Terry Lenamon on the Death Penalty

Terry Lenamon is in the news again as he fights to save two men from the death penalty in Florida, filing motions in two separate Marion County death penalty matters, on behalf of James Edward Bannister and Michael Lamar.

He is arguing that the Florida Statute 27.5304 not only establishes how private court-appointed counsel are paid but that the law creates a conflict of interest for judges who are presiding over these indigent cases.  The motions request disqualification of the court, where the judge not only presides over the case itself but also approves the defense expenses including the attorney's fees for representing the indigent defendant. 

It's the idea that the judge may short cut in order to save money in an indigent case that is seeking to impose the death penalty that is the crux of Lenamon's argument. 

Will it succeed?  Stay tuned.