document | Justice for Toney

Toney’s Summary of Documents

Thank you for joining us and for your interest in our campaign to "Free Toney Davis." While the focus herein is not predicated on a chronological outline of events, it is our intent to provide you with specific comprehensible documentation—all of which can be found in court records from Toney's 28+ years of state and federal appeals—that will prove Toney has yet to receive his just day in court and that he was not only convicted and sentenced to death for crimes he did not commit, but also he has been caged for 30+ years – convicted for "crimes" that never occurred.

The "evidence" presented to the jury that convicted him was/is based purely in a combination of half truths and outright lies, which becomes abundantly clear once a simple comparative analysis of statements by key witnesses is conducted.

The lengths to which the state went in presenting such duplicitous "evidence" will demonstrate the maliciousness of the prosecution, the blatant disregard for Toney's constitutionally guaranteed rights to fair a trial, and, most importantly, the unreliability of his convictions.

Anyone taking an objective look should easily conclude that this case is about a man who has been unjustly convicted, one in which the state - knowing Toney's trial lawyer didn't hire a single expert to dispute any "facts" they'd present at trial - manufactured guilt by withholding evidence and manipulating the jury with lies, not about a guilty man who was justly convicted and who should be executed.

Why is that what this case is about? Because there is no criminal case for which Toney should have been prosecuted. The evidence—physically, medically or logically—supports neither the Felony murder nor Capital sexual battery.

However, as further support to demonstrate the lack of virtue attributed to our trusty taxpayer paid public servants who prosecuted this case - it should be noted that prosecutors, Stephen Bledsoe and Laura Baer, arranged—as incentive to testify against Toney—for a 25 year old "jailhouse snitch" to meet a 17 year old jail inmate at the State Attorney's office, where the man raped the child. Not only did the prosecutor arrange the meeting but also provided the condoms used in the assault. After the man got what he wanted, he refused to take the stand and lie at trial.

We shall start with the charge that provided the state its only opportunity back then to seek the death penalty: Capital sexual battery

The final two sentences on the first page of the autopsy report unequivocally proves Toney was charged with a "crime" that never occurred. (See Doc.#1)

The medical examiner, Dr. Floro, however, told the jury that - despite the fact he had never witnessed any injuries prior to autopsy - the injuries "healed and completely disappeared" before he conducted the autopsy.

The state manufactured the charge based on statements by an EMT who said he saw vaginal bleeding and Dr. Whitworth who wrote in his initial report that he saw "hemorrhages" "c/w attempted penetration" in the hymenal area. (See Doc.#2)

The prosecutors, however, withheld evidence of a statement by the child's mother, who said - less than 72 hours prior to her daughter's admittance into the hospital where she was declared brain dead - her husband admitted to abusing the child, after she confronted him about a lump on her head and vaginal bleeding.

They knew withholding the evidence would allow them - one of several instances where they manufactured or manipulated evidence to make Toney "look" guilty - to present false evidence to the jury: the mother lied when she told the jury her daughter had never had vaginal bleeding.

Dr. Whitworth lied: by trial his initial diagnosis of "attempted penetration" had turned into a full blown sexual assault. He testified the vagina was penetrated. (See Docs#3/4)

Also, he lied about the timing of the "injuries." In a sworn deposition he stated the "bruises" were as much as 72 hours old when he saw them on Dec. 9th. But when the prosecutor questioned him at trial, he cut the time by 3/4 - which in itself is suspicious - down to 18 hours. Then when confronted with his sworn statement, he lied. (See Doc.#5)

He told the jury he was referring to lacerations, not bruises - despite the fact that he said "bruises" more than once. He was being questioned about the timing of what he considered specific evidence of a crime in this case. There were no lacerations in this case, so it makes absolutely no sense that he would diagnose something that doesn't apply. There was evidence of bleeding within 72 hrs., and Whitworth originally estimated what he found was as much as 72 hrs. old. Then prosecutors hid evidence of prior bleeding, and the doctor cut the time by 3/4. Again, more manipulation to make Toney "look" guilty.

