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The following summaries are drawn from briefs and lower court judgments. They are meant to provide a general idea of facts and issues presented in cases, and should not be considered official court documents. Facts and issues presented in these summaries should be checked for accuracy against records and briefs, available from the Court, which provide more specific information.
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Names & phone numbers of attorneys in these cases are available in Acrobat format.
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Florida Supreme Court Oral Arguments
Monday, March 5, 2012
Arrive early. Times & order of appearance are tentative and subject to change with no notice. Cases may be postponed due to exigent circumstances.
Case |
Time |
Facts & Issues |
Place of Origin |
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Florida Supreme Court Oral Arguments
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Arrive early. Times & order of appearance are tentative and subject to change with no notice. Cases may be postponed due to exigent circumstances.
Case |
Time |
Facts & Issues |
Place of Origin |
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Eric Kurt Patrick v. State of Florida
SC09-2016
View briefs in Acrobat format by clicking the case
number(s) here
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9:00 |
Mr. Patrick was convicted of the first-degree murder of Steven Schumacher, who
was fatally beaten and strangled in 2005. The jury voted 7-5 to recommend a death
sentence and the trial court condemned Mr. Patrick to death. This is his direct
appeal. He raises various issues. |
Broward County |
David Devon Blackmon v. State of Florida
SC11-903
View briefs in Acrobat format by clicking the case
number(s) here
|
Approx. 10:00 |
Mr. Blackmon was convicted of petit theft and dealing in stolen property of the
same property and sentenced to five years in prison. On appeal, he argued he
should be given a new trial because he could not be convicted of both charges. The
state argued the error could be fixed by dropping the conviction for the lesser
offense. The First District Court of Appeal ordered that Mr. Blackmon's petit theft
conviction be dropped. The 1st DCA also certified conflict with a decision from
another District Court of Appeal. |
Escambia County |
Melvin D. Williams v. State of Florida
SC11-1543
View briefs in Acrobat format by clicking the case
number(s) here
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Approx. 10:40 |
Mr. Williams was convicted of various charges, including grand theft and dealing
in stolen property. The trial court dropped the grand theft conviction, and
sentenced him to 20 years in prison. On appeal, he argued he should be given a
new trial because the jury was not properly instructed on grand theft and dealing
in stolen property. The Second District Court of Appeal upheld the trial court,
recognized conflict with a decision from another District Court of Appeal, and
certified to this Court related legal questions as being of great public importance. |
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Florida Supreme Court Oral Arguments
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Arrive early. Times & order of appearance are tentative and subject to change with no notice. Cases may be postponed due to exigent circumstances.
Case |
Time |
Facts & Issues |
Place of Origin |
In re: Amendments to Florida Rules ov Civil Procedure
– Electronic Discovery
SC11-1542
View briefs in Acrobat format by clicking the case
number(s) here
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9:00 |
The Florida Bar's Civil Procedure Rules Committee has proposed changes to
various rules covering civil cases to deal with the issue of discovery of
information that is stored electronically on computers, e-mail, hand-held devices
and various forms of electronic documentation. |
Statewide impact |
Joshua Leee Altersberger v. State of Florida
SC09-1426
View briefs in Acrobat format by clicking the case
number(s) here
|
Approx. 9:30 |
Mr. Altersberger pled guilty to the first-degree murder of Nicholas Sottile, a
sergeant in the Florida Highway Patrol who was fatally shot during a traffic stop
in 2007. At the penalty hearing, the jury voted 9-3 to recommend a death sentence
and the trial court condemned Mr. Altersberger to death. This is his direct appeal.
He raises various issues. |
Highlands County |
Diamond Aircraft Industries v. Alan Horowitch
SC11-1371
View briefs in Acrobat format by clicking the case
number(s) here
|
Approx. 10:30 |
Mr. Horowitch, an Arizona resident, sued Diamond, a Canadian corporation,
alleging breach of contract and deceptive and unfair trade practices under Florida
state law. A federal trial court ruled Mr. Horowitch could not sue Diamond under
Florida's Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act but could do so under a similar
Arizona law. After prevailing on that count, Diamond sought attorney fees and
costs under Florida law. The court denied that motion and Diamond appealed to
the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which has asked this Court to answer
several questions about Florida law. |
Central Florida |
Florida Supreme Court Oral Arguments
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Arrive early. Times & order of appearance are tentative and subject to change with no notice. Cases may be postponed due to exigent circumstances.
Case |
Time |
Facts & Issues |
Place of Origin |
Leo Louis Kacsmar III v. State of Florida
SC10-2269
View briefs in Acrobat format by clicking the case
number(s) here
|
9:00 |
Mr. Kaczmar was convicted of the first-degree murder of Maria Ruiz, who was
fatally stabbed in 2008. The jury voted 11-1 to recommend a death sentence and
the trial court condemned Mr. Kaczmar to death. This is his direct appeal. He
raises various issues. |
Clay County |
Eric Simmons v. State of Florida
SC10-2035 | SC11-1353
View briefs in Acrobat format by clicking the case
number(s) here
|
Approx. 10:00 |
Mr. Simmons was convicted of the first-degree murder of Deborah Tressler, who
was kidnapped, sexually assaulted, stabbed and fatally beaten in 2001. The jury
voted unanimously to recommend a death sentence and the trial court condemned
Mr. Simmons. This Court upheld his conviction and death sentence on direct
appeal. Mr. Simmons filed a postconviction challenge in the trial court. His claims
were denied and this appeal followed. |
Lake County |
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State of Florida v. Gregory G. Geiss
SC11-1512
View briefs in Acrobat format by clicking the case
number(s) here
|
Approx. 10:40 |
Mr. Geiss was charged with felony driving under the influence and driving with
a suspended or revoked license. He filed a motion to suppress the results of his
blood test, which the trial court granted. The state appealed and the Fifth District
Court of Appeal ruled that the blood draw was constitutional but that state law did
not allow for the warrant in a misdemeanor case. The 5th DCA also asked this
Court to rule whether state law allows law enforcement officers to get warrants for
blood draws in misdemeanor cases involving drunken driving allegations. |
Broward County |
Florida Supreme Court Oral Arguments
Friday, March 9, 2012
Arrive early. Times & order of appearance are tentative and subject to change with no notice. Cases may be postponed due to exigent circumstances.
Case |
Time |
Facts & Issues |
Place of Origin |
| No cases scheduled
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