The Commission on Capital Cases updates this informationregularly. This information, however, is subject to change and may not reflectthe latest status of an inmate’s case and should not be relied upon forstatistical or legal purposes.
PORTER, Jr., George (W/M)
DC# 110825
DOB: 02/18/32
Eighteenth Judicial Circuit, Brevard County Case# 86-5546CFA
Sentencing Judge: The Honorable John Antoon, II
Attorney, Trial: Pro se with the assistance of SamBaxter Bradwell – Private
Attorney, Direct Appeal: James B. Gibson – AssistantPublic Defender
Attorney, Collateral Appeals: Linda M. McDermott –Private
Date of Offense: 10/09/86
Date of Sentence: 03/04/88
Circumstances of the Offense:
George Porter and Evelyn Williams began their romanticrelationship in 1985. Porter moved into Ms. Williams’ home. Ms. Williams’daughter, Amber, and her sons did not get along with Porter. In one instanceduring 10/1985, Ms. Williams left the home for a vacation, and Amber lockedPorter out of the house and threatened him with a .357 magnum gun. When Ms.Williams returned from her vacation she began living with Porter again. In04/1986, Ms. Williams called the police after an incident occurred between herand Porter. After the event, Ms. Williams moved back to her own home.
In 07/1986, Porter vandalized Ms. Williams’ car. Porterproceeded to telephone Ms. Williams’ friends and family members and threatenedMs. Williams’ life as well as the lives of her family. Soon after the phonecalls, Porter moved to Michigan. Ms. Williams did not have contact with Porterwhile he was gone. During this time, Ms. Williams’ began a relationship withWalter Burrows.
In 10/1986, Porter returned to Florida. Upon his return,Porter telephoned Ms. Williams’ mother, Lora Mae Meyer, stating that he wouldlike to see Ms. Williams’ because he had a gift for her. Ms. Meyer told Porterthat Ms. Williams’ did not want to have anything to do with Porter. On10/08/68, Porter was seen driving through Ms. William’s neighborhood. Witnessesstated that Porter had been drinking until 11:00 p.m. He eventually madecontact with Ms. Williams, which resulted in Ms Williams filing a report withthe police.
On 10/09/86 at 5:30 a.m., Amber Williams was awakened by twogunshots. Amber ran down the hall to the kitchen where she fell on the floor.It was at this time that she saw Porter standing over her mother’s body. Porterwalked toward Amber, placed the gun at her temple and stated, “boom, boom,you’re going to die.” At this time Mr. Burrows appeared and attacked Porter.Mr. Burrows was able to force Porter outside of the home. Amber reportedhearing another shot while the two men were outside. She ran to her mother andthen to the front door, which she shut and locked. Amber then called 911.
John Williams was also awakened at 5:30 a.m. by threegunshots. He lived three houses away from his mother. He went to his mother’shouse and saw police cars and Mr. Burrows lying face-down in the front yard. Atthe time that the police arrived, both Mr. Burrows and Ms. Williams were dead.
Porter was arrested at the American Legion. He had gonethere to have lunch after he had done some work for a friend earlier thatmorning. As he was walking out of the establishment, the bartender told Porterthat she would see him later and Porter replied, “No, I don’t think you will.”
Autopsies were performed on both bodies. Ms. Williams diedof massive hemorrhaging due to gunshot wounds to the chest. The entrance woundsfound on the body indicated that Ms. Williams had been shot three to fourtimes. Mr. Burrows died from internal bleeding caused by a gunshot wound to hisback. Ms. Williams survived a few minutes after being shot; however, Mr.Burrows died instantly.
