JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The man convicted of killing Cherish Perrywinkle in 2013 will be back in court Tuesday for a status conference hearing for a 78-page appeal filed by his lawyers in April.
In 2018, Donald Smith was found guilty of killing the 8-year-old and sentenced to death.
Investigators found that Smith abducted Perrywinkle at a Northside Walmart. Investigators found that Smith abducted Perrywinkle at a Northside Walmart.
Smith’s lawyers argued in the appeal that there were many errors made in his trial that led to the penalty phase where he was sentenced to death. The appeal cited multiple things in his trial that he argues invalidate his original conviction.
Some of those claims said his former lawyers failed to remove a biased juror. The appeal also claims those lawyers failed to object to a 911 call and “digitally altered photographs.”
Belkis Plata, a Jacksonville attorney not associated with the case, explains the strategy.
“The job of the new defense attorneys is to poke holes in the work that the former defense attorneys did and try to show that it was so poorly done, that it negatively affected Mr. Smith, and he deserves to have another day in court,” Plata said.
Plata said Tuesday’s hearing is more procedural. But the overall result of the appeals process could go a few different ways for Smith’s case.
“I think it’s left to be seen which issue we’re going to address and whether he gets a complete do-over or if it’s only going to be as it relates to the death penalty itself,” Plata said.
Back in May, the State Attorney’s Office filed a response to the motion for a new trial, arguing it should be “summarily denied.”
“I think they think they had really strong evidence and taking these things out, if these things did not exist at the time… They couldn’t have been put forward, the jury would have found the same way. I think the Court has said, not so fast. We’re willing to hear these issues,” Plata said.
Smith’s status conference at 10 a.m. The evidentiary hearing will happen on Dec. 4.
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