VINCENT FAUSTINO RIVERA, PETITIONER,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, ET AL., RESPONDENTS

Fla. | 1998-12-10
Nos. 92,601
OVERTON, SHAW, KOGAN, WELLS and PARIENTE, JJ., concur.
728 So. 2d 1165 Florida Supreme Court (1998) Positive Treatment
Cited by 103 cases

AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.

Synopsis

The Florida Supreme Court imposed sanctions on Vincent Faustino Rivera, an inmate serving a life sentence, barring him from filing further frivolous or procedurally barred petitions after he had filed over twenty petitions to the Court attempting to relitigate issues already decided on direct appeal or in prior postconviction proceedings.


Holding

The Court barred Rivera from filing future petitions concerning issues that should have been or actually were raised on appeal or in prior postconviction proceedings, unless those issues clearly invoke the Court's exclusive jurisdiction under Article V, Section 3(b)(1)-(6) of the Florida Constitution, and cautioned that further abuses could result in additional sanctions.


Headnotes

[1] A petition for extraordinary relief is not a second appeal and cannot be used to litigate or relitigate issues that could have been or were raised on direct appeal or in…

[2] Courts have an inherent authority to prevent the abuse of the judicial system by barring litigants from continuously filing frivolous petitions.

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Key Quotes

“A petition for extraordinary relief is not a second appeal and cannot be used to litigate or relitigate issues which could have been or were raised on direct appeal or in prior post conviction proceedings.”

Establishes the fundamental principle that extraordinary writs cannot be used to circumvent normal appellate procedures or retry settled issues.

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Facts & Procedural History

Rivera is serving a life sentence for two murders committed in 1990. He did not directly appeal his murder convictions but subsequently filed at least…

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Opinion of the Court

Vincent Faustino Rivera, inmate No. 518548, petitioned this Court for a Writ of Habeas Corpus. On October 9, 1998, this Court denied the petition as procedurally barred and issued an order to Rivera requiring that he show cause why this Court should not prohibit him from submitting further procedurally barred or otherwise frivolous filings. The show cause order was based on the following:

Vincent Faustino Rivera, inmate No. 518548, is currently serving a life sentence for two murders committed in 1990. In the instant petition for writ of habeas corpus, Rivera is attempting to appeal to this Court the dismissal of an appeal filed in the First District Court of Appeal. A petition for extraordinary relief is not a second appeal and cannot be used to litigate or relitigate issues which could have been or were raised on direct appeal or in prior post conviction proceedings. See Breedlove v. Singletary, 595 So. 2d 8, 10 (Fla.1992); Mills v. Dugger, 574 So. 2d 63, 65 (Fla.1990). Accordingly, this petition is denied as procedurally barred.

While Rivera did not directly appeal his murder convictions, thereafter, he has overburdened the court system with challenges to his confinement. Prior to filing the present petition on February 23, 1998, Rivera had filed at least twenty petitions in this Court. Most of those petitions challenged either his convictions, sentences, or disciplinary actions taken against him which he had already litigated. See Rivera v. State, No. 93,218[, 718 So. 2d 170] (Fla. Jun.1, 1998); Rivera v. State, No. 93,066[, 717 So. 2d 536] (Fla. May 29, 1998); Rivera v. Arnold, No. 93,015[, 717 So. 2d 536] (Fla. May 21, 1998); Rivera v. Department of Corrections, No. 93,011[, 717 So. 2d 536] (Fla. May 21, 1998); Faustino [Rivera] v. State, 703 So. 2d 476 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,970); Rivera v. State, 703 So. 2d 477 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,964); Rivera v. State, 703 So. 2d 477 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,963); Rivera v. Department of Corrections, 703 So. 2d 477 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,874); Rivera v. State, 705 So. 2d 10 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,844); Rivera v. State, 705 So. 2d 10 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,800); Rivera v. Department of Corrections, 701 So. 2d 868 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,676); Rivera v. Department of Corrections, 700 So. 2d 687 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,555); Rivera v. State, 707 So. 2d 1126 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,464); Rivera v. Department of Corrections, 705 So. 2d 10 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,439); Rivera v. Department of Corrections, 701 So. 2d 868 (Fla.1997) (No. 91,438); Rivera v. Department of Corrections, No. 90,831 (Fla. June 27, 1997); Rivera v. State, 705 So. 2d 10 (Fla.1997) (No. 90,788). In addition, since the filing of this petition, Rivera has filed numerous additional petitions in this Court.

Rivera has filed petitions in other district courts of this State as well. See Rivera v. State, 702 So. 2d 499 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997); Rivera v. State, 702 So. 2d 499 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997); Rivera v. State, 702 So. 2d 499 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997). This listing only includes reported decisions.

Finally, the United States Supreme Court recently denied five certiorari petitions filed by Rivera. See Rivera v. Florida, - U.S. -, 118 S.Ct. 1372, 140 L.Ed.2d 520 (1998) (denying certiorari review from this Court’s decision in Rivera, 703 So. 2d at 477, and the Second District’s decision in Rivera, 702 So. 2d at 499); Rivera v. Florida Dep’t of Corrections, — U.S. -, 118 S.Ct. 888, 139 L.Ed.2d 874 (1998); Rivera v. Arocho, — U.S. -, 118 S.Ct. 570, 139 L.Ed.2d 409 (1997); Rivera v. Parker, — U.S. -, 118 S.Ct. 425, 139 L.Ed.2d 326 (1997).

