279 So.3d 1208
Fla.2019Background
- Shelley Boggio was repeatedly stabbed, strangled, and drowned after being picked up while hitchhiking; Dailey, Pearcy, and Shaw were implicated.
- Key trial evidence included Shaw’s eyewitness testimony and jailhouse informant testimony (Paul Skalnik and two other inmates); Dailey was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death; sentence affirmed after retrial.
- Dailey filed multiple postconviction challenges; this appeal concerns a second successive Rule 3.851 motion filed in 2017 raising (a) newly discovered evidence, (b) alleged Giglio/Brady violations, and (c) a claim of actual innocence.
- The circuit court granted an evidentiary hearing on two newly discovered-evidence claims, denied judicial notice of several records, and ultimately rejected all claims.
- The Florida Supreme Court reviewed the denial and affirmed, holding the new evidence claims untimely or inadmissible, Giglio claims meritless, judicial notice properly denied, and freestanding actual-innocence claims not cognizable.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pearcy affidavit (third-party confession) | Pearcy’s affidavit admits sole responsibility and exonerates Dailey | Affidavit is unreliable hearsay; Pearcy recanted and invoked Fifth at hearing | Excluded as hearsay; not a statement-against-interest or admissible under Chambers; denial affirmed |
| Testimony from Sorrentino, Wright, Smith (detective suggestion / witness fabrication) | Jailmate testimony shows detectives planted facts and other witnesses planned false testimony | Evidence was known earlier and waived; procedurally barred as untimely | Procedurally barred; prior counsel waived claim; Martinez/Trevino inapplicable |
| Documents discrediting Skalnik | Records show Skalnik was manipulative, had false allegations, and possible State deals | Documents dated in 1980s; discoverable with diligence; untimely | Untimely; summary dismissal affirmed because evidence was discoverable during trial era |
| Indian Rocks Beach Police report (Shaw interview) | IRBP report shows Shaw earlier said Pearcy returned alone with Dailey, suggesting Pearcy killed Boggio alone | Report from 1985 was discoverable earlier; statements would not likely produce acquittal | Untimely and meritless on Jones second-prong; denial affirmed |
| Giglio allegations (Skalnik impeachment; Shaw impeachment at postconviction hearing) | Prosecutor failed to correct Skalnik’s false testimony and improperly impeached Shaw | Skalnik impeachment not material; Shaw’s postconviction testimony not shown false | Both Giglio claims fail: Skalnik’s history not material; no false postconviction testimony shown |
| Judicial notice of various court/deposition records | Trial court should judicially notice records undermining witnesses and prosecutor’s view of Skalnik | Records irrelevant to claims granted for hearing; court did not abuse discretion | Denial of judicial notice affirmed |
| Freestanding actual innocence | Dailey argues he is actually innocent and death sentence is unconstitutional | Florida law does not recognize freestanding innocence claims | Claim not cognizable; denial affirmed |
Key Cases Cited
- Jones v. State, 709 So. 2d 512 (Fla. 1998) (standard for newly discovered evidence: diligence and probability of acquittal)
- Torres-Arboleda v. Dugger, 636 So. 2d 1321 (Fla. 1994) (newly discovered evidence timeliness and diligence rule)
- Sims v. State, 754 So. 2d 657 (Fla. 2000) (new evidence must be admissible to warrant relief)
- Chambers v. Mississippi, 410 U.S. 284 (U.S. 1973) (third-party confessions and confrontation considerations)
- Bearden v. State, 161 So. 3d 1257 (Fla. 2015) (factors for admitting third-party out-of-court confessions)
- Moore v. State, 132 So. 3d 718 (Fla. 2013) (elements and materiality standard for Giglio violations)
- Tompkins v. State, 994 So. 2d 1072 (Fla. 2008) (freestanding actual-innocence claims not cognizable in Florida)
- Hildwin v. State, 141 So. 3d 1178 (Fla. 2014) (requirement to consider cumulative effect of newly discovered evidence)
- Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (U.S. 1963) (prosecutorial duty to disclose exculpatory evidence)
- Giglio v. United States, 405 U.S. 150 (U.S. 1972) (prosecutor must correct witness impeachment deals and false testimony)