Post conviction:

During a short period in which Toney was in "lawyer limbo" and unrepresented, he took the initiative to contact several experts, presenting each with "evidence" surrounding his convictions and requesting their expertise with regards to it. Keep in mind they weren't paid for their time, which prompted some to limit their involvement. And while everyone he contacted was adamant that vaginal injuries related to an assault would not have healed and disappeared in a day, a couple granted his request for a favor in the name of justice and provided sworn affidavits. (See Doc#6)

At Toney's evidentiary hearing, Dr. Edward Willey - forensic pathologist and one of Dr. Floro's predecessors at the Duval County M.E.'s office - testified on Toney's behalf. In fact, prior to trial, "defense" counsel had consulted Dr. Willey who, after reviewing the case, informed counsel that he was certain no sex assault had occurred, that he would testify that the absence of injury supported his medical findings, which - without wavering an iota - is exactly what he did during the evidentiary hearing.

Dr. Willey doesn't dispute the presence of the "redness" that Dr Whitworth described°, however, he does not agree with the diagnosis that it was an "injury." He remains adamant that it wasn't an injury at all and relies on medical sciences to support his position: he avers that had it, in fact, been an injury caused by a Dec.9 assault, not only would it not have disappeared, but it would've been even more pronounced after death and more visible at autopsy. He explained that this is due to a "medical phenomenon well-known to pathologists" called "Hypostasis." (See Doc#7)

In addition, he offered three plausible medical explanations that could account for the "redness" and its speedy resolution. One, it may have been due to irritation from urine or feces, bad hygiene (daycare workers stated they detected both a discharge and an odor the last time they had changed her diaper) Two, a chemical reaction to "bubble bath" soap. Three, and Dr. Willey actually discovered this fact, it was likely the result of the Foley catheter being improperly inserted. According to a report in the medical files, the nurse who inserted the catheter did so without aid of lubricates - which defies protocol. (See Docs#8/9/10)

Dr. Willey also submitted medical studies that supported his testimony concerning healing. One study in particular—”Healing of Hymenal Injuries In Prepubertal and adolescent Girls: A Descriptive Study —documented the "healing process and outcome" of 239 girls with vaginal injuries. 51 of 118 prepubertal girls suffered "submucosal hemorrhages," which was what Dr. Whitworth diagnosed in this case. The severities ranged from mild (least severe) to moderate to marked. Not a single girl - all healthy and active - unlike here where the child was unfortunately diagnosed as clinically brain dead and on life support - had an injury that was completely healed and gone before 3-16 days. (See Doc#11/12, Table 1)

*Very Important note* The Florida Supreme Court denied Toney relief on this issue for reasons contrary to fact: (1) they said that Dr. Willey's testimony wasn't credible because it was not supported by the treatises he'd submitted. The court, obviously not bothering to read or consider the study mentioned above, erroneously cited that the studies documented healing patterns of "lacerations," not the less severe injuries noted in this case°, (2) also because - though he's a forensic pathologist, same as was Dr. Floro - he's not an expert in child sexual assaults. (See Davis v. State, 136 So. 3d 1169 (Fla. 2014)

Besides, Dr. Wright, other experts, yet to testify, agree the absence of vaginal injuries found at autopsy proves no assault occurred on Dec. 9th: Dr. Janice Ophoven (See Doc#13)°,

*Very Dr. Jonathan Arden (See Doc#14/15)°,

Dr. Theodore N. Hariton agrees that the redness was most likely due to the improper catheter insertion. (See Doc#16)

To rebut Dr. Willey's evidentiary hearing testimony, the state called Dr. Whitworth's replacement, Dr. Randall Alexander. The prosecutor was somewhat successful in getting him to say what they needed to rebut Dr. Willey's testimony°, however, as soon as defense counsel cross-examined him about the science behind the evidence and Dr. Willey's testimony, he agreed with Dr. Willey, with every point he'd just moments earlier disputed. But then, when the prosecutor redirected, he'd flip and say what he obviously thought the state wanted to hear - without regard to science or, most importantly, the truth.

But before delving into his vacillating testimony, we'll first look at where his lies began: in his initial case review report he stated, " ... victim of lethal shaken-impact syndrome°, and was acutely sexually abused." (See Doc#17)

As defined by Webster Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language: Acute adj. 1. sharp or severe in effect... 2. extremely great or serious... acutely adv.

