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Fourth
Judicial Circuit, Duval County Case # 92-13193
Sentencing Judge: The Honorable
Henry E. Davis
Attorney, Trial: Charlie Adams –
Private
Attorney, Direct Appeal: Bill
Salmon – Special Assistant Public Defender
Attorney, Collateral Appeals:
Wayne Henderson – Registry
Date of Offense:
12/09/92
Date of Sentence:
07/18/95
Circumstances of Offense:
Toney Davis lived with Gwen
Cunningham from September 1992 until 12/09/92.
On 12/09/92, Gwen
Cunningham left her two-year-old daughter, Caleasha, in the care of
Davis while she ran an errand. An acquaintance of Davis, Thomas Moore,
arrived at the apartment around 12:45 p.m.
Davis answered the door with Caleasha draped over his arm. Davis told Moore that Caleasha had choked
on a French fry, and while Moore called 911, Davis gave Caleasha
mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Prior to the 911 call, neighbors
reported hearing thumping noises and Davis’ raised voice coming from the
apartment.
Caleasha was wet, unconscious,
and had blood in her mouth when she was examined at the apartment. She
was naked from the waist down, although she was fully clothed when Gwen
Cunningham left the apartment. Caleasha was revived, but later died on
12/10/92.
The emergency room doctor who
examined Caleasha noticed bruising, swelling of the brain, and pools of
blood in the skull, as well as injuries that suggested vaginal
penetration by a penis, finger, or other object. The cause of
death was cerebral hemorrhage, caused by four blows to the head.
Caleasha’s hair bow was found in
the bed and her blood was found on the sheet, pillowcase, in the
bathroom, and on the crotch of Davis’ shorts and underwear.
Trial Summary:
12/15/94
Indicted as follows:
Count I First-Degree
Murder
Count
II Aggravated Child Abuse
Count
III Sexual Battery of a Child Under 12
05/11/95
Jury returned guilty verdicts on all counts of the indictment
06/13/95
Jury recommended a death sentence by a vote of 11-1
07/18/95
Sentenced as follows:
Count I First-Degree
Murder – Death
Count
II Aggravated Child Abuse – 10 years
Count
III Sexual Battery of a Child Under 12 – Life
imprisonment
Case Information:
On
08/29/95, Davis filed a Direct Appeal with the Florida Supreme Court,
citing the following trial court errors: denial of motion to remove
counsel before trial; denial of motion for judgment of acquittal; sexual
battery conviction should be reversed; admitting victim impact evidence;
considering and finding the heinous, atrocious, or cruel aggravating
circumstance when the jury did not consider it; finding that the murder
was committed during a violent felony aggravator; disproportionate
sentencing in comparison to other cases. The FSC affirmed the
convictions and sentences on 11/06/97.
On
04/09/98, Davis filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorari with the U.S.
Supreme Court that was denied on 06/15/98.
On
05/03/99, Davis filed a 3.850 Motion with the Circuit Court and amended
the Motion on 05/06/04 and 07/01/05. The Motion is pending.
