Background
Marcus O’Neal Jenkins sought certiorari review of an order from the Circuit Court for Duval County concerning his convictions and sentences in Duval County Case No. 16-2010-CF-9956-A.
The Fifth District said Jenkins had repeatedly filed pro se matters concerning those judgments and sentences that the court had denied or dismissed. The court had previously warned him that further repetitive, malicious, or frivolous filings could result in sanctions and ordered him to show cause why he should not be restricted from filing further pro se matters in that case.
The Court’s Holding
Per curiam, the court concluded that Jenkins continued to abuse the judicial process through repetitive filings and that his response to the show-cause order did not warrant a different result.
The court prohibited Jenkins from making further pro se filings in the Fifth District concerning Duval County Case No. 16-2010-CF-9956-A. The clerk must reject future pro se filings concerning that case unless they are filed by a member in good standing of The Florida Bar. The court also directed the clerk to send a certified copy of the opinion to the appropriate institution for consideration of disciplinary proceedings.
Key Takeaways
- The restriction applies to Jenkins’s pro se filings in the Fifth District concerning the specified Duval County criminal case.
- Future filings may proceed only if submitted by a Florida Bar member in good standing.
- The court imposed the restriction after prior warnings, a show-cause order, and a finding of continued abuse of the legal process.
Why It Matters
The decision illustrates the Fifth District’s use of filing restrictions to conserve judicial resources when a litigant persists in repetitive, malicious, or frivolous pro se litigation. It does not bar attorney-filed submissions; it conditions further filings in the identified case on representation by Florida counsel.