At some point (probably when he conferred with prosecutors, and they realized his report wouldn't help explain how the injuries could disappear in 26 hrs.) in between writing the report and testifying at the evidentiary hearing, the injuries he considered evidence of an acute sex assault were downgraded to "superficial." Then to make it appear as though his testimony was merely in support of Dr. Whitworth's diagnosis of the injury's severity - which Whitworth never articulated - he completely fabricated the meaning of the term "flame-shaped" used by Whitworth to give the false impression that his use of the term itself meant he'd diagnosed the injuries as superficial°, this in turn would justify why there was no evidence of injury found at autopsy. He said, "Flame-shape is kind of child abuse pediatrician code for really thin superficial." (See Doc#18)

Dr. Alexander described the location of the injuries, stating, "... And the injuries we are talking about are outside of the vagina." (See Doc.#19)

Then he said, "... And so we call that the genital area injury. So, we would not call it vaginal..." Next, when asked if it's a penetrating injury, he contradicts himself, "Yes." ... "You're still not in the vagina..." (See Doc.#20)

Then, again, attempting to justify contradictions and make his testimony fit the state's "penetration" theory, he lied, claiming that being "...in between the labia" is penetration "inside."

But under Florida law, penetration occurs only with entrance into the vagina itself. Again, sure to reemphasize his new "superficial" diagnosis, he stated, "...I mean, this was about the least amount of injury you could get and have injuries..." Then he makes some incoherent comments about injuries (See Doc#21)

The prosecutor asked if he agreed with "Dr. Whitworth's medical evaluation of the case." He stated, "I do not disagree." Then about Whitworth's opinions and conclusions, he said, "They make sense to me." (See Doc#22)

Also, he affirmed he's in agreement with Dr. Whitworth's descriptions of the "hemorrhages and the bruising." Then, back to the lie that Whitworth's use of flame-shaped = superficial, he agreed, "it makes sense to him." (See Doc.#23)

The prosecutor both asked and stated, "...do you disagree with Dr. Willi's [sic] opinions and conclusions obviously? He replied, " I do." (See Doc#24)

On cross-examination - though he just stated he agreed with Whitworth's descriptions of and conclusions about the injuries - not five minutes in, he flip-flops. When asked about the redness, he said he can't be sure from looking at the photos what is being described. "To be sure, I would want to talk to the person who did it or get a really good photo. He said he didn't have either option. "I do have Dr. Whitworth's report." Counsel asked, "So all we have is your interpretation of what you think his report means?" He replied, "And something in the photo that seems to correspond of what I think he's getting at, yeah." (See Doc.#25/26)

Yet, under oath - despite being unsure of what is described in photos and only an "interpretation" of "something" that "seems" to correspond with what "I think he is getting at..." - he's telling the jury that Toney raped this child. He did agree that Whitworth should have been told that there was a bloody discharge a couple of days prior. (See Doc.#27)

Also, he admitted that without knowing the extent of the tissue damage, there's no way to know whether the injury happened on the 8th or 9th. (See Doc.#28)

Yet, he disagreed with Dr. Willey's assertion that the tissue should've been analyzed. He agreed that feces can cause genital redness; and this is so common with bubble bath that he advises moms to use "regular water, no bubble bath." Most importantly, he said, "When we see kids that have red genital areas, abuse is real unlikely to be what we're looking at. It is much more likely that they are irritated..." (See Doc.#29)°,

that bacterial infections can produce redness "above and beyond kind of normal red color..." "Any chemical reaction or potential bacteria overgrowth or even fungus." (See Doc.#30)

Then—after all the effort he put into repeatedly stating that his new found "superficial" diagnosis he said Whitworth supported with his use of "flame-shaped"—he stated, " I think it was superficially pretty much [sic] you are defining it [sic] will not leave anything long lasting. But you are right in a sense. It is not going to go away within 24 hours or it might last a little longer..." (See Doc.#31)

After all that, he finally admits, "...it is not going to go away in 24 hours." Subsequently, on redirect, he's back to the "flame-shaped" spiel, as soon as the prosecutor opens the door. (See Doc.#32)

Despite Toney's presentation of medically/scientifically supported evidence - all of with which Dr. Alexander at one point concurred - not to mention the fact that no evidence of a crime ever existed and that the state hid evidence related to prior bleeding, the Florida Supreme Court still denied relief, stating that the state "proved (beyond a reasonable doubt) the injuries occurred when the child was in Toney's care." Which, by the way, was a total of approximately 30 minutes of her entire two years of life. First-Degree Felony Murder:

This charge and conviction, too, is based on "evidence" that is evidently nonexistent. Once again, relying on false testimony by Drs. Floro and Whitworth, the courts continue to erroneously claim that - despite an abundance of medical/scientific evidence to the contrary - the state "proved" the head injuries leading to death could not have been caused by anyone other than Toney.

