Heath v. State

• Decision Date: 29 January 2009
• Docket Number: No. SC07-771.,SC07-771.
• Citation: 3 So.3d 1017
• Parties: Ronald Palmer HEATH, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
• Court: Florida Supreme Court

3 So.3d 1017

Ronald Palmer HEATH, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.

No. SC07-771.

Supreme Court of Florida.

January 29, 2009.

Rehearing Denied February 25, 2009.

Robert Augustus Harper, Jr. and Robert Augustus Harper, III of Harper and Harper Law Firm, P.A., Tallahassee, FL, for Appellant.

Bill McCollum, Attorney General, and Meredith Charbula, Assistant Attorney General, Tallahassee, FL, for Appellee.

PER CURIAM.

Appellant Ronald Palmer Heath seeks review of an order which denied him postconviction relief under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.851. Heath challenged his capital murder conviction for which a sentence of death was imposed. This Court possesses jurisdiction pursuant to article V, section 3(b)(1) of the Florida Constitution.

I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY Guilt and Penalty Phases

A jury convicted Ronald Palmer Heath of the first-degree murder of Michael Sheridan, armed robbery, conspiracy to commit uttering a forgery, conspiracy to commit forgery, forgery (seven counts), and uttering a forgery (seven counts). See Heath v. State, 648 So.2d 660, 662-63 (Fla. 1994). For the murder of Sheridan, the jury recommended the death penalty by a vote of ten to two. See id. at 663. Following that recommendation, the trial court sentenced Heath to death for the murder. See id.¹ In its opinion affirming the imposition of the death penalty, the Court detailed the facts surrounding the murder:

Heath and his younger brother, Kenneth, drove to Gainesville to visit some of Heath's friends. On May 24, 1989, the brothers went to the Purple Porpoise Lounge in Gainesville where two of Heath's friends worked as waitresses. Sometime during the evening the brothers struck up a conversation with Sheridan, a traveling salesman who had come to the lounge for drinks and dinner. Sheridan bought the brothers a drink and inquired if they ever got high or had any marijuana. Heath suggested to Kenneth that they take Sheridan somewhere and rob him; Kenneth agreed. The trio left the bar in Kenneth's vehicle, which Heath drove to an isolated area of Alachua County. After parking on a dirt road, all three got out of the car and smoked marijuana. Heath made the hand motion of a pistol and asked Kenneth, "Did you get it?" Kenneth retrieved a small-caliber handgun from under the car seat, pointed it at Sheridan, and told him that he was being robbed. Sheridan balked at giving the brothers anything. Heath told Kenneth to shoot Sheridan. When Sheridan lunged at Kenneth, Kenneth shot him in the chest. Sheridan sat down, saying "it hurt." As Sheridan began to remove his possessions, Heath kicked him and stabbed him in the neck with a hunting knife. Heath attempted to slit Sheridan's throat, but was unable to complete the task with the dull knife and could only saw at Sheridan's neck. Heath then instructed Kenneth to kill Sheridan with the gun, and Kenneth shot him twice in the head. The brothers moved the body further into the woods. After returning to the Purple Porpoise, the brothers took Sheridan's rental car to a remote area, removed some items, and burned the car.

The next day the brothers used Sheridan's credit cards to purchase clothes, shoes, and other items at a Gainesville mall.... The brothers returned to Jacksonville and tossed the handgun into the St. John's River. The handgun was never recovered. Heath eventually returned to the trailer which he shared with Powell [his girlfriend] in Georgia.

A medical examiner was dispatched to the scene of the murder on May 30, 1989, to examine the body, which was in a moderately advanced state of decomposition. The examiner estimated that death had occurred three to ten days earlier and that death was caused by multiple gunshot wounds and a sharp force injury to the neck.

Several weeks after the murder, Heath was arrested at his trailer for using the stolen credit cards. Powell granted the officers permission to search the trailer and her car. The officers discovered some of the clothes purchased in Gainesville and Sheridan's watch.

Both brothers were indicted for the first-degree murder and armed robbery of Sheridan.... Kenneth entered into a plea agreement wherein he pled guilty to the charges and agreed to testify about Sheridan's murder. Kenneth was sentenced to life imprisonment without eligibility for parole for twenty-five years for the murder conviction.

Heath's trial commenced on November 5, 1990. The primary evidence linking Heath to the crime was the testimony of Kenneth, Heath's possession of a watch which could be traced to Sheridan through its serial number, and Heath's possession of certain merchandise acquired in Gainesville with Sheridan's stolen credit cards.

Id. at 662.

