Bass v. State · No. 2D2025-0626 (Fla. 2d DCA) · Decided October 2, 2026
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The Second District Court of Appeal has affirmed a man’s Hillsborough County convictions for first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, and two counts of felony aggravated child abuse, holding that the defendant’s challenge to his conviction by a six-person jury “lacks merit under current precedent” — while citing the U.S. Supreme Court’s grant of certiorari in Kian v. Florida, a Florida case presenting the question of a 12-person jury right in serious felony cases.
What Happened
Jermaine Lavanda Bass, Jr., appealed his judgment and sentences for first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, and two counts of felony aggravated child abuse. He raised three issues: that the trial court erroneously denied his suppression motion, that the prosecutor’s improper comments deprived him of a fair trial, and that his conviction by a six-person jury violated his constitutional rights. The opinion does not describe the facts of the case.
What the Court Held
“The first and second issues lack merit,” the court wrote, without further discussion. “The third issue also lacks merit under current precedent.” For that conclusion it cited Williams v. Florida, 399 U.S. 78 (1970), and the Second District’s own decision in Serrano-Delgado v. State, 392 So. 3d 251 (Fla. 2d DCA 2024).
The court then added a But see citation to Kian v. Florida, 421 So. 3d 439 (Fla. 4th DCA 2025) (table decision), and to the petition for certiorari filed in the U.S. Supreme Court in that case on January 9, 2026. According to the Second District’s parenthetical, the petition presents the question of whether the petitioner “was derived [sic] of his right, under the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments, to a trial by a 12-person jury when the defendant is charged with a serious felony.” The opinion notes that certiorari was granted on June 15, 2026.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s docket confirms the grant. In No. 25-6623, Hamed Kian v. Florida, which arises from Fourth District case No. 4D2024-2370, the Court granted the petition for a writ of certiorari and the motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis on June 15, 2026.
The court affirmed. Judge LaRose wrote the opinion, joined by Judges Northcutt and Sleet.
Why It Matters
The Second District rejected the six-person jury challenge under Williams v. Florida and its own precedent, but it framed that ruling as resting on “current precedent” and cited Kian, the Florida case in which the U.S. Supreme Court has granted review of the 12-person jury question presented in the petition. The opinion does not say what effect, if any, a decision in Kian would have on Bass’s case.
The Opinion
Download the full opinion (PDF)
| Court | Second District Court of Appeal |
| Case No. | 2D2025-0626 |
| Lower Court | Circuit Court, Hillsborough County (Judge Samantha Ward) |
| Opinion by | Judge LaRose (Judges Northcutt and Sleet concurring) |
| Decided | October 2, 2026 |
| Result | Affirmed |