First, we will show that the state never "proved" such, which in itself renders Toney's conviction unreliable°, Then - because there wasn't evidence of head injuries related to a criminal act, much less severe enough to cause death - we will show that the evidence actually proves this little girl was very sick and she succumbed to illness, not that she was murdered.

While the state claims that the child was repeatedly hit in the head, everyone who initially saw this little girl at the time she was admitted into the hospital all describe her as having only one bruise on her forehead. No one describes anything indicative of multiple skull impacts.

In his sworn deposition, Dr. Floro stated he found a contusion to the "left temporal area" that, based on the "coloration," was "several days old..." And once he peeled the scalp back, he discovered another bruise at the back of the head and the right forehead area that appeared fresh.(See Doc.#33/34)

The left temporal injury is undoubtedly the "several days old" injury the mother said she noticed when she picked up her daughter from her estranged husband's house on Dec.7. The evidence that the state withheld from Toney.

In Dr. Whitworth's sworn deposition, the very first information he divulged when counsel asked him to "Just tell me about your examination." was "... she had a - - a particular bruise of the left temporal temporal area..." (See Doc.#35)

But at trial Dr. Whitworth told the jury there were three separate head impacts, that "you see children dying from head injuries this severe from automobile accidents. You occasionally see children who fall from a second or third story window..." (See Doc.#36)

Then he said, "I mean, she would have lost consciousness or maybe begin to have or maybe stop breathing... almost immediately after injury." (See Doc.#37)

Floro testified, "...unconsciousness will come in right away." (See Doc.#38)°,

that she was hit so hard it lacerated bridging veins to the brain. (See Doc.#39)

*Very important note* The Florida Supreme Court - instead of reversing Toney's convictions on any of a number of claims warranting reversal, especially the withheld evidence of the head wound and vaginal bleeding - continues to rule that the constitutional violations are of no consequence because a jury, based on the "fact" that the state "proved" Toney is the only person who could have caused the fatal injuries, still would have convicted him. The courts, however, are using the false "immediate unconsciousness" testimony as evidence of that "proof."

For all their talk about "brain injury" "so severe" it was akin to falls from "2-3 story windows" and "automobile accidents," no expert pointed to an actual "intrinsic" brain injury. Even Dr. Alexander agreed that there were none.

Dr. Arden confirms in his sworn affidavit that "...brain swelling is not a direct Impact to the brain and no direct brain (e.g., contusions) injuries were identified at autopsy." He diagnosed the brain swelling as "hypoxic damage" (i.e., caused by insufficient oxygen) (See Doc.#41)

Also, Dr. Ophoven stated that "timing is more consistent with a hypoxial event than head injury." (See Doc.#42)

In Dr. Denicola's sworn deposition - taken 30 years before the either affidavit denoting the elapsed time or cause of brain swelling - he stated that brain "swelling doesn't occur instantaneously," that the swelling occurs "due to a lack of oxygen to the tissue." (See Doc.#43/44)

A 30 year old scientific diagnosis that concurs with statements by experts who recently viewed the evidence can't be coincidence.

There were no fractures that could have caused pieces of the skull to penetrate the brain, nor was there even a concussion injury - which is the least of what was needed to render her immediately unconscious. And since brain swelling was the actual "injury" that lead to death, rather than admit that experts could not point to an injury that could have caused the swelling, they just repeated "multiple impacts" to the jury, making it seem as though they were the cause of deadly brain swelling - all the while knowing there were no defense experts to say otherwise.

If there was any evidence of an actual brain injury, the unconsciousness argument - though still not enough to "prove" Toney is guilty - would have at least made some sense. But without any evidence, not even a concussion, it's just ridiculous.

Drs. Janice Ophoven and Jonathan Arden submitted sworn affidavits in which they attest that the testimony, though virtually unassailable at that time, by state experts has been proven false. Medical/scientific studies have proven that, in fact, children can be "lucid" and appear to function normally for up to 72 hours or longer with injuries that later prove fatal. (See Doc.#40/41)

Also (See Doc#52, line 8)

Without the false "immediate unconsciousness" testimony, the state can't prove that the - still quite visible - prior head injury (withheld evidence) did not somehow contribute to a "rebleed" or some other catastrophic medical event that led to her demise°, or, more importantly, they cannot prove that the mother - who, at that time, was under investigation by Child Services for abuse and had spent over two hours alone with her daughter, just prior to leaving her with Toney - did not cause those injuries.

