Stewart v. State
Stewart filed a habeas petition alleging ineffective assistance of appellate counsel for failing to challenge the trial court's reclassification of his attempted first-degree murder conviction (Count III) as a life felony. The Sixth DCA agreed that because Stewart was convicted as a principal and the jury made no special finding that he personally carried, used, or threatened to use a firearm, the weapon-possession sentencing reclassification under section 775.087(1) could not apply, and appellate counsel's failure to raise this was deficient and prejudicial.
Key facts
- Stewart was convicted as a principal of attempted first-degree murder (Count III) and received a sentence reclassified as a life felony based on section 775.087(1) weapon-possession enhancement, despite the jury making no special finding that Stewart personally carried, used, or threatened to use a firearm.
- Stewart filed a habeas petition challenging the effectiveness of his appellate counsel for failing to raise the issue that the weapon-reclassification enhancement could not apply to a conviction under principal liability theory without a specific jury finding of personal firearm involvement.
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Why it matters
This opinion reaffirms and imports the Fifth DCA's rule from Julian and Roberts into the newly formed Sixth DCA, confirming that weapon-reclassification enhancements under section 775.087(1) require a specific jury… — full analysis with a trial
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