Additional Information:
On 12/05/87, which was during the trial,Porter told the judge that he wanted to plead guilty to the murder charges andno contest to the other charges. The judge refused to accept the pleas due tothe fact that Porter denied killing Ms. Williams but stated that he may havekilled Mr. Burrows. Porter then conceded to plead guilty to all four chargeswithout providing a factual basis for the pleas. The prosecution presentedfactual support for the pleas and the trial court assessed the voluntariness ofPorter’s pleas. The night that the court accepted the guilty pleas, Porterattempted suicide in his cell. On 01/04/88, Porter filed a motion to withdrawhis guilty plea stating that a guard threatened to kill his son if he continuedto stand trial. The court denied Porter’s motion to withdraw his pleas. Porterwas represented by counsel at sentencing.
Trial Summary:
10/28/86 Indicted as follows:
Count I: First-DegreeMurder (Williams)
Count II: First-DegreeMurder (Burrows)
Count III: Burglary
Count IV: AggravatedAssault
03/20/87 Motionfor counsel to withdraw due to representing witness in a prior matter.
04/30/87 The motion for counsel to withdraw wasgranted.
06/17/87 Defendant entered a written plea of notguilty.
12/07/87 Defendant entered a plea of guilty.
01/04/88 Motion to withdraw guilty plea.
01/21/88 Motion to withdraw guilty plea denied.
01/22/88 Jury recommended death by the followingvotes:
Count I: 12-0
Count II: 10-2
03/04/88 Sentenced as follows:
Count I: First-DegreeMurder – Death
Count II: First-DegreeMurder – Life
Count III: Burglary– Life
Count IV: AggravatedAssault – 5 years
Appeal Summary:
Florida Supreme Court – Direct Appeal
FSC# 72,301
564 So. 2d 1060
04/25/88 Appeal filed
06/14/90 FSC affirmed the conviction and sentence
09/04/90 Rehearing denied
10/04/90 Mandate issued
United States Supreme Court – Petition for Writ ofCertiorari
USSC# 90-6434
498 U.S. 1110
12/05/90 Petition filed
02/19/91 Petition denied
State Circuit Court – 3.850 Motion
CC# 86-5546 CFA
06/22/92 Motion filed
08/18/93 Motion denied
Florida Supreme Court – 3.850 Appeal
FSC# 82,509
649 So. 2d 234
10/08/93 Appeal filed
11/29/94 FSC dismissed appeal without prejudice forevidentiary hearing
Florida Supreme Court – Petition for Writ of HabeasCorpus
FSC# 54,159
649 So. 2d 234
06/06/94 Petition filed
11/29/94 FSC denied the petition
State Circuit Court – 3.850 Motion
CC# 86-5546 CFA
01/31/96 Evidentiary hearing held
05/15/96 Motion denied
Florida Supreme Court – 3.850 Appeal
FSC# 88,562
788 So. 2d 917
07/22/96 Appeal filed
05/03/01 FSC affirmed the trial’s court denial ofthe 3.850 motion
06/20/01 Rehearing denied
07/20/01 Mandate issued
Florida Supreme Court – Petition for Writ of HabeasCorpus
FSC# 01-2707
840 So. 2d 981
10/06/01 Petition filed
06/20/02 Petition denied
03/31/03 Rehearing denied
United States District Court, Middle District –Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus
USDC# 03-01465
10/14/03 Petition filed
05/20/04 Amended petition filed
06/18/07 Denied in part and granted in part
United States Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit – HabeasPetition Appeal
USCA# 07-12976
552 F.3d 1260
11/21/07 Appeal filed
12/22/08 Reversed the lower court’s decision andentered judgment for the State
United States Supreme Court – Petition for Writ ofCertiorari
USSC# 08-10537
05/18/09 Petition filed
11/30/09 Petition granted in part
Factors Contributing to the Delay in the Imposition ofthe Sentence:
The second 3.850 Appeal was pending in the Florida Supremefor five years.
