LOUIS POYNTER, A/K/A MICHAEL COLWELL, A/K/A JEFFREY NEASE, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Louis Poynter was convicted of trafficking and conspiracy to traffic in marijuana in excess of 100 pounds. The appellate court reversed his conviction, holding that the trial court abused its discretion by finding him competent to stand trial despite overwhelming and uncontested expert testimony to the contrary.
The trial court abused its discretion in finding appellant competent to stand trial. Although courts are not absolutely bound by expert opinion on competence, they should not ignore uncontested expert testimony. When a defendant establishes a prima facie case of incompetence through overwhelming expert testimony, any rejection of that testimony must have record support.
[1] A trial court abuses its discretion by finding a defendant competent to stand trial when the record contains uncontested expert testimony declaring the defendant incompet…
[2] When a defendant establishes a prima facie case of incompetence through overwhelming expert testimony, the trial court's rejection of such testimony must be supported by…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Although not absolutely bound by expert opinion as to competence, courts should not ignore uncontested expert testimony.”
Establishes the standard for how courts should treat expert testimony on defendant competence—they have discretion but must not disregard uncontested expert opinion.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAppellant was charged with trafficking in marijuana and conspiracy to traffic in marijuana in excess of 100 pounds. A prior competence hearing was hel…
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BERANEK, Judge.
Appellant was charged with and convicted of trafficking in marijuana and conspiracy to traffic in marijuana in excess of 100 pounds. He raises six points on appeal, one of which is dispositive. We reverse holding that the trial court abused its discretion in finding appellant competent to stand trial.
Appellant’s competence had previously been the topic of a hearing before another judge. Rather than repeat the entire procedure, appellant’s counsel and the state stipulated that the transcript of that hearing be submitted to the trial court to serve as an evidentiary basis for the court’s determination on the issue of competence. The trial court here had a transcript of a hearing where three witnesses, one court-appointed and two appointed by appellant, all declared appellant incompetent to stand trial. Despite this expert testimony, the trial court found appellant competent.
Although not absolutely bound by expert opinion as to competence, courts should not ignore uncontested expert testimony. Trucci v. State, 438 So. 2d 396 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983). Furthermore, where a defendant establishes a prima facie case of incompetence through the introduction of overwhelming expert testimony, the record should at least present some reasons for rejection of such testimony by the court. Here, the rejection is not supported by the record. See generally Fulford v. Maggio, 692 F. 2d 354 (5th Cir.1982). The Fulford case goes further than our holding herein in that it requires the trial court to “delineate expressly his reasons for rejecting” the expert testimony. We hold only that the rejection must have record support. In addition, since the judge here merely reviewed a transcript of a previous hearing, it was not a situation where his personal observation of the defendant was of importance.
Appellant should have been found incompetent to stand trial and all proceedings thereafter constituted a violation of due process. We reverse appellant’s conviction and vacate the order finding him competent. The matter is remanded for further proceedings including another determination of competence before any subsequent trial.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
DOWNEY and WALDEN, JJ., concur.
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Citator
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Priestly v. State, 450 So. 2d 289 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984)…judgments of guilty of trafficking in marijuana and conspiracy to traffic in marijuana and prison sentences entered pursuant to the judgments. They were convicted in a joint trial with Louis Poynter, whose conviction we reversed in Poynter v. State, 443 So. 2d 219 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984), and Robin Angel and Ronald B. Nichols, whose appeal we decide in a separate opinion filed this date. Angel v. State, 450 So. 2d 292 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984). A confidential informant introduced Pen-nie, a business partner of Priestl…
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Ozbourn v. State, 651 So. 2d 795 (Fla. 1st DCA 1995)…may, of course, be reviewable on appeal from the final judgments they precede. E.g., Tingle v. State, 536 So. 2d 202 (Fla.1988) (conviction reversed for failure to hold hear- [*797] mg as to defendant’s competence to stand trial); Poynter v. State, 443 So. 2d 219 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983) (conviction reversed because defendant was erroneously found competent to stand trial). Section 924.06(3), Florida Statutes (1991), provides: “A defendant who pleads guilty or nolo contendere with no express reservation of the ri…
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Duncan v. State, 115 So. 3d 1121 (Fla. 1st DCA 2013)…etency should be supported by competent and substantial evidence). The trial court should not find a defendant competent where the record provides no reason to reject overwhelming and uncontested expert testimonies to the contrary. Poynter v. State, 443 So. 2d 219, 220 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983). Accordingly, we reverse the appellant’s sentence and remand for resentencing following a new competency hearing. New mental health evaluations should be performed prior to the hearing as the ones at issue are now over a yea…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Fulford v. Maggio, 692 F.2d 354 (5th Cir. 1982)
- Trucci v. State, 438 So. 2d 396 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983)