Which 5th Circuit Court of Appeals judge is on your ballot?

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals judges for the merit retention vote are Joe Boatwright, Eric Eisnogle, Harvey Jay, Paige Kilbane, John McIver, Jordan Pratt and Adrian Sood.

Voters in Volusia and Flagler counties are among those who will decide whether seven judges from the 5th District Court of Appeal in Daytona Beach should remain on the appellate bench.

5^th District Court of Appeal at 300 South Beach St. hears civil and criminal complaints from counties in central Florida, which comprise four judicial districts, including 7^th A route covering Volusia, Flagler, Putnam and St. Johns counties.

The 12-judge court also hears appeals from the Fourth Judicial Circuit (Duval, Nassau and Clay counties); Fifth District (Lake, Marion, Sumter, Citrus and Hernando counties); and the 18th District (Brevard and Seminole counties).

Citizens will decide whether the seven justices should remain on the court for six-year terms, based on the state’s merit retention system.

Judges for 5^th The DCA is typically the first resort for attorneys challenging district court decisions.

Volusia-Flagler Affairs in the 5th DCA

Here are some 5 notable solutions^th District Court of Appeal for Volusia or Flagler cases.

In 2021 panel of 5^th The DCA overturned the conviction and life sentence of Joseph F. Beauvais II, who was found guilty of murdering Zuhaili Roman Rosado in 2013 at a gas station in Palm Coast. The fifth DCA decision was written by Judge Meredith L. Sasso, with support from former Chief Judge Kerry E. Evander and Mary Alice Nardella. These three are no longer in court. The mentally ill Bova entered a guilty plea in 2022 and was sentenced to life in prison.

The 5th DCA also played a central role in the legal battle over the re-sentencing of the 2023 Xbox Deltona massacre. In that case, a three-judge panel ruled that prosecutors only needed eight jurors to recommend death, as required by a new state law, rather than a 12-member jury unanimously recommending that the judge be allowed to impose the death penalty. Judge Harvey L. Jay wrote the fifth DCA opinion, with Judge Brian D. Lambert and Judge John M. Harris concurring.

But delays from the legal battle combined with questions about jury availability prompted District Judge Randell Rowe III, who ruled 12 jurors were needed, to declare a mistrial. The state Supreme Court later ruled that the issue was moot, but said in a footnote that the state Supreme Court retains jurisdiction in death penalty cases where convictions have been overturned, not the circuit court of appeals.

The 5th DCA in 2023 rejected the claim of Luis Toledo, who was convicted of killing his wife and her two children in Deltona in 2013, that his lawyers were ineffective, allowing his conviction and sentence to stand. This opinion was expressed by 5th DCA Judges James A. Edwards, Eric Eisnaugle and John M. Harris.

Another local case currently before the 5th DCA is that of Otal Wallace, who was convicted last year and sentenced to 30 years in prison for the manslaughter of Daytona Beach Police Officer Jason Raynor. Wallace appealed. The Fifth ACA has not yet ruled on this case.

Here are the judges who will vote to retain merit on November 5th at the 5th DCA meeting. If a judge is not retained, the governor selects a replacement from a list of three to five finalists submitted by the Judicial Nominating Panel.

Who is Judge Joe Boatwright?

Judge Joe Boatwright served as a Putnam County judge from 2013 until late 2022, when Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed him to the appellate court.

Before becoming a judge, he was an assistant state’s attorney, led the 7th Circuit State’s Attorney’s Office in Putnam County, and was an attorney in private practice. He holds a law degree from The Catholic University of America and other degrees from the University of Florida, Duke University and Covington Theological Seminary.

Boatwright is a board member of the Arc of Putnam County, Habitat for Humanity of Putnam County and other groups.

He is a member of the Federalist Society, an influential conservative legal group.

Who is Judge Eric Eisnogle?

Eisnogle was a member of the Florida House of Representatives from Central Florida when then-Gov. Rick Scott appointed him to the 5th DCA in 2017. While in the Florida House of Representatives, he served as Chairman of the Civil Justice Subcommittee and Vice Chairman of the Rules and Calendar Committee, as well as serving on other committees.

He is a graduate of Vanderbilt Law School and worked at prominent law firms including Foley & Lardner before becoming a judge.

Who is Judge Harvey Jay?

Jay is a Jacksonville native who received a law degree from the University of Florida and worked as a civil trial attorney before Scott appointed him to Duval County Circuit Judge in 2011 and was then elected unopposed.

Scott appointed him to the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Tallahassee in 2016, then DeSantis transferred him to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals effective January 2023 as the appellate district’s boundaries changed, leaving the Fourth Judicial Circuit out of the 1st DCA territory .

Who is Judge Paige Kilbane?

Judge Paige Kilbane, who received her law degree from the University of Florida and lived in Jacksonville, worked as a prosecutor and private attorney before becoming a Palm Beach County judge and being appointed by DeSantis as a circuit judge in January 2021.

DeSantis appointed her to the 5th DCA, effective January 2023. She is also a member of the Federalist Society.

Kilbane is the only woman currently serving in the 5th DCA.

Who is Judge John McIver?

A graduate of the University of Central Florida who received a law degree from Northwestern University, Judge John McIver was general counsel to Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis and deputy general counsel in DeSantis’ office.

McIver, who lived in Neptune Beach, became chairman of the Florida Gaming Control Commission before DeSantis appointed him to the 5th DCA in December 2022.

McIver also served as a sworn law enforcement officer for the Florida Department of Lottery and the Florida Insurance Fraud Section.

Who is Judge Jordan Pratt?

The University of Florida Law School graduate worked as an attorney for the U.S. Small Business Administration and the U.S. Department of Justice and was a deputy state solicitor general before joining the First Liberty Institute, a legal nonprofit focused on religious freedom issues, in 2021.

Judge Jordan Pratt was the panel’s senior attorney before DeSantis appointed him to the 5th DCA in April 2023, when the governor’s office said he was living in Jacksonville. He is a member of the Federalist Society.

Who is Judge Adrian G. Court?

Judge Adrian G. Sood is a Jacksonville native who practiced civil law before being elected circuit judge in 2008.

He tried civil, family, criminal and appellate cases in Duval and Nassau counties in district courts, which ended with DeSantis appointing him to the 5th DCA in December 2022. He is also a member of the Federalist Society.

The Florida Times-Union in Jacksonville contributed to this report.