JARREL EDWARD TOLLIVER v. STATE OF FLORIDA (2026)

Jarrell Tolliver appeals his judgment and sentences for trafficking in fentanyl and introduction or possession of contraband in a county detention center. We find no merit in the arguments Mr. Tolliver has raised in this appeal, including his claim that his conviction by a six-person jury rather than a jury of twelve was unconstitutional. We write only to comment on a development that occurred during the pendency of this appeal. On June 15, 2026, the United States Supreme Court in Kian v. Florida, No. SC2025-6623, 2026 WL 1718018 (U.S. June 15, 2026), agreed to take up the constitutionality of the Florida statute ¹ allowing a six-person jury in criminal cases. The question presented in Kian is whether the Court should overrule Williams v. Florida, 399 U.S. 78 (1970), and hold that the Sixth Amendment requires the use of twelve-person juries in serious criminal cases. Since then, predictably, this court has received a steady stream of briefs raising this issue, including a supplemental brief filed by Mr. Tolliver. While acknowledging that Williams binds this court unless and until the Supreme Court overrules it, many (but not all) of the briefs we are receiving ask for relief other than or in addition to a reversal. Specifically, as in this case, counsel asks that we hold the case in abeyance pending the Court's decision in Kian. As a court, we have concluded that the better course is to decline to hold these cases in abeyance and let appellants who wish to do so further pursue their argument in the United States Supreme Court. Already, a handful of cases raising this issue have been filed in that Court where they await the decision in Kian.

Affirmed.

FOOTNOTES

1.   § 913.10, Fla. Stat. (2026).

KELLY, Judge.

BLACK and GUARD, JJ., Concur.