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Sixth Judicial Circuit, Pinellas
County, Case #89-13299
Sentencing Judge: The Honorable
R. Grable Stoutamire
Trial Attorneys: John White,
Esq. & Michael Schwartzberg, Esq. – Private
Attorney, Direct Appeal: Steven
Krosschell – Assistant Public Defender
Attorney, Collateral Appeal:
Mark Gruber & David Hendry – CCRC-M
Date of Offense: 08/11/89
Date of Sentence: 06/25/90
Circumstances of Offense:
Jeffrey Atwater, the defendant,
was convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of Ken Smith on
08/11/89.
On the day of the murder,
Atwater attempted to enter the John Knox Apartment Complex in St.
Petersburg, Florida. Upon reaching the security gate, Atwater told the
guard that he was Smith’s grandson and fabricated the purpose of his
visit. The defendant entered Smith’s apartment and proceeded to his
room.
After 20 minutes, Atwater left the apartment and Smith’s body was
discovered later that day. Apparently Smith had been robbed as well
because his pockets were turned inside out and all of his money was
missing.
After the murder, Atwater
reportedly told several people that he killed Smith, and he was
subsequently arrested later that day.
There was evidence that Atwater
was looking for Smith for up to three days prior to his murder.
Apparently, Atwater had obtained money from Smith before, but Smith was
fearful of him, and had vowed never to give him money again.
At trial, a medical examiner
testified that 64-year-old Smith had been stabbed over 40 times, and
there was evidence he was beaten prior to or during the killing.
Additional Information:
Jeffrey Atwater had no previous
criminal history in Florida prior to the robbery and murder of Ken
Smith.
Trial Summary:
08/11/89 Defendant
arrested.
09/07/89 Defendant
indicted on:
Count I: First-Degree
Murder
Count II: Robbery with a
Deadly Weapon
05/04/90 The jury found
the defendant guilty on counts I & II.
05/17/90 Upon advisory sentencing, the jury,
by an 11 to 1 majority, voted for the death penalty.
06/25/90 The defendant was sentenced as
followed:
Count I:
First-Degree Murder – Death
Count II:
Robbery with a Deadly Weapon – 10 years
Case Information:
On 07/18/90, Jeffrey Atwater
filed a Direct Appeal in the Florida Supreme Court. The defendant
contends that the trial court erred in permitting the State to excuse
the only black person in the venire by using a peremptory challenge. He
also claimed that the court erred in its treatment of a juror’s question
and that the State did not support its accusation of robbery with
adequate evidence. Atwater also challenged the application of two
aggravating factors; however, the court summarily denied those claims as
well.
The Florida Supreme Court affirmed the convictions and sentence
on 09/16/93. The mandate was issued on 12/29/93.
The defendant filed a Petition
for Writ of Certiorari on 02/22/94, which was subsequently denied on
04/18/94.
Atwater filed a 3.850 Motion in
Circuit Court on 10/16/95. The motion was denied on 01/06/99.
Atwater next filed an appeal of
his 3.850 Motion in the Florida Supreme Court on 11/22/99. That appeal
was denied on 06/07/01.
The defendant filed a Petition
for Writ of Habeas Corpus in the Florida Supreme Court on 12/22/99. The
petition was also denied on 06/07/01.
Atwater filed a Petition for
Writ of Habeas Corpus in the United States District Court on 06/21/02.
The petition was administratively closed pending the final decision in
the Bottoson/King cases.
On 01/13/03, the petition was reopened.
Atwater’s Habeas Petition was denied on 10/21/03. He filed an appeal of
that decision in the United States Court of Appeals on 12/04/03, which
is currently pending.
On 12/05/03, Atwater filed a Motion to Stay
pending the resolution of his State proceedings. On 06/12/06, the USCA
affirmed the denial of the petition.
On 12/08/03, Atwater filed a
Successive 3.850 Motion in the State Circuit Court, which was denied on
04/20/04. He filed an appeal of that decision in the Florida Supreme
Court, who affirmed the denial on 12/20/04.
