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Holmes v. State
District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-03-30 · cited 1×
In Holmes v. State, the defendant appealed the revocation of his probation in three circuit court cases as well as his convictions and sentences for armed burglary of a dwelling, robbery with a firearm, aggravated battery with a firearm, false imprisonment, and grand theft motor vehicle in a fourth case. The court affirmed the probation revocation without comment and affirmed the convictions and sentences in the fourth case. It remanded only for correction of the written sentencing documents to remove references to the 10-20-Life firearm enhancement under section 775.087(2), Florida Statutes, because the trial court had granted a judgment of acquittal on the actual possession of a firearm and the written documents did not conform to the oral pronouncement. The defendant had preserved the issue via a rule 3.800(b)(2) motion, which was deemed denied after the written order was never corrected.
criminal lawprocedure
Watts v. State
District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-03-23 · cited 3×
This case involves Stacy Lee Watts appealing the summary denial of his motion for postconviction relief under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 following his convictions for carjacking, aggravated fleeing to elude, driving with a suspended license, and possession of paraphernalia, for which he received a life sentence as a habitual offender. The appellate court affirmed the denial of Watts's original motion and most claims in his amended motion, including those alleging trial court error in failing to order mental health examinations and a competency hearing, which were deemed procedurally barred as they should have been raised on direct appeal. However, the court reversed and remanded on the claim that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to investigate Watts's mental health and seek a competency determination, because the postconviction court did not address the claim and the attached record excerpts did not conclusively refute it. The matter was sent back for the lower court to either attach refuting record portions or hold an evidentiary hearing.
criminal lawprocedure
Duke v. State
District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-03-09 · cited 6×
In Duke v. State, Laurence Alvin Duke petitioned for a writ of certiorari after the circuit court reversed a county court's order granting his motion to suppress evidence in a 2009 driving under the influence case. The county court had suppressed the evidence after reviewing an officer's testimony and a video of the stop, concluding that the stop was not supported by reasonable suspicion of impairment because the officer's stated reasons were not credible. The circuit court reversed, finding that the officer's unconverted testimony and the video established reasonable suspicion based on erratic driving. The appellate court granted the petition, holding that the circuit court departed from the essential requirements of the law by applying an incorrect standard of review, reweighing the evidence, and making its own credibility determinations instead of deferring to the county court's factual findings supported by competent substantial evidence. It therefore vacated the circuit court's order and remanded with directions to reinstate the county court's suppression order.
criminal lawprocedure
Sullivan v. Kanarek
District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-02-17 · cited 4×
This case involved a medical malpractice claim brought by the estate of a deceased child against the treating physician following the child's death. After a jury verdict for the defense, the estate sought a new trial based on alleged improper conduct by defense counsel during trial, but did not move for a mistrial. On remand from the Florida Supreme Court to apply the preservation rules from Companioni v. City of Tampa and the fundamental error analysis from Murphy v. International Robotic Systems, the appellate court determined that the extensive, unpreserved misconduct met the high threshold for fundamental error because it was improper, harmful, incurable, and undermined the fairness of the trial. Although a successor judge had denied the motion for new trial, the court held that the original presiding judge's observations and the record supported granting relief. It therefore reversed the denial and remanded for a new trial.
proceduretorts & liabilityhealthcare
Compton v. State
District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-02-17
Jessica Compton appealed the summary denial of her Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.800(a) motion for postconviction relief, claiming her consecutive five-year prison sentences after a probation violation were illegal because they imposed habitual felony offender enhancements for offenses from the same criminal episode, contrary to Hale v. State. The motion included scoresheets showing HFO designation but did not explicitly allege the offenses occurred in one episode, and the postconviction court rejected the claim on the merits after reviewing the written judgment and an arrest affidavit. The appellate court reversed and remanded, holding that the motion was facially insufficient and that the lower court should have dismissed it with leave to amend rather than deciding the merits based on hearsay documents or records that could not resolve whether the offenses were part of the same episode.
criminal lawprocedure
Dixon v. State
District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-02-15
Bernard Dixon appealed the summary denial of his motion for postconviction relief under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850. The court affirmed the denial, following its prior decision in Barrios-Cruz v. State. It held that the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Padilla v. Kentucky, which addressed counsel's obligations regarding immigration consequences of pleas, does not apply retroactively to postconviction proceedings. The court certified to the Florida Supreme Court the question of whether Padilla should be applied retroactively in such cases.
criminal lawprocedure