276 So.3d 791
Fla.
2019
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Background

  • Gary Ray Bowles confessed and pleaded guilty to the 1994 first‑degree murder of Walter Hinton; he was resentenced to death after a resentencing jury unanimously recommended death.
  • Bowles previously litigated multiple postconviction and habeas challenges; this Court affirmed denial of relief in 2008 and denied a successive challenge in 2018 (Hurst claim not retroactive to him).
  • In October 2017 (and finalized June 2019 after a death warrant), Bowles filed a successive Rule 3.851 motion raising an intellectual disability claim under Atkins/Hall/Moore for the first time and sought related public records under Rule 3.852.
  • The postconviction court summarily denied the intellectual disability claim as untimely and denied several public‑records requests (while ordering production of DOC medical/psych records previously requested).
  • Bowles also filed a habeas petition arguing that national trends make his execution cruel and unusual punishment.
  • The Florida Supreme Court affirmed the summary denial of the successive Rule 3.851 motion, denied the habeas petition, and denied stays of execution.

Issues

Issue Plaintiff's Argument Defendant's Argument Held
Timeliness of intellectual disability claim Bowles: Hall/Moore established a basis to raise Atkins claim; filed after those decisions State: Claim untimely under Rule 3.203 and Florida precedent; no good cause for delay Court: Claim untimely; denied without evidentiary hearing
Rule 3.203(f) good‑cause for late Atkins claim Bowles: rule 3.203(f) and Hall’s clarifications justify late filing State: Bowles could have raised claim earlier (Atkins existed since 2002); perceived futility not good cause Court: No good cause shown; claim barred
Rule 3.852 public‑records requests Bowles: DOC, FDLE, ME, and State Attorney communications may yield relevant evidence State: Requests are fishing expeditions or too attenuated to lead to admissible evidence Court: Denial of several requests was not an abuse of discretion; limited records ordered were appropriate
Habeas claim — Eighth Amendment as‑applied challenge based on national trends Bowles: Executing him given national trends would be cruel and unusual State: Federal precedent holds capital punishment constitutional; conformity clause binds state construction Court: Habeas denied; cannot invalidate death sentence under Eighth Amendment given U.S. Supreme Court precedent

Key Cases Cited

  • Bowles v. State, 716 So. 2d 769 (Fla. 1998) (direct appeal affirming conviction and remanding for resentencing)
  • Bowles v. State, 804 So. 2d 1173 (Fla. 2002) (affirming death sentence on resentencing)
  • Bowles v. State, 979 So. 2d 182 (Fla. 2008) (denying postconviction and habeas relief)
  • Walls v. State, 213 So. 3d 340 (Fla. 2016) (retroactive application of Hall to timely filed intellectual disability claims)
  • Harvey v. State, 260 So. 3d 906 (Fla. 2018) (untimely Atkins claim foreclosed)
  • Blanco v. State, 249 So. 3d 536 (Fla. 2018) (applying time‑bar to first‑time Atkins claims)
  • Rodriguez v. State, 250 So. 3d 616 (Fla. 2018) (applying Rule 3.203 time‑bar to Hall/Atkins claims)
  • Hannon v. State, 228 So. 3d 505 (Fla. 2017) (standard for reviewing Rule 3.852 public‑records rulings)
  • Asay v. State, 224 So. 3d 695 (Fla. 2017) (limits on post‑warrant records requests under Rule 3.852)
  • Jimenez v. State, 265 So. 3d 462 (Fla. 2018) (denial of records requests re lethal injection not an abuse when challenge foreclosed)
  • Sims v. State, 753 So. 2d 66 (Fla. 2000) (Rule 3.852 not for fishing expeditions)
  • Walton v. State, 3 So. 3d 1000 (Fla. 2009) (limits on records production for lethal injection challenges)
  • Atkins v. Virginia, 536 U.S. 304 (U.S. 2002) (death penalty unconstitutional for intellectually disabled offenders)
  • Hall v. Florida, 572 U.S. 701 (U.S. 2014) (clarified Eighth Amendment standards for intellectual disability determinations)
  • Moore v. Texas, 137 S. Ct. 1039 (U.S. 2017) (Eighth Amendment prohibits reliance on outdated medical standards in intellectual disability determinations)
  • Hurst v. Florida, 136 S. Ct. 616 (U.S. 2016) (sentencing procedures in capital cases require jury facts finding)
  • Glossip v. Gross, 135 S. Ct. 2726 (U.S. 2015) (capital punishment itself constitutional; methods challenge standards)
  • Baze v. Rees, 553 U.S. 35 (U.S. 2008) (standards for method‑of‑execution challenges)
  • McCleskey v. Kemp, 481 U.S. 279 (U.S. 1987) (rejecting Eighth Amendment claim based on statistical disparity)
  • Gregg v. Georgia, 428 U.S. 153 (U.S. 1976) (death penalty constitutional for murder)
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