Bruce Douglas Pace

Case information

• Defendant: Bruce Douglas Pace
• Date of birth: 12/12/59
• Case number (trial court): 88CF-689
• Judicial circuit: First Judicial Circuit, Santa Rosa County
• Sentencing judge: The Honorable Ben Gordon

Charges and verdict

• Indictment date: 12/14/88
• Counts in the indictment:
  • Count I: First-Degree Murder
  • Count II: Robbery with a Firearm
• Verdict date: 08/25/89 (found guilty date given as 08/25/89 in the trial summary)
• Found guilty of: all counts in the indictment (verdict/date fragment provided as 08/25/89)

Trial

Trial counsel and appeals counsel

• Attorneys (trial): Samuel Hall & Randall Ethridge – Special Public Defenders
• Attorney (direct appeal): W.C. McLain – Assistant Public Defender
• Attorney (collateral appeals): Paul Kalil – CCRC-South

Jury recommendation

• Date: 08/26/89
• Recommendation: sentence of death by a majority vote of 7 to 5

The offence

• Date of offence: 11/04/88

On 11/04/88, Barbara Mack spoke with her father, Floyd Covington, via the radio in his cab. Later that day she was unable to reach him using the same radio.

On 11/07/88, Frankie Covington, the victim’s daughter-in-law, filed a missing person’s report with Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Department. The police began a search for the missing cab driver.

Mr. Covington’s cab, a white Buick station wagon, was found in a wooded area. It had been covered with a pile of brush. The bloodstains in the cab revealed that the person sitting in the driver seat had been shot from the direction of the passenger seat. The blood was found to be type O, which was consistent with Mr. Covington’s blood type.

Covington had been shot twice in the chest with a shotgun while in the driver’s seat and then moved to the passenger seat.

Mr. Convington’s body was found 12 miles away in another wooded area on 11/10/89. His wallet was found approximately 20 feet from the body.

The medical examiner testified that Mr. Covington had been shot two to seven days prior to the day that the body was found and that either shot alone could have been the cause of death. The plastic wadding and the shells were recovered from the body.

A witness stated that he had seen, while driving on Highway 87, a white station wagon taxicab around 10:30 a.m. the morning of 11/04/88. The cab was angled off the road in a grassy ditch. Due to the fact that he only observed the cab for a brief time, he could not give any characteristics of the driver, but he did report that he did not see anyone in the passenger seat.

During the night of 11/03/88, Pace spoke with his cousin, Angela Pace, about money problems that he was having. Angela quoted Pace as saying: “There’s something that I do, I hate to do, but I want to have some money tomorrow.” Pace never specifically stated what he was going to do, but she knew that Pace sometimes did odd jobs for Mr. Covington.

A witness stated that she saw Mr. Covington and Pace in Mr. Covington’s taxi at approximately 9:30 a.m. on 11/04/88. Another witness stated that she saw Pace around 12:30 to 1:00 p.m. that same day. This witness stated that Pace did not appear wounded or upset, but his clothes were dirty.

On 11/05/88, Pace told his friend Michael Green that he had a gun that they could do some shooting with. Pace retrieved the shotgun gun from the bushes of an unoccupied building. Both shot the gun behind Mr. Green’s mother’s house. When Pace left, he did not take the shotgun with him.

While at the house, Ms. Green had inquired about spots on Pace’s clothing. Pace replied that he had recently been squirrel hunting and it was squirrel blood.

Pace told his stepfather that Mr. Covington had driven him home on the morning of 11/04/88. Because Pace did not have a key, he was forced to enter the house through a window. Once inside he noticed that his brother’s shotgun was missing from the gun rack.

Pace claimed someone appeared behind him and choked him, rendering him unconscious. Pace stated that he woke up in the woods. He saw his brother’s shotgun and picked it up. He saw blood inside Mr. Covington’s cab. He then walked to the Green’s residence.

After revealing all of this information to his stepfather, Pace voluntarily went to the sheriff’s office.

Sentencing

• Date of sentence: 11/16/89
• Sentence:
  • Count I: First-Degree Murder — Death
  • Count II: Robbery with a Firearm — 15 years to concurrent to Count I run

Prior criminal history

• Conviction: Robbery with a Firearm on 06/21/82
• Sentence/outcome: nine years ten months probation
• Probation violation: violated his probation on 12/04/81 and was convicted of Robbery with a Firearm on 06/21/82
• Sentence for probation violation: sentenced to 15 years
• Release date: 03/10/87

Appeals and post-conviction proceedings

Direct appeal

• Date filed: 11/27/90 (Direct Appeal to the Florida Supreme Court)
• Issues raised:
  • the evidence presented at trial was insufficient to convict him
  • the trial court erred in admitting exculpatory statements
  • the trial court did not allow the cross-examination of state witnesses concerning a third shotgun shell found at the scene
• Florida Supreme Court ruling:
  • no abuse of discretion by the trial court
  • the cross-examination should have been allowed although the error was found to be harmless
  • three of the aggravating factors were supported beyond a reasonable doubt
  • the record supports the trial judge’s conclusion with regard to sentencing
• Decision date: affirmed Pace’s conviction and sentence on 03/26/92
• Rehearing denied: 05/18/92
• Mandate issued: 06/17/92

