HERMAN ROOT, APPELLANT,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Florida appellate court affirmed conviction for second degree murder, holding that the trial court properly denied severance of counts, that sufficient evidence supported the conviction, and that prosecutorial comments did not warrant mistrial.
The trial court committed no reversible error in joining two counts in the information, admitting relevant evidence, or denying a motion for mistrial where the defendant waived severance and no fundamental error appeared.
[1] Failure to move for severance of joined counts and express waiver of severance rights by defendant precludes appellate review of joinder error absent fundamental error.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceHerman Root was convicted of second degree murder on two joined counts in the information. The defendant challenged the joinder of counts, the admissi…
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PER CURIAM.
The judgments of conviction and sentences under review are affirmed upon the following grounds: (1) the trial court committed no reversible error in failing to sever the two counts which were joined in the information [and in admitting evidence relevant on one count of the information] because (a) no motion for severance and no objection to the subject evidence was ever made below, (b) the defendant through counsel specifically waived his right to a severance in this case, and (c) no fundamental error otherwise appears on this record; Barbon-Zurita, v. State, 415 So. 2d 824 (Fla. 3d DCA 1982); State v. Cole, 413 So. 2d 171 (Fla. 2d DCA 1982); (2) the evidence adduced below was sufficient to sustain the conviction for second degree murder, see Tibbs v. State, 397 So. 2d 1120, 1123 (Fla.1981), cert. granted, 454 U.S. 963, 102 S.Ct. 502, 70 L.Ed.2d 378 (1981); Miller v. State, 328 So. 2d 544 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976); and (3) no reversible error was committed in denying a defense motion for mistrial because none of the complained-of prosecutorial comments were so improper as to call for a mistrial. Breedlove v. State, 413 So. 2d 1, 7 (Fla.1982), cert. denied, — U.S. —, 103 S.Ct. 184, 74 L.Ed.2d 149 (1982); Nevels v. State, 351 So. 2d 762, 763 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977).
Affirmed.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited (11 total)
- Delbert Lee Tibbs v. State, 397 So. 2d 1120 (Fla. 1981)
- Coffman Realty, Inc. v. Tosohatchee Game Preserve, Inc., 413 So. 2d 1 (Fla. 1982)
- McArthur Breedlove v. State, 413 So. 2d 1 (Fla. 1982)
- United States v. Valenzuela-Bernal, 454 U.S. 963 (U.S. 1981)
- Gomez v. Idaho, 454 U.S. 963 (U.S. 1981)
- Miller v. State, 328 So. 2d 544 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976)
- State v. Donnie Lee Cole, 413 So. 2d 171 (Fla. 2d DCA 1982)
- Barbon-Zurita v. State, 415 So. 2d 824 (Fla. 3d DCA 1982)
- Nevels v. State, 351 So. 2d 762 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977)
- Flemming v. State, 415 So. 2d 824 (Fla. 3d DCA 1982)