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Thread: William Kenneth Taylor - Florida Death Row

  1. #1
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    William Kenneth Taylor - Florida Death Row




    Summary of Offense:

    William Taylor met Sandra Kushmer and her brother, Billy D. Maddox, at Harry’s Bar in Riverview. Taylor knew Kushmer from school. When Taylor noticed that Kushmer’s brother bought expensive drinks and left generous tips, he decided to rob them. He took them to their mother’s house where he attacked them and robbed them. Taylor hit Kushmer in the head then shot her in the face with a shotgun. He then severely beat Maddox. Maddox nearly died from the beating, he received several fractures to his skull and allegedly still suffers from lasting brain damage from the incident.

    After the incident, while still in Tampa, Taylor washed his bloody clothes, pawned the shotgun, made charges to the Maddox’s credit card and attempted to cash one of Maddox’s checks. Taylor then fled to Memphis, Tennessee, where he assumed Maddox’s identity of a stockbroker and used his stolen credit cards and checks to make purchases. Taylor was arrested in Memphis.

    Taylor has given various accounts of what happened. At one point, he claimed that his wife, Lorena Taylor, and a man named Jose Arano were present and participated in the crimes; however, neither of them has been charged with a crime.

    Taylor was sentenced to death in Hillsborough County on September 29, 2004.

  2. #2
    Administrator Heidi's Avatar
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    Case Information:

    On 11/19/04, Taylor filed a Direct Appeal in the Florida Supreme Court. He argued that the trial court erred in denying the motion to suppress evidence seized in an unlawful search and that the sentence of death is disproportionate for this case. Taylor also contended that the Florida Capital Sentencing process is unconstitutional since the judge, rather than the jury, determines the sentence and the existence of his prior violent felony should not bar the application of Ring to his death sentence. Finally, Taylor argued that the jury instructions given during the penalty phase unconstitutionally shifted the burden of proof onto him and the instructions improperly minimized and denigrated the role of the jury in violation of Caldwell v. Mississippi. The court affirmed Taylor’s conviction and death sentence on 06/29/06.

    On 10/25/06, the Circuit Court entered an order finding competency to waive postconviction proceedings & counsel.

    On 12/04/06, an appeal of the Circuit Court order was filed in the Florida Supreme Court. On 07/09/07, this appeal was voluntarily dismissed from the Florida Supreme Court.

    On 10/09/07, Taylor filed a 3.851 motion in the Circuit Court and then filed an Amended Motion on 02/14/08. This motion was denied on 11/19/09.

    Taylor filed a 3.851 appeal in the Florida Supreme Court on 12/30/09. This case is currently pending.

    Taylor filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus in the Florida Supreme Court on 11/08/10. This petition is currently pending. Oral arguments set 09/08/11

  3. #3
    Administrator Heidi's Avatar
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    WILLIAM KENNETH TAYLOR vs KENNETH S. TUCKER

    In today's Florida Supreme Court opinions, Taylor's petition for post-conviction relief was DENIED.

  4. #4
    Administrator Moh's Avatar
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    On May 24, 2012, Taylor filed a habeas petition in Federal District Court.

    http://dockets.justia.com/docket/flo...v01169/271847/

  5. #5
    Senior Member CnCP Legend Mike's Avatar
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    Today the Florida Supreme Court denied his Hurst appeal.

    http://www.floridasupremecourt.org/d.../sc17-1458.pdf

  6. #6
    Senior Member CnCP Legend Mike's Avatar
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    On February 17, 2023, the Federal District Court denied Taylor a COA.

    https://docs.justia.com/cases/federa...1169/271847/94
    "There is a point in the history of a society when it becomes so pathologically soft and tender that among other things it sides even with those who harm it, criminals, and does this quite seriously and honestly. Punishing somehow seems unfair to it, and it is certain that imagining ‘punishment’ and ‘being supposed to punish’ hurts it, arouses fear in it." Friedrich Nietzsche

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