JOHNNY RAY GAFFNEY, PETITIONER,
v.
KENNETH S. TUCKER, ETC., RESPONDENT

Fla. | 2012-06-07
No. SC11-2136
CANADY, C.J., and PARIENTE, LEWIS, QUINCE, POLSTON, LABARGA, and PERRY, JJ., concur.
94 So. 3d 556 Florida Supreme Court (2012) Positive Treatment
Cited by 2 cases

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Synopsis

The Florida Supreme Court affirmed its dismissal of an inmate's habeas corpus petition as unauthorized and imposed sanctions prohibiting him from filing further pro se pleadings related to his criminal case without counsel certification, finding his pattern of frivolous filings warranted the restriction.


Holding

The Court imposed sanctions on Gaffney, directing the Clerk to reject all future pro se pleadings, petitions, and filings related to his criminal case unless signed by a member of The Florida Bar in good standing. The Court found Gaffney's petition frivolous under Florida Statute § 944.279 and ordered a certified copy of the opinion forwarded to the Department of Corrections.


Headnotes

[1] A pro se petition for writ of habeas corpus filed by a noncapital defendant may be dismissed as unauthorized if it seeks collateral postconviction relief that could have…

[2] A court may retain jurisdiction to pursue sanctions against a pro se litigant who files an unauthorized and frivolous petition.

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Key Quotes

“it is patently evident from the record before this Court that Gaffney is not entitled to bring further collateral attacks on his criminal case.”

Establishes the basis for restricting further filings based on the history of unsuccessful collateral proceedings

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Facts & Procedural History

Johnny Ray Gaffney was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for capital sexual battery in 1985. His conviction was affirmed on direct appeal i…

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

*557PER CURIAM.

Johnny Ray Gaffney, an inmate in state custody, filed a pro se petition for writ of habeas corpus with this Court challenging his conviction and sentence.1 We dismissed the petition in this case by way of an unpublished order, determining that the petition was unauthorized pursuant to Baker v. State, 878 So.2d 1236 (Fla.2004).2 In disposing of the petition in this case, we expressly retained jurisdiction to pursue possible sanctions against Gaffney.3 See Fla. R.App. P. 9.410(a).

Gaffney was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for committing capital sexual battery in Putnam County, Florida (circuit court case number 85-CF-01064). Gaffney appealed his conviction and sentence to the Fifth District Court of Appeal, which affirmed the conviction and the sentence. Gaffney v. State, 497 So.2d 1292 (Fla. 5th DCA 1986). Since his criminal case became final, Gaffney has unsuccessfully brought numerous collateral proceedings in the district and trial courts seeking relief related to his criminal case.4 However, it is patently evident from the record before this Court that Gaffney is not entitled to bring further collateral attacks on his criminal case.

Since 1994, Gaffney has filed multiple extraordinary writ petitions with this Court seeking relief from his conviction and sentence. We observe that in none of the petitions Gaffney filed in this Court has any relief been granted.5 Because the *558petition filed in this ease was dismissed as unauthorized and also was his ninth extraordinary writ petition filed with this Court pertaining to his criminal case, we issued an order directing Gaffney to show cause why he should not be prohibited from filing any further pro se filings in this Court related to case number 85-CF-01064.6 After considering Gaffney’s response, we conclude that it fails to show cause why he should not be sanctioned. We further conclude that Gaffney’s unauthorized petition is a frivolous proceeding brought to this Court by a prisoner. See § 944.279, Fla. Stat. (2011). Gaffney has compiled a history of pro se filings in this Court that, like the instant habeas corpus petition, were devoid of merit or inappropriate for review in this Court.

Accordingly, the Clerk of this Court is hereby instructed to reject any future pleadings, petitions, motions, documents, or other filings submitted by Johnny Ray Gaffney that are related to circuit court case number 85-CF-01064, unless such filings are signed by a member in good standing of The Florida Bar. Counsel may file on Gaffney’s behalf if counsel determines that the proceeding may have merit and can be brought in good faith.7 Furthermore, since we have found Gaffney’s petition to be frivolous, we direct the Clerk of this Court, pursuant to section 944.279(1), Florida Statutes (2011), to forward a certified copy of this opinion to the Department of Corrections’ institution or facility where Gaffney is incarcerated.8

It is so ordered.

CANADY, C.J., and PARIENTE, LEWIS, QUINCE, POLSTON, LABARGA, and PERRY, JJ., concur.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Green v. Tucker, 101 So. 3d 358 (Fla. 2012)
    …r conviction and sentence.”). . In recent years, we have imposed comparable sanctions on other litigants whose pro se filing practices have exhibited their disregard for abusing scarce judicial resources in this Court. See, e.g., Gaffney v. Tucker, 94 So. 3d 556 (Fla.2012); James v. Tucker, 75 So. 3d 231 (Fla.2011); Steele v. State, 14 So. 3d 221 (Fla.2009); Pettway v. McNeil, 987 So. 2d 20 (Fla.2008). . See, e.g., Gaffney, 94 So. 3d at 558; James, 75 So. 3d at 232; Steele, 14 So. 3d at 224.…

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