400 inmates could escape death after one man's sentence was thrown out

400 death row inmates could now challenge their sentencing after Supreme Court rules one verdict ‘unconstitutional’

Timothy Lee Hurst might escape death as the Supreme Court deemed his verdict 'unconstitutional' (Getty)

The fate of 400 death row inmates could be turned around after one death sentence in the state was overruled due to it being ‘unconstitutional’ by Florida's highest court.

The Supreme Court has thrown out a verdict in Florida which sentenced Timothy Lee Hurst to death because the judge first decided he was eligible for the death penalty, rather than that decision being made by a jury.

Mr Hurst was convicted in 1998 of shooting dead Cynthia Lee Harrison, a manager of a Popeye Fried Chciken restaurant. Mr Hurst’s lawyers argued that the shooter’s low IQ and “borderline intellectual functioning” was a reason not to receive the death penalty. The jury voted 7 for death, and five voted against.

However the Supreme Court has made a U-turn in the state and for the first time has challenged the system that has so far allowed a judge to make the first step and decide whether the convict could receive the death penalty before the jury reaches a unanimous decision.

Florida is only one of three states, alongside Delaware and Alabama, that permit a death sentence without at least a jury recommendation for death, according to Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center.

“This case leaves open the question about who is permitted to ultimately sentence someone to death once the jury has decided that they can be subject to this penalty,” said Mr Dunham.

In other states, the death penalty sentence is only reached if the jury make a unanimous decision.

Florida has second highest number of inmates on death row in the US - as of 1 July there were 400 - and is only beaten to first place by California.

“This case will trigger challenges by virtually everybody on Florida’s death row,” said Mr Dunham.

How successful those potential challenges will be depends on whether the new ruling on Mr Hurst's case will apply retroactively to other people who were sentenced to death.

Mr Dunham added: “Florida’s death sentencing scheme has various problems. It is not a surprise that the Supreme Court has declared this unconstitutional."