Petition to the United States Supreme Court

• Date filed: 07/16/92 (Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the United States Supreme Court)
• Disposition: petition was denied on 10/05/92

State post-conviction (3.850 motion)

• Date filed: 10/13/93 (3.850 Motion to the Circuit Court)
• Disposition: motion was denied on 06/11/01
• Reasons for delay (as set forth):
  1. Several changes in defense counsel
  2. CCR lacked funds and had too many cases pending with death warrants
  3. Lack of assigned counsel due to CCR’s reorganization
  4. CCR requested a continuance for the evidentiary hearing citing lack of funds
  5. public records requests
• Date of 3.850 appeal filed: 08/21/01 (3.850 Appeal to the Florida Supreme Court)
• Claims in the appeal:
  • ineffective trial counsel during the guilt phase for failing to present a defense of voluntary intoxication or pursue an insanity defense
  • ineffective trial counsel for failing to object to comments made by the prosecution during the guilt phase
  • ineffective trial counsel during the penalty-phase for not properly investigating all mitigating circumstances pertaining to Pace
  • the prosecution withheld a fingerprint smudge report
  • the prosecution withheld a written reprimand of an investigator from the case
  • certain agencies did not provide public records upon request
• Disposition date: affirmed the trial court’s denial of his 3.850 Motion on 05/22/03
• Mandate issued: 10/02/03

Habeas corpus petitions

• Date filed: 03/04/02 (Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus to the Florida Supreme Court)
• Denial date: denied 05/22/03
• Mandate issued: 10/02/03

Additional petitions to the United States Supreme Court

• Date filed: 11/14/03 (Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the United States Supreme Court)
• Disposition: petition was denied on 01/20/04

Federal habeas corpus petition

• Date filed: 09/27/04 (Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus to the United States District Court, Northern District)
• Current status: currently pending

Timeline

• 11/03/88 — Pace spoke with his cousin, Angela Pace, about money problems
• 11/04/88 — Barbara Mack spoke with Floyd Covington via the radio in his cab; cab driver later became unreachable via radio
• 11/05/88 — Pace told Michael Green he had a gun; Pace retrieved the shotgun from the bushes of an unoccupied building; they shot behind Mr. Green’s mother’s house
• 11/07/88 — Frankie Covington filed a missing person’s report with Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Department
• 11/10/89 — Mr. Covington’s body was found 12 miles away in another wooded area
• 12/14/88 — Defendant was indicted for First-Degree Murder and Robbery with a Firearm
• 08/25/89 — Defendant was found guilty of all counts in the indictment
• 08/26/89 — Jury recommended death by a majority vote of 7 to 5
• 11/16/89 — Sentenced to death on Count I; Count II sentenced to 15 years concurrent to Count I run
• 11/27/90 — Pace filed Direct Appeal to the Florida Supreme Court
• 03/26/92 — Florida Supreme Court affirmed Pace’s conviction and sentence
• 05/18/92 — Rehearing was denied
• 06/17/92 — Mandate was issued
• 07/16/92 — Pace filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the United States Supreme Court
• 10/05/92 — Petition was denied
• 10/13/93 — Pace filed a 3.850 Motion to the Circuit Court
• 06/11/01 — 3.850 Motion denied
• 08/21/01 — Pace filed a 3.850 Appeal to the Florida Supreme Court
• 05/22/03 — Florida Supreme Court affirmed denial of the 3.850 Motion
• 10/02/03 — Mandate was issued
• 03/04/02 — Pace filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus to the Florida Supreme Court
• 11/14/03 — Pace filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the United States Supreme Court
• 01/20/04 — Petition denied
• 09/27/04 — Pace filed a Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus to the United States District Court, Northern District; currently pending

Other details

• Nicknames/aliases in matter: “Mr. Convington” appeared in the account of the body discovery (as written).
• Recovered items: plastic wadding and shells were recovered from the body; wallet was found approximately 20 feet from the body.
• Evidence consistency: blood type O was consistent with Mr. Covington’s blood type.
• Witness observations: Highway 87 witness saw the white station wagon taxicab around 10:30 a.m. on 11/04/88 and did not see anyone in the passenger seat.
• Shot timing testimony: medical examiner testified Mr. Covington had been shot two to seven days prior to the day that the body was found.
• Counseling and public records: delay reasons included CCR’s lack of funds, reorganization effects on assigned counsel, and public records requests.
• Victim information in matter: victim was identified as Floyd Covington; Frankie Covington was the victim’s daughter-in-law; Barbara Mack was Floyd Covington’s daughter; Mr. Covington’s body and cab were linked to the missing cab driver investigation.