Thus, the state cannot foreclose the possibility that Toney was, in fact, the only person who could have been responsible, which, under the law, means they cannot eliminate reasonable doubt by "excluding every reasonable hypothesis of innocence." So the state's case does not "prove" Toney committed First-degree murder.

Also, there's an additional piece of medical evidence that disproves the state's "evidence of guilt" and that proves the court's ruling of "proof" is seriously flawed: Dr. Ophoven in her sworn affidavit avers that even if brain swelling had been due to impact injury, the impacts – because the brain would not have swollen to the point of causing cardiac arrest within an hour – would have had to occur before she was left in Toney's care. (See Doc.#42)

So the state not only used false "immediate unconsciousness" testimony to wrongfully convict Toney and sentence him to death, but, and again, knowing no defense experts would testify, also presented false testimony related to brain swelling that - had Toney actually caused the injuries - would have occurred at a significantly later time.

There is additional scientific evidence that proves all other "facts" presented to the jury as "evidence of guilt" - subdural hematomas, cerebral edema, retinal hemorrhages, injuries the state claims, since there was no car accident or a fall from a great distance, only abuse could have caused - have been debunked. The either/or explanation has been proven scientifically false, and is now considered "unreliable" and "no longer valid." Also, the state expert's testimony that short falls cannot cause death has been proven false. (See Doc.#41/45/46/47/48)

Medical science has evolved, and with that evolution, experts have discovered a host of other medical conditions - especially those involving respiratory ailments - in which patients exhibit "the triad" symptoms that the state claimed was exclusive to evidence of abuse in this case.

Dr. Stephen Gabaeff, an abuse expert, is another of the doctors to whom Toney reached out and asked if he would review the case as a favor. In his sworn affidavit, he concurs that the evidence on which Toney's convictions are based is faulty and unreliable. (See Doc#49/50/51/52/53/54)

Based on the actual evidence - not falsehoods designed to make Toney "look" guilty - all the state's case against Toney "proves," if anything, is ridiculous. Now that we've established that Toney was convicted of a sexual assault without any evidence that a crime had occurred and that the state didn't "prove" he was the only one who could've caused the injuries prosecutors claim were "evidence" of murder, "evidence" they so mendaciously and perniciously presented to the jury, we will show that, like the bogus sex assault charge, there was no - physical, scientific or otherwise - evidence of murder. The charges were simply the result of manufactured "evidence" of "crimes" by overzealous prosecutors. The actual evidence establishes that there was no murder°, the poor child succumbed due to an illness for which she should've already been receiving treatment.

The initial lie told by M.E. Floro prompted a review of his sworn pretrial deposition testimony, which was then compared to what he told the jury. In doing so, we discovered that he lied about every aspect that made it easier for the prosecution to convict Toney of "crimes" for which there was absolutely zero evidence. Specifically - after Drs. Gabaeff, Ophoven, and Arden had independently viewed the evidence and concluded that the brain swelling, absent any physical evidence of trauma related to "impacts," was due to hypoxia, a lack of oxygen - we wanted to look at his testimony concerning the lungs.

Again, but not surprisingly, he lied: in his sworn deposition, he stated he found pneumonia in the lungs, an early form that resulted from the time she was hooked to ventilators, one that can develop in "about 30 hours." (See Doc.# 55/56)

In his autopsy report, he stated under the heading of 'Respiratory System:' "The lungs are edematous and firm.... There is parenchymal congestion." (See Doc.#57)

Webster's Encyclopedic Dictionary defines parenchyma as "....4. Patholo. the functional tissue of a morbid growth." Morbid is defined as "1..... unwholesomely gloomy, sensitive, extreme... 3.pertaining to diseased parts 4. gruesome, grisly.."

However, when asked about the lungs at trial, he told the jury, ".... I didn't see any evidence of lung disease..."When asked about the finding of parenchymal congestion, he stated it was just '"redness" from "blood pooling." (See Doc.#58/59/60)

Because of Floro's deceptive testimony, it was decided that the autopsy slides should be reviewed.

