Terrance Tyrone Phillips, Appellant v. State of Florida, Appellee

Summary

The court affirmed Phillips's convictions for two counts of first-degree murder and related offenses, concluding that competent, substantial evidence supported both the premeditated-murder and felony-murder convictions. It held that death was a disproportionate penalty because Phillips was eighteen, had significantly subaverage intelligence and substantial related mitigation, and the murders were not among the most aggravated and least mitigated first-degree murders. Justice Canady, joined by Justice Polston, concurred in affirming the convictions but would have upheld the death sentences and denied relief under the later jury-finding precedent.