Thomas Bevel, Appellant v. State of Florida, Appellee; Thomas Bevel, Petitioner, v. Julie L. Jones

Summary

The court denied Bevel’s habeas petition alleging ineffective assistance of appellate counsel but reversed the denial of his initial postconviction motion. It held that the nonunanimous death recommendation for the Stringfield murder was not harmless under the governing capital-sentencing rule, while the unanimous recommendation for the Sims murder independently satisfied that rule. The court also held that penalty-phase counsel performed deficiently by failing to conduct a reasonable mitigation investigation and that the undiscovered mitigation undermined confidence in the death sentences, requiring a new penalty phase for both murders. Justice Canady, joined by Justice Polston, would have affirmed the postconviction denial, while Justice Lawson would have granted a new penalty phase only for the Stringfield murder.