Stewart v. State

Kenneth Allen Stewart appeals an order of the circuit court denying his motion to vacate his sentence of death filed under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.851. Stewart 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 Stewart’s petition.

I. BACKGROUND

In 1986, Stewart was convicted of second-degree arson and first-degree murder for the shooting of Ruben Diaz. On direct appeal, this Court set out the facts of the crimes:

Daniel Clark heard…