Florida Governor Rick Scott has signed a law intended to correct flaws in the state’s capital sentencing procedure. The new law came in response to a series of court rulings that found Florida’s system of allowing judges, instead of juries, to find the facts necessary to impose the death penalty was a violation of the Sixth Amendment right to trial by jury. Under the new law juries will have to unanimously recommend the death sentence to be imposed on defendants convicted of capital crimes. With nearly 400 inmates on Death Row, Florida has more prisoners facing execution than almost any other state.
