NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. – A public defender has signed a notice of appeal in the first-degree murder conviction of Kimberly Kessler, who was sentenced to life in prison for the killing of 34-year-old Joleen Cummings.
Notably, first-degree murder convictions are automatically appealed in Florida. Defense attorneys had previously filed a motion for a new trial, which was denied. Grounds for the previous motion could be raised in the appeal of the conviction.
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The defense says Judge James Daniels made 12 errors in the conduct of the trial, including:
- Denying repeated defense requests for a new competency hearing for Kessler, who rejected every chance to participate in the trial
- Denying multiple defense motions to suppress evidence
- Allowing prosecution testimony that the defense says was hearsay
- Not allowing the defense to tell the jury methamphetamine was found in Cummings’ purse in jury instructions
Kessler, who has a history of outbursts during trial, was not present for even one day of her murder trial because she repeatedly shouted false claims about a former member of her defense team being related to Cummings.
Kessler was found guilty in December of first-degree murder in the death of the Nassau County mother of three. Kessler was also found guilty of theft because she was seen on surveillance dumping Cummings’ vehicle in a parking lot the night she was last seen alive.