Williams v. Florida

110 So. 2d 654 (Fla. Sup. Ct. 1959)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Williams (D) raped a girl after hiding in her car and stabbing her in the chest with an ice pick. She finally ran hysterically from the car, ending up in a hospital, where it was determined that she had been sexually assaulted and had a severe wound in her chest. D did not deny the sexual relations but insisted that the girl consented to them. D claimed that he had sexual relations with her on previous dates. He explained that the ice pick was an accident, and the gruesome details of the rest of the night were fabricated by the girl. D was convicted six weeks previously for trespassing in a woman's car at the exact same location. This evidence was introduced, and the trial court convicted D, imposing the death penalty. D appealed, claiming that this evidence was irrelevant and prejudiced minds of the jury.