ERINEO ACENSIO, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Erