Brown v. Secretary, Florida Department of Children & Families

Petitioner is being held involuntarily in a Florida institution, pursuant to the Jimmy Ryce Act, Fla. Stat. §§ 394.910-394.931, as a sexually violent predator. Proceeding fro se, he petitioned the district court for a writ of habeas corpus vacating the expired convictions for attempted sexual battery of a child eleven years of age or younger that provided the basis for his Ryce Act commitment. The court denied his petition and his application for a certificate of appealability (“COA”) to appeal. We granted a COA on the following issues:

Whether the district court erred in finding that the…