As the United States Supreme Court has stated, “[E]xtraordinary writs are, not surprisingly, ‘drastic and extraordinary remedies,’ to be ‘reserved for really extraordinary causes,’ in which ‘appeal is clearly an inadequate remedy.’” In re McDonald, 489 U.S. 180, 185, 109 S.Ct. 993, 103 L.Ed.2d 158 (1989) (quoting Ex parte Fahey, 332 U.S. 258, 259-60, 67 S.Ct. 1558, 91 L.Ed. 2041 (1947)).

Rivera has flooded the courts with frivolous petitions, appeals, and other filings requesting relief to which he was not entitled. This Court has recognized that “[t]he resources of our court system are finite and must be reserved for the resolution of genuine disputes.” Aysisayh v. State, No. 89,927[, 701 So. 2d 867] (Fla. Sept. 23, 1997) (order denying habeas corpus); see Aysisayh v. State, 701 So. 2d 867 (Fla.1997) (table report of unpublished order), cert. denied — U.S. -, 118 S.Ct. 888, 139 L.Ed.2d 875 (1998). As noted by the United States Supreme Court, “[E]very paper filed with the Clerk of this Court, no matter how repetitious or frivolous, requires some portion of the institution’s limited resources. A part of the Court’s responsibility is to see that these resources are allocated in a way that promotes the interests of justice.” In re McDonald, 489 U.S. at 184[, 109 S.Ct. 993],

Rivera responds to this Court’s order to show cause by continuing to contest the results of his appeal. Rivera should have raised the claims he raises here in the district court. Since the 1980 constitutional revisions, the district courts now constitute the courts of last resort for the vast majority of litigants. In re Amendments to Fla. Rules of Appellate Procedure, 609 So. 2d 516, 526 (Fla.1992). This Court has already ruled that the merits of Rivera’s case will not be heard again. Accordingly, this Court finds no justification to allow Rivera to continue to file procedurally barred petitions and that Rivera’s continuous filings have substantially interfered with the orderly process of judicial administration. This Court has a responsibility to ensure every citizen’s access to courts. To further that end, this Court has prevented abusive litigants from continuously filing frivolous petitions, thus enabling the Court to devote its finite resources to those who have not abused the system. See Attwood v. Singletary, 661 So. 2d 1216, 1217 (Fla.1995). Consequently, this Court exercises its inherent authority to prevent the abuse of the judicial system, and bars Rivera from any future filings concerning issues which should have been or actuálly were raised on appeal or in prior postconviction proceedings and which do not clearly invoke this Court’s exclusive jurisdiction pursuant to Article V, Section 3(b)(1) — (6), of the Florida Constitution. We caution Rivera that further abuses of the judicial process could result in additional sanctions, including, but not limited to, sanctions under either section 944.279 or section 944.28(2)(a), Florida Statutes (1997).

It is so ordered.

OVERTON, SHAW, KOGAN, WELLS and PARIENTE, JJ., concur.


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Citator

Cited By (53 total)

  • State v. Spencer, 751 So. 2d 47 (Fla. 1999)
    …. However, as a matter of practice, this Court has first issued orders to show cause before denying a litigant access in this Court to challenge his or her conviction, sentence, or disciplinary actions during confinement. See, e.g., Rivera v. State, 728 So. 2d 1165, 1165 (Fla.1998), petition for cert. filed, No. 98-8366 (U.S. Mar. 3, 1999); Attwood v. Singletary, 661 So. 2d 1216, 1216 (Fla.1995). We have recognized the importance of the constitutional guarantee of citizen access to the courts, with or without…
  • Pettway v. McNEIL, 987 So. 2d 20 (Fla. 2008)
    …r v. State, 908 So. 2d 332 (Fla.2005); Jean v. State, 906 So. 2d 1055 (Fla.2005); Armstead v. State, 817 So. 2d 841 (Fla.2002); Peterson v. State, 817 So. 2d 838 (Fla.2002); Jackson v. Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 790 So. 2d 398 (Fla.2001); Rivera v. State, 728 So. 2d 1165 (Fla.1998); Attwood v. Singletary, 661 So. 2d 1216 (Fla.1995). One justification for such a sanction lies in the protection of the rights of others to have the Court conduct timely reviews of their legitimate filings. See Martin, 506 U.S. at 3, 113…
  • Jackson v. Fla. Dep't OF Corr., 790 So. 2d 398 (Fla. 2001)
    …tigants and did so. Not long ago, we said in regard to another abusive litigant that he, like Jackson, had “flooded the courts with frivolous petitions, appeals and other filings requesting relief to which he was not entitled.” See Rivera v. State, 728 So. 2d 1165, 1166 (Fla. 1998) (quoting earlier order to show cause). We then recognized that “the resources of our court system are finite and must be reserved for the resolution of genuine disputes.” Id. And as we said in our last opinion in this case: [T]he…

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