Elijah Brookins v. State of Florida

Elijah Brookins appeals his conviction for first-degree murder and his sentence of death. For the reasons below, we affirm his conviction but vacate his sentence and remand for a new penalty phase.1

BACKGROUND

This case involves a brutal stabbing murder on a Florida Department of Corrections (DOC) transport bus. The two DOC officers responsible for transporting the inmates testified that they did not see *34or hear anything out of the ordinary during the drive from Jefferson Correctional Institution to the Northwest Florida Reception Center (NFRC) in Washington County. Both officers testified that…