Legal Opinion
Smithers v. State
Supreme Court of Florida
Decided July 9, 2009No. SC07-2258, SC08-868PublishedCited by 17 opinions
1Per curiam
Samuel L. Smithers appeals an order of the circuit court denying his motion to vacate his convictions of first-degree murder and sentences of death filed under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.851. Smithers also petitions this Court for a writ of habeas corpus. We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 3(b)(1), (9), Fla. Const. For the reasons expressed below, we affirm the postconviction court’s order and deny the petition for a writ of habeas corpus.
I. BACKGROUND
Smithers was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder for the 1996 killings of Cristy Cowan and Denise Roach. He was sentenced…
2Cases cited26 opinions
- Strickland v. WashingtonSupreme Court of the United States · 1984
- Ring v. ArizonaSupreme Court of the United States · 2002
- Caldwell v. MississippiSupreme Court of the United States · 1985
- Rutherford v. MooreSupreme Court of Florida · 2000
- Sochor v. StateSupreme Court of Florida · 2004
21 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by17 opinions
- McCray v. StateSupreme Court of Florida · 2011
- Lukehart v. StateSupreme Court of Florida · 2011
- Foster v. StateSupreme Court of Florida · 2013
- Charles C. Peterson v. State of FloridaSupreme Court of Florida · 2014
- Stewart v. StateSupreme Court of Florida · 2010
12 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.