Case Information:
Porter filed a Direct Appeal to the Florida Supreme Court on04/25/88. Porter claimed that the trial court improperly accepted hisguilty pleas and then improperly denied the withdrawal of these same pleas. The Court found no error in regard to these issues. The remainingissues in the appeal surrounded the aggravating factors utilized in thesentencing phase of the trial. The Court found that the prosecution didnot meet its burden of proof for proving that the crime was especially heinous,atrocious, or cruel, but it did prove beyond reasonable doubt that the murderwas committed in a cold, calculated and premeditated manner. The Courtaffirmed the conviction and sentence on 06/14/90. The rehearing was denied on09/04/90 and the mandate was issued on 10/04/90.
Porter filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the UnitedStates Supreme Court on 12/05/90. The petition was denied on 02/19/91.
Porter then filed a 3.850 Motion in the Circuit Court on06/22/92. The motion was denied on 08/18/93 because it did not contain aproperly sworn oath. Porter filed a motion for reconsideration that alsowas denied. Porter filed an appeal of the trial court’s denial of the 3.850Motion to the Florida Supreme Court on 10/08/93. The appeal was dismissedwithout prejudice on 11/29/94 due to the State filing a Motion to Dismiss orRelinquish Jurisdiction for an Evidentiary Hearing so that Porter could file aproperly sworn motion. During this same time, Porter filed a Petition forWrit of Habeas Corpus to the Florida Supreme Court on 06/06/94. The petitionwas denied on 11/29/94.
Porter filed an amended 3.850 Motion to the Circuit Court on02/27/95. The Circuit Court held an evidentiary hearing on 01/04/96 onthe Porter’s claim of ineffective assistance of counsel. The 3.850 Motionwas again denied on 05/15/96. Porter again filed an appeal of the trialcourt’s denial of the 3.850 Motion to the Florida Supreme Court on 07/22/96. Porter raised nine issues in the appeal, five of which were procedurallybarred because they could have been raised on Direct Appeal. The Court foundthree of the remaining issues to be meritless. The remaining issue,ineffective assistance of counsel in respect to the investigation and presentationof evidence pertaining to mitigating factors, was denied by the trial court andaffirmed by the Florida Supreme Court. The Court affirmed the trialcourt’s denial of the 3.850 Motion on 05/03/01. The rehearing was deniedon 06/20/01 and the mandate was issued on 07/20/01.
Porter filed a petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus to theFlorida Supreme Court on 12/06/01. Porter’s main claim was ineffectiveassistance of collateral counsel. The Court found this claim and itssubclaims, to be either procedurally barred or meritless. This petitionwas denied on 06/20/02.
On 10/06/01, Porter filed a Petition for Writ of HabeasCorpus to the Florida Supreme Court. The petition was denied on 06/20/02. The rehearing was denied on 03/31/03.
On 10/14/03, Porter filed a Petition for Writ of HabeasCorpus to the United States District Court, Middle District. On 05/20/04,the petition was amended. On 06/28/07, the USDC-M judge granted Porter anew penalty phase trial. In the ruling, the murder Williams and Burrrowswas described as a crime of passion carried out by a jealous alcoholic whosuffered an abusive childhood. Furthermore, it was ruled the state courtimposed the death sentence without properly hearing evidence of Porter’s mentalhealth issues.
On 11/21/07, the Attorney General of Florida and theSecretary of the Department of Corrections of Florida filed an appeal of thedistrict court’s granting of Porter’s petition for federal habeas corpusrelief. On 12/22/08, the United States Court of Appeals entered judgment forthe State, reversing the decision of the United States District Court.
On 05/18/09, Porter filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorarito the United States Supreme Court. On 11/30/09, the petition was granted inpart, and the motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis is granted. Judgment REVERSED and case REMANDED.
Institutional Adjustment:
DATE DAYS VIOLATION LOCATION
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06/11/98 180 REF. SUB. ABUSE TEST UNIONC. I.
04/05/01 0 MISUSE OF STATEPROP UNION C. I.
Report Date: 06/01/02 NMP
Approved: 06/07/02 RM
Updated: 12/01/09 CAR