Dr. Arden travelled to the Duval County Medical Examiner's Office in July of 2022 to examine the slides. He reviewed all available slides, not just those with lung tissue samples. Specifically, while reviewing samples of the Dura and separate fragments of the subdural hemorrhage he found even more evidence of deception by the state's experts and evidence of Toney's innocence: while he doesn't deny that the subdural hemorrhage could have occurred on the day of admission, he found the presence of "macrophages," evidence that establishes the hemorrhage predated the day of admission and was consistent with "having occurred within days" before she collapsed°, and, most importantly, the hemorrhage - contrary to the state's assertion - was too small to qualify as a "lethal mechanism." In other words, it could not have caused her death. (See Doc.#62)

Likewise, while he also does not dispute that pneumonia can and does develop while patients are on ventilators, the presence of "macrophages" that would not have appeared within the time she hooked to a ventilator confirms that the pneumonia existed before she was admitted into the hospital, and he believes that it was likely the cause of her collapse.(See Doc.#61/62/63)

Also, again, as further evidence of the state's use of false testimony to make Toney look guilty, two slides - 11 and 14 - containing samples from buttocks bruises that Floro testified were fresh and that the state attributed to abuse perpetrated by Toney were, in fact, not fresh but in healing stages that establish a clear fact: they predated Dec. 9. (See Doc.#62)

*Very important note* On June 7, 2024 Circuit court judge Tatiana Salvador denied Toney's request for an evidentiary hearing based on this new evidence. She ruled that Dr. Arden's findings are not "new" because the slides have been available since 1992 and could've been examined at any time, despite the argument that Floro's dishonesty about the severity of pneumonia was the determining factor in trial counsel's decision not to review the autopsy slides. (Had Toney raised an ineffective assistance of counsel claim for failing to have an expert review the slides before trial, the court would've ruled that counsel's actions to forego further investigation of the slides was reasonable based on Floro's deposition statement that pneumonia was caused by ventilation in the hospital.) Alternatively, she ruled, again - based on evidence that is now basically considered "junk science" - that even if it were "new" evidence, it "is not of a nature that it would probably produce a different result on retrial." A ruling that, by the time this has been posted, the Florida Supreme Court in all likelihood will have affirmed, just as it has each of Toney's previous post conviction motions.

But evidence of Toney's unjust convictions and innocence doesn't end there. Because Dr. Arden discovered additional vital information while examining autopsy slides, it was decided that the autopsy photos should be reviewed.

The results were stunning. The only head "injuries" shown in Floro's photos of the right and left frontal areas - those that Floro told the jury occurred on Dec.9 (which is absolutely true - except the critical part about Toney causing them) - are from holes doctors drilled in her head to insert tubes to decrease pressure. (see Doc.#64/65)

Which explains why Dr. Ophoven found only one scalp bruise, the one located in the back of the head, that was a bit larger than described by Floro, which in all probability resulted when Toney accidentally dropped her in his haste to help her. But again, this was just a scalp bruise that did not correspond with any evidence of brain damage, but certainly could have contributed to an accidental death had a lethal injury been present—contrary to bogus "short fall" testimony the state presented to the jury. (See Doc.#66)

Wait! There's more: Dr. Floro unwittingly provided even more scientific evidence that proves Toney could not be responsible for "injuries" the state claims they've "proven" no one but him could've inflicted when he told the jury he found cereal in her stomach. In fact, he said the stomach contents were not French fries because he would've found them had she eaten them. (See Doc.#67)

The mother said the only food she'd given her daughter that day was cereal at a little after 8 AM.

Toney—knowing something wasn't quite right about Floro's stomach content findings, thinking he was, again, just saying what the state wanted him to say to make Toney "look guilty"—decided to inquire about digestion time intervals when he reached out to Dr. Wright. (See Doc.#6)

And just as he'd suspected, the cereal should have completely digested long before noon. This prompted him to search law books to see if he could find any cases dealing with issues of evidence related to digestion.

He discovered that gastric acid evidence is admissible in all courts and that the state commonly uses it as proof of time of death°, but, more importantly, he learned of another area pertaining to gastric science that deals with suspended or retarded digestion, that proves it is scientifically possible for the cereal to still have been in her stomach at autopsy. What he found really interesting is that digestion can be suspended for a number of reasons, which, among other things, includes severe emotional trauma, some physical diseases, and head trauma.

