Date of Sentence: 06/30/88
Circumstances of Offense:
James Duckett was the only
police officer on patrol on the night of 05/11/87 in the city of
Mascotte, Florida.
Around 10:00 p.m., eleven-year-old Teresa McAbee
walked to a convenience store to purchase a pencil and, after leaving
the store, stopped to talk to a sixteen-year-old boy outside the store.
Duckett arrived at the convenience store shortly afterward and, after
asking the store clerk the age of McAbee, he approached McAbee and the
boy. After a brief conversation, Duckett told McAbee to go home,
leaving the boy to wait for his uncle. When the boy’s uncle arrived,
the boy and his uncle witnessed McAbee getting into the passenger side
of Duckett’s patrol car.
At 11:00 p.m., McAbee’s mother
walked to the convenience store, looking for her daughter. The store
clerk told the mother that McAbee had left with Duckett and was probably
at the Mascotte police station.
When no one was found at the Mascotte
police station, the mother drove to nearby Groveland police station,
where she reported her daughter missing. The Groveland police officer
contacted a Mascotte police officer, and Duckett arrived at the
Groveland police station within twenty minutes. Duckett used a picture
of McAbee to make a flyer that he said he would post at convenience
stores in the area, however, he failed to do so.
The store clerk reported that
the police drove by the store every hour, but she reported that Duckett
came by at 9:30 p.m. but did not return for a few hours. Additionally,
Duckett made no radio calls between 9:50 p.m. and 12:10 a.m.
The next morning McAbee’s body
was found in a lake less than one mile from the convenience store where
she was last seen. Medical testimony demonstrated that she was sexually
assaulted while alive and then drowned. Blood and a pubic hair, later
identified as probable matches to Duckett, were found in her underpants
and semen was found on her jeans.
Distinct tire tracks found at
the scene were matched to the tires found on the Mascotte Police
Department patrol cars. Duckett’s and McAbee’s fingerprints were found
on the hood of the car, indicating that she was sitting backwards on the
hood of the car.
At trial, three girls between
the ages of seventeen and nineteen testified that in the six months
prior to the murder, Duckett had given rides to each of them and had
made sexual advances. One of the girls testified that she participated
in sexual acts with Duckett.
Trial Summary:
10/27/87
Indicted for First Degree Murder (Case# 87-1347)
03/01/88
Information presented charging one count of Sexual Battery by an Adult
of a Victim Under the Age of 12 (Case# 88-0262)
04/11/88
Cases ordered consolidated
05/10/88
Jury returned guilty verdicts
Jury recommended a death sentence by a vote of
8-4
06/30/88
Sentenced as follows:
First Degree Murder – Death
Sexual Battery – Life Imprisonment
Case Information:
On
07/05/88, Duckett filed a Direct Appeal with the Florida Supreme Court,
citing the following trial court errors: circumstantial evidence did
not exclude all reasonable hypotheses of innocence, admitting testimony
of the three girls, qualifying a state witness as an expert in hair
analysis, and imposition of the death penalty. The FSC affirmed the
convictions and sentences on 09/06/90.
On
05/01/92, Duckett filed a 3.850 Motion with the circuit court that was
amended on 06/12/92 and 11/14/94 and denied on 08/10/01.
On
09/28/01, Duckett filed a 3.850 Motion Appeal with the Florida Supreme
Court, raising the following issues: ineffective assistance of counsel;
failing to present exculpatory evidence, including DNA evidence;
prosecutorial misconduct; applying vague aggravating circumstances; and
improper jury instructions. On 10/06/05, the FSC affirmed the denial of
the motion.
On
06/07/02, Duckett filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus with the
Florida Supreme Court, raising the following issues: ineffective
assistance of counsel and Ring issues. On 10/06/05, the FSC denied
the petition.
Floridacapitalcases.state.fl.us
