04/04/85          Indicted for First-Degree Murder

03/13/86          Jury returned guilty verdict

03/27/86          The Jury recommended the death sentence by a vote of 7-5

04/24/86          Sentenced to death

Case Information:

Hardwick filed a Direct Appeal with the Florida Supreme Court on 05/14/86, citing the following eight errors: improper exclusion of testimony; improper refusal to allow pro se representation; improper restriction of cross-examination; violations of witness sequestration rule; defense had a right to a jury instruction on intoxication; failure of the state to eliminate other reasonable hypotheses of innocence; improper conclusions on aggravating and mitigating circumstances; and error in finding two aggravating circumstances (heinous, atrocious, and cruel and cold, calculated, and premeditated) based on the same facts.  The FSC affirmed the conviction and sentence on 02/04/88.

Hardwick filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court on 06/03/88 that was denied on 10/03/88.

Hardwick filed a 3.850 Motion with the Circuit Court on 02/16/90.  On 03/06/90, the Circuit Court denied the Motion, but on appeal, the FSC ordered the Circuit Court to conduct an evidentiary hearing.  After conducting the evidentiary hearing, the Circuit Court again denied the motion on 03/21/91.

Hardwick filed a Petition for Extraordinary Relief and Writ of Mandamus with the Florida Supreme Court on 03/30/90 that was withdrawn on 04/09/90.

On 01/10/90, the Governor signed a death warrant for Hardwick.

Hardwick filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus with the Florida Supreme Court on 02/16/90 and a 3.850 Motion appeal on 06/05/91.  On 03/15/90, the FSC granted a stay of execution, pending a 3.850 Motion evidentiary hearing in the trial court. 

Following the Circuit Court’s denial of the 3.850 Motion, the FSC denied the Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus and affirmed the Circuit Court’s denial of the 3.850 Motion.

Hardwick filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus with the U.S. District Court on 03/20/95, citing twenty issues.  The USDC denied the Petition on 02/24/97.

Hardwick filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus Appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals on 07/02/97.  

On 09/04/97, the USCA vacated the USDC judgment and remanded the case for re-consideration, ordering the USDC to review Hardwick’s Petition for Certificate of Appealability* that the USDC had granted in part and denied in part in its opinion on 02/24/97.  In its opinion, the USCA noted that the USDC had erroneously applied the Certificate of Appealability provisions of the AEDPA to Hardwick’s case, which was pending at the time of the signing of the AEDPA. 

On 09/17/97, the USDC granted Hardwick’s Petition for Certificate of Appealability, and on 10/27/97, the case was sent back to the USCA for appeal.

On 01/31/03, the USCA affirmed the USDC’s denial of the Habeas Petition as to Hardwick’s conviction, but vacated the USDC’s denial of the Habeas Petition as to Hardwick’s death sentence.  The USCA ordered an evidentiary hearing to be held on claims that counsel was  ineffective at the penalty phase of trial for failing to argue mitigating evidence.

On 03/02/03, the USDC stayed proceedings in the case pending a resolution of a rehearing motion in the USCA.  On 06/16/03, the case was reopened and an evidentiary hearing is to be set.

On 06/20/03, Hardwick filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus with the Florida Supreme Court that was denied on 11/21/03.

* - The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) was signed into law on 04/24/96.  The AEDPA governs the appeal process of federal Petitions for Writ of Habeas Corpus that are denied at the USDC level.  According to the AEDPA, the USDC must issue a Certificate of Appealability in order for the Habeas Petition to be appealed to a higher federal court.

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