So looking at the state's case from the prosecutor's perspective, if head injuries were the cause of death, their evidence not only doesn't prove their case against Toney, but it actually proves - especially given the correlation between the gastric evidence and the brain swelling that Dr.Ophoven said would've had to begin before she was left with Toney - he could not have caused those "injuries."

If a healthy child had been left in Toney's care at noon, she would've fully digested the cereal well before then—unless digestion was slowed down—and there would not have been brain swelling to the point of causing cardiac arrest before 1 PM. In other words, the brain swelling could've caused suspended digestion in between the time she ate and noon. Unfortunately, the gastric science argument was presented only in the federal Habeas Corpus brief filed by Toney, but when his lawyers amended and refiled the brief, they excluded it.

Lawyers have been the other half of Toney's dilemma. From the time of his arrest the courts have appointed incompetent lawyers—some of whom haven't even pretended to care about anything other than collecting payment—to represent him. Most telling; while Toney and almost 100 prospective jurors sat in court, his trial lawyer was home drunk and asleep at 1 PM on a Monday afternoon. The prosecutor, at the judge's behest, called his home to rouse him.

Including Dr. Arden's pneumonia findings discussed above,Toney has filed 3 motions based on newly discovered evidence, and each has been summarily denied. Each time he was denied an evidentiary hearing, thwarting his efforts to call witnesses who would establish that not a shred of the evidence presented as "proof of guilt" is medically or scientifically accurate, that the state obtained convictions by withholding evidence and lying to the jury.

In 2014 ( Actually, Toney filed the motion himself in 2011, but the court never ruled on it), his lawyer - after Toney filed a Bar complaint against him - filed a motion based on Dr. Gabaeff's study, which is based on current accepted standards in the scientific community, refuting the abusive head trauma/shaken baby dogma spewed at trial, and based on Dr. Willey's recantation. The courts summarily denied the claims as "...untimely, procedurally barred, and meritless because the evidence was not of such a nature likely to result in acquittal on retrial." The latter is based, of course, on the court's erroneous finding - centered around the false immediate unconsciousness testimony - that the state's evidence proved the injuries were caused on the day in question and that Toney was the only one who could've caused them.

In 2019 lawyers filed a motion based on Drs. Arden and Ophoven's aforementioned sworn affidavits debunking all the medical "evidence" the state presented at trial and a sworn affidavit in which the state's key eyewitness recanted and admitted to lying at Toney's trial. She said the state pressured her to testify falsely and the prosecutor took care of some outstanding tickets for her.

The courts denied the former, citing the same unfounded reasons as in the 2014 denial. As to the latter, they ruled the state did not withhold evidence and deemed the recantation meritless because, again, based on the "evidence" presented at trial, "it would not likely result in an acquittal on retrial."

They've totally ignored the fact that without her testimony the state had nothing on which to base its case. Their entire theory was based on her testimony. She provided the timeline—which was the only time Toney had ever been alone with the child—from noon to 12:30°, she said she heard a child crying and banging against the walls and heard Toney yell "sit down." She lied to the jury about this "criminal episode" she had witnessed for the entire thirty minute period. But without her false testimony the state has no timeline, crying, banging against the walls, or false identification of Toney's voice yelling, "sit down."

*Very important note* Co-defendants in prison—including some on death row with Toney—have testified against one another and later recanted and have been granted evidentiary hearings. Each has far more evidence of actual guilt—including a person who was there, admitting they were there, helping to commit the crime—than a case in which the state knew from the start it had no real evidence. (See Doc.#68)

The difference—why Toney hasn't been granted a hearing and they have—is quite simple: they had only the recantations to rely on - which the courts know would never be deemed credible - a ruling not made on Toney's recantation claim - yet the courts still granted evidentiary hearings to put the recantations on the record. Whereas, along with the recantation, Toney has powerful evidence that doesn't just weaken the state's case but that completely destroys it. Even without any of the post conviction findings,Toney can show he was wrongfully convicted, that "evidence" the state used to obtain those convictions was the product of manipulation and prosecutorial misconduct. In fact, Stephen R. White, assistant attorney general, in 2013 admitted he had argued false evidence during Toney's state Habeas Corpus appeal to the Florida Sup. Crt. (See Doc.#69/70)

Not only had he argued the same false evidence previously in a lower court - but, more importantly, during trial prosecutors vehemently argued the same false facts to convince the jury that Toney was lying, that he concocted his entire defense while sitting in the courtroom listening to the evidence against him. All of which they knew was a lie because they had sworn statements from the mother, Gwen, and her friend, Olivia Williams, stating Toney told each of them in separate conversations that he'd gone upstairs to an acquaintance's apartment and left the child with a friend, Thomas Moore, who had dropped by to visit.

