table).

In November 2003, Dennis filed a motion for postconviction relief. And on October 7, 2004, the trial judge entered an order denying all of Dennis' claims. However, this order did not include any reasoning or findings of fact. Then, on November 15, 2004, the trial court issued an amended order. The amended order did not include findings of fact for all of Dennis' claims. On appeal, this Court remanded to the trial court for a new proceeding on Dennis' postconviction motion and dismissed his habeas petition without prejudice. Dennis v. State, 999 So.2d 644 (Fla.2008) (table).

Upon remand, the new trial judge allowed Dennis to file an amendment to his postconviction motion, an amendment which included two new claims. A Huff⁵ hearing was held on May 11, 2009. And on June 12, 2009, without holding an evidentiary hearing, the trial court entered an order denying postconviction relief.

On appeal, this Court remanded the case for the trial court to hold an evidentiary hearing on two claims. Specifically, this Court ordered the trial court to conduct an evidentiary hearing on Dennis' claims that (a) counsel was ineffective for failing to investigate and present further mitigation evidence at the penalty phase; and (b) the State violated Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963), by failing to disclose the assistant state attorney's memo to Dr. Rao, the medical examiner who testified during the penalty phase. After holding an evidentiary hearing, the trial court denied the claims.

Dennis appeals the trial court's denial of postconviction relief and also petitions this Court for a writ of habeas corpus.

[109 So.3d 690]

II. POSTCONVICTION MOTION A. Ineffective Assistance During the Guilt Phase

Dennis argues that his trial counsel provided ineffective assistance during the guilt phase for: (1) waiving his right to a speedy trial; (2) failing to adequately prepare for trial; (3) failing to object to improper opinions and bolstering; (4) failing to object to irrelevant and prejudicial evidence; (5) failing to object to improper comment on Dennis' right to remain silent; (6) failing to investigate other suspects; and (7) failing to hire a crime scene expert. Because Dennis has failed to establish the requirements necessary for relief, we affirm the trial court's denial.

After the United State Supreme Court's decision in Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984), this Court explained that for ineffective assistance of counsel claims to be successful, two prongs must be satisfied:

First, the claimant must identify particular acts or omissions of the lawyer that are shown to be outside the broad range of reasonably competent performance under prevailing professional standards. Second, the clear, substantial deficiency shown must further be demonstrated to have so affected the fairness and reliability of the proceeding that confidence in the outcome is undermined.

Bolin v. State, 41 So.3d 151, 155 (Fla.2010) (quoting Maxwell v. Wainwright, 490 So.2d 927, 932 (Fla.1986)).

Regarding the deficiency prong of Strickland, there is a strong presumption that trial counsel's performance was not ineffective. Strickland, 466 U.S. at 690, 104 S.Ct. 2052. Moreover, “[a] fair assessment of attorney performance requires that every effort be made to eliminate the distorting effects of hindsight, to reconstruct the circumstances of counsel's challenged conduct, and to evaluate the conduct from counsel's perspective at the time.” Id. at 689, 104 S.Ct. 2052. Further, counsel cannot be deemed ineffective for failing to make a meritless argument. Schoenwetter v. State, 46 So.3d 535, 546 (Fla.2010). Regarding the prejudice prong of Strickland, “the defendant must show that there is a reasonable probability that, ‘absent the [deficient performance], the factfinder would have [had] a reasonable doubt respecting guilt.’ ” Henry v. State, 948 So.2d 609, 617 (Fla.2006) (quoting Strickland, 466 U.S. at 695, 104 S.Ct. 2052). “A reasonable probability is a ‘probability sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome.’ ” Id. (quoting Strickland, 466 U.S. at 694, 104 S.Ct. 2052).

An evidentiary hearing must be held on an initial 3.851 motion whenever the movant makes a facially sufficient claim that requires a factual determination. See Amendments to Fla. Rules of Crim. Pro. 3.851, 3.852 & 3.993, 772 So.2d 488, 491 n. 2 (Fla.2000). Thus, “[a] hearing is warranted on an ineffective assistance of counsel claim only where a defendant alleges specific facts, not conclusively refuted by the record, which demonstrate a deficiency in the performance that prejudiced the defendant.” Ragsdale v. State, 720 So.2d 203, 207 (Fla.1998). “A summary or conclusory allegation is insufficient to allow the trial court to examine the specific allegations against the record.” Id.

Because both prongs of Strickland present mixed questions of law and fact, this Court employs a mixed standard of review, deferring to the trial court's factual findings that are supported by competent, substantial evidence, but reviewing the trial court's legal conclusions de novo. See Sochor v. State, 883 So.2d 766, 771–72 (Fla.2004). Additionally, because a court's

[109 So.3d 691]

decision whether to grant an evidentiary hearing on a rule 3.851 motion is ultimately based on written materials before the court, its ruling is tantamount to a pure question of law, subject to de novo review. See State v. Coney, 845 So.2d 120, 137 (Fla.2003).

1. Right to a Speedy Trial

First, Dennis claims that trial counsel was ineffective for agreeing to an early trial date or for agreeing to a defense continuance, thereby waiving Dennis' right to a speedy trial. We uphold the trial court's summary denial of this claim.

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