RICHARD W. ERVIN, AS ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLANT,
v.
LEROY COLLINS, INDIVIDUALLY, R. A. GRAY, AS SECRETARY OF STATE OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA, AND PEASLEE STREETS, APPELLEES
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The Florida Supreme Court rejected suggestions that three justices be disqualified from hearing a case involving then-Governor LeRoy Collins based on alleged bias or personal/political relationships. The court held that the suggestions were legally insufficient to support disqualification under Florida law.
The court held that the suggestions are not sufficient in form to constitute a legal basis for disqualification, and that even assuming the form were sufficient, the facts alleged are not sufficient to constitute a legal basis for disqualification. The suggestions are addressed only to the conscience of the respective justices, not to a legal requirement.
“The suggestions filed on behalf of Streets are not legally sufficient to constitute a basis for the disqualification of the Justices sought to be disqualified, but on the contrary are addressed to the conscience of the respective Justices'against whom the suggestions are directed.”
The court's holding that the suggestions lack legal sufficiency and appeal only to conscience rather than establishing grounds for disqualification.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligencePeaslee Streets, an attorney, filed suggestions seeking disqualification of Justices Elwyn Thomas, Campbell Thornal, and Stephen O'Connell from hearin…
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PER CURIAM.
This cause is before the Court on the suggestions of Peaslee Streets, one of the attorneys, that Justices Elwyn Thomas, Campbell Thornal and Stephen O’Connell are disqualified to hear the above cause, on the ground of bias in favor of the appellee, LeRoy Collins. Disqualification of Justice Thomas is sought because of the fact that “Justice Thomas and LeRoy Collins and their families are close, intimate, and personal friends, and have been for many years.” Disqualification of Justice Thornal and Justice O’Connell is sought on the ground that each was appointed to the office of Justice by Governor Collins, and each is a strong personal and political friend of the Governor. At the bar of this Court the attorney for Peaslee Streets has conceded that the sug* gestions filed on behalf of Streets are not legally sufficient to constitute a basis for the disqualification of the Justices sought to be disqualified, but on the contrary are addressed to the conscience of the respective Justices'against whom the suggestions are directed. With this we agree.
The suggestions are not sufficient in form to constitute a legal basis for disqualification. Ball v. Yates, 158 Fla. 521, 29 So. 2d 729; Hahn v. Frederick, Fla., 66 So. 2d 823. And assuming that the form of the suggestions were sufficient, the facts alleged therein are not sufficient to constitute a legal basis for disqualification.
DREW, C. J., TERRELL, HOBSON and BUFORD, JJ., and PARKS and HARRISON, Associate Justices, concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Honorable Mary Ann MacKENZIE v. Super Kids Bargain Store, Inc., 565 So. 2d 1332 (Fla. 1990)…icient when asserted in a motion for disqualification. See, e.g., In re Estate of Carlton, 378 So. 2d 1212 (Fla.1979) (Overton, J., Denial of Request for Recusal), cert. denied, 447 U.S. 922, 100 S.Ct. 3013, 65 L.Ed.2d 1114 (1980); Ervin v. Collins, 85 So. 2d 833 (Fla.1956). The same is true of the ground for disqualification asserted at bar. Contributions such as the one at issue are normal incidents in a campaign for public office. As long as it appears that a contribution was a normal incident in such a c…
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Ervin v. Collins, 85 So. 2d 852 (Fla. 1956)
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In re Est. of Perry Carlton v. Rogers, 378 So. 2d 1212 (Fla. 1979)…ida’s Code of Judicial Conduct. This Court’s procedural treatment of requests for disqualification has not always been consistent. In two cases the non-challenged members of the Court ruled on the legal sufficiency of the request. Ervin v. Collins, 85 So. 2d 833 (Fla.1956); Ball v. Yates, 158 Fla. 521, 29 So. 2d 729, cert. denied, 322 U.S. 774, 68 S.Ct. 66, 92 L.Ed. 359 (1947). More recent cases, however, have left the determination of disqualification to the discretion of the justice sought to be disqualif…1 / 2
Previewing 3 of 8 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Ball v. Yates, 158 Fla. 521 (Fla. 1946)
- Hahn v. Frederick, 66 So. 2d 823 (Fla. 1953)