GEORGE ZIMMERMAN, PETITIONER,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, RESPONDENT
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Florida appellate court granted Zimmerman's petition for writ of prohibition, requiring the trial judge to disqualify himself because the allegations in the disqualification motion, taken together, created a well-founded fear of bias under Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.330.
A trial judge must grant a motion to disqualify when the allegations, taken together, create in a reasonably prudent person a well-founded fear of not receiving a fair and impartial trial, even if individual allegations standing alone would be insufficient.
[1] A motion to disqualify a trial judge is legally sufficient under Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.330 when the allegations, considered together, would create in…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceGeorge Zimmerman filed a motion to disqualify the trial judge assigned to his case. Although many individual allegations in the motion did not indepen…
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George Zimmerman petitions for issuance of a writ of prohibition. This is the proper mechanism for challenging the denial of a motion to disqualify a trial judge. See, e.g., Lusskin v. State, 717 So.2d 1076, 1077 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998). Reviewing the matter de novo, see R.M.C. v. D.C., 77 So.3d 234, 236 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012), we grant the petition.
Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.330 requires a trial judge to grant a motion to disqualify without determining the accuracy of the allegations in the motion, so long as the motion is “legally sufficient.” R.M.C., 77 So.3d at 236. “A motion is legally sufficient if it alleges facts that would create in a reasonably prudent person a well-founded fear of not receiving a fair and impartial trial.” Id. (citing MacKenzie v. Super Kids Bargain Store, Inc., 565 So.2d 1332 (Fla.1990)). Although many of the allegations in Zimmerman’s motion, standing alone, do not meet the legal sufficiency test,1 and while this is admittedly a close call, upon careful review we find that the allegations, taken together, meet the threshold test of legal sufficiency. Accordingly, we direct the trial judge to enter an order of disqualification which requests the chief circuit judge to appoint a successor judge.
PETITION GRANTED.
*1012LAWSON and COHEN, JJ., concur.
EVANDER, J., dissents with opinion.
dissenting.
I respectfully dissent. As the majority correctly observes, adverse rulings are not, in and of themselves, sufficient to require the granting of a motion to disqualify. Although the trial court’s order clearly manifested an exceedingly strong belief by the trial judge that Zimmerman had “flouted” and “tried to manipulate” the system, I do not believe the order “crossed the line” so as to require the granting of his motion.
EVANDER, J.,
dissenting.
I respectfully dissent. As the majority correctly observes, adverse rulings are not, in and of themselves, sufficient to require the granting of a motion to disqualify. Although the trial court’s order clearly manifested an exceedingly strong belief by the trial judge that Zimmerman had “flouted” and “tried to manipulate” the system, I do not believe the order “crossed the line” so as to require the granting of his motion.
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Great Am. Ins. Co. OF NEW York v. 2000 Island Boulevard Condo. Ass'n, Inc., 153 So. 3d 384 (Fla. 3d DCA 2014)…r means.). * . We acknowledge the court’s statement in this regard ordinarily would not be sufficient to warrant disqualification. However, “legal sufficiency” is determined by analyzing the totality of the grounds asserted. See Zimmerman v. State, 114 So. 3d 1011, 1011 (Fla. 5th DCA 2012). . The June 26 letter reads as a standard reservation of rights letter, citing potentially applicable policy defenses and exclusions, and requesting information (albeit considerable in length and breadth) for its use in ma…
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Shabtai v. Shabtai (Fla. 3d DCA 2023)…flicts of interest,” even though no evidence had been presented and the opposing party had not raised that specific argument. We agree and find “the allegations, taken together, meet the threshold test of legal sufficiency.” Zimmerman v. State, 114 So. 3d 1011, 1011 (Fla. 5th DCA 2012); Great Am. Ins. Co. of New York,153 So. 3d at 389 n.3 (noting that a legal sufficiency determination considers all comments together and “analyz[es] the totality of the grounds asserted”). We recognize that trial courts…
Authorities Cited
- Honorable Mary Ann MacKENZIE v. Super Kids Bargain Store, Inc., 565 So. 2d 1332 (Fla. 1990)
- R.M.C. v. D.C., 77 So. 3d 234 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012)
- Lusskin v. State, 717 So. 2d 1076 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998)
- In the Interest of K.H. v. State, 527 So. 2d 230 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988)
- Bond v. State, 717 So. 2d 1076 (Fla. 5th DCA 1998)