In imposing the death sentence, the trial court found two aggravating factors: (1) Heath had been convicted of a prior violent felony (second-degree murder), and (2) the murder was committed during the course of an armed robbery. See id. at 663. With regard to mitigation, the trial judge found one statutory mitigating circumstance—that Heath was under the influence of an extreme mental or emotional disturbance as a result of his consumption of alcohol and marijuana—and two nonstatutory mitigating circumstances—that Heath demonstrated good character in prison, and that codefendant Kenneth Heath received a life sentence. See id.

Direct Appeal

In his direct appeal, Heath raised the following issues: (1) the trial court erred when it overruled Heath's objection to a comment by the State during opening statements which reflected on Heath's right to remain silent; (2) the trial court erred when it permitted testimony with regard to Sheridan's good character; (3) the trial court erred when it admitted the testimony of cellmate Wayburn Williams, which addressed Heath's plans to escape from pretrial detention; (4) the trial court erred when it ruled that the testimony of Heath's employer was irrelevant; (5) the trial court improperly excluded a statement that Heath made to his girlfriend as he unpacked his luggage upon his return from Florida; (6) the trial court erred when it sentenced Heath to death because he was no more culpable than his brother Kenneth, who received a life sentence; (7) the trial court erred when it read to the jury an unconstitutionally vague instruction with regard to the heinous, atrocious, and cruel aggravating circumstance; (8) the trial court erred when it sentenced Heath as a habitual offender for the crime of armed robbery; and (9) the habitual felony offender statute is unconstitutional because it violates due process and equal protection. See id. at 663-66. This Court denied relief on all claims and affirmed Heath's convictions and sentences. See id. at 666.²

Postconviction Proceedings

On August 2, 2004, Heath filed his initial rule 3.851 motion. On April 18, 2005, Heath filed an amended rule 3.851 motion which raised twenty claims.³ After a Huff⁴ hearing, the trial court granted an evidentiary hearing on nine of the claims and denied the remainder.⁵

A primary focus of the evidentiary hearing involved the recanted testimony of Kenneth Heath, the key witness for the State during Heath's trial, and Heath's codefendant, who shot Sheridan three times. During the evidentiary hearing, Kenneth recounted that on the night of the murder he informed Heath that Sheridan wanted to smoke marijuana. Heath responded to Kenneth that they could rob Sheridan, and Kenneth agreed. Kenneth and Heath, before leaving the bar, discussed eliminating Sheridan as a witness. Prior to their departure from the bar, Sheridan expressed doubts about leaving with the brothers because he had a morning meeting; however, Sheridan was ultimately convinced to join the brothers.

The three left the bar together and drove in Kenneth's car to a remote area. While they were standing at the back of the car preparing to smoke, Heath used hand gestures to inquire whether Kenneth had the gun that the brothers carried in the vehicle. When Kenneth said "no," Heath indicated to Kenneth that he should retrieve the gun from the car. After doing so, Kenneth pointed the gun at Sheridan and told him that he was being robbed. Sheridan initially believed the brothers were joking and said, "You're kidding, right?" Heath then told Kenneth to shoot Sheridan. Kenneth told Sheridan, "Look, I don't want to shoot you. Just take your wallet off and remove your jewelry and stuff." Heath again told Kenneth to shoot Sheridan. Sheridan lunged at Kenneth, and Kenneth shot him in the chest. Sheridan took a couple of steps backward and sat down.

Heath told Sheridan to remove his jewelry and when Sheridan did not move quickly enough, Heath removed Sheridan's jewelry, watch, and wallet. Heath then asked Sheridan where a particular bracelet was, saying, "Give us the bracelet, we'll get you to a hospital, we'll get you some help." When Sheridan did not respond, Heath kicked him. Heath told Kenneth to "shoot him again, to make sure he was dead," and Kenneth shot Sheridan in the head. After that second shot, Heath repeated, "Shoot him again, shoot him again." According to Kenneth, after the shot to the head, Sheridan continued to look at him and even asked Kenneth what he was doing. When Kenneth fired the third shot, "the life went out of his eyes."

The brothers moved Sheridan's body further back into the woods so that it would not be discovered and returned to Kenneth's vehicle. Heath then told Kenneth that he thought he might have dropped something and went back into the woods to look for it. Although Heath told Kenneth to wait in the car, Kenneth feared that someone might arrive because of the gunshots and, after a few minutes, went to see what Heath was doing. When Kenneth arrived at the place where Sheridan's body was located, he saw Heath kneeling down and sawing at Sheridan's throat with a knife. According to Kenneth, Heath "looked kind of lost and—like he was in ecstasy or something." Kenneth asked Heath what he was...