When Toney testified about the day's events, he simply stated he'd left her with Moore, never at any time accusing Moore of any wrongdoing. However, knowing - based on evidence in their possession - that Toney was telling the truth, the prosecutor still falsely accused Toney of lying, repeatedly arguing he'd "never" before mentioned Moore to anyone, that he's for the "first time" telling the story, and now "two and a half years later he's making Moore the suspect."

But it was police and prosecutors who had deemed Moore a suspect over two and half years earlier. So, prosecutors knew Toney's testimony was true, but allowing it would've blown up their plot to paint Toney as the "only" person who could've caused her injuries. The jury couldn't know that Moore had spent any time with the child because that would've made their already anemic case impossible to prove, no matter which of the two they pointed to as the perpetrator.

*Very important note* When Toney raised this issue under both counsel's ineffectiveness for failing to object, and prosecutorial misconduct claims, Instead of focusing on the state eviscerating his constitutional rights to a fair trial by presenting known false evidence to the jury in a deliberate attempt to improperly destroy his credibility, the court ruled Williams' omission of what Toney told her about Moore was not false. Then without mentioning the mother's statement, it ruled Toney was incorrect in claiming the state was prohibited from arguing when Toney asserted his defense – but that was not his claim! Toney’s claims are, the prosecutor made knowingly false arguments (lied) to impeach his testimony about Moore and destroy his credibility on the stand, and his lawyer failed to object despite three statements already in the record that Toney left the child with Moore; the mother’s, her friend, Olivia’s, and Toney’s! All taken around the time of the incident, 2 ½ years before trial. To justify his misconduct, AAG White attached a memorandum that Toney had never seen and that was never filed with nearly the dozen other memorandums that are part of the original pretrial record.(See Doc.#71)

What's suspect about the memo is, like all the other memos in Toney possession, it's written in the third person narrative - except for the very last paragraph on the last page. The author, ASA Stephen Bledsoe (keep in mind that he facilitated the rape of the juvenile prisoner by arranging the transport, providing the space in his office and the condoms), wrote this single paragraph - an account of what the mother supposedly told him about a conversation with Toney - in the first person narrative.

Not that it could ever be proven when this paragraph - written in a completely disparate voice than all the others - was added to the blank space on the final page. But there's no way, based on the importance of the statement, that a genuine memo would not have been filed with the others as part of the state's discovery prior to trial.(see Doc # 71)

Must Toney wait another 18 years for the state to admit additional acts of misconduct? How long will they hold on to the narrative that the child was happy and healthy despite a mountain of evidence to the contrary? Evidence that includes statements discovered in HRS records - those that Toney's trial lawyer, had he not failed to obtain, could've used to impeach the mother's testimony - that prove the state deliberately lied to the jury about her being "happy and healthy." The mother told HRS case workers that the poor child had been having asthma issues, bouts of diarrhea and vomiting for days, which is why she hadn't been in daycare in over a week.

The state and the courts need to stop pretending that since those facts about the child's health were withheld from the "trial," they don't exist, that what the mother falsely relayed to the jury was truth and justifies the guilty verdicts unjustly dropped upon an innocent man's shoulders. Yes, to do so would be an admission that nothing they claim "proves" Toney's guilt is based on facts or truth or even science. But why not? The truth's already there for all to see, and it is abundantly clear that the actual facts and science proves that Toney has faced 3+ hellish decades of injustice.

If you would like to support Toney in any way, he will remain forever grateful. Even if it's sending words of encouragement to help brighten the darkness he's been unjustly forced into for so many years now.

Within 5 minutes you can sign up to email him @ https://securustech.online/#/enroll. Input Toney Davis 300807 and Florida State Prison for the facility or snailmail P.O. Box 23608 Tampa, Fl 33623!

Thank you so much for your time and support.

JUSTICE FOR TONEY!!!

Justice for Toney.org

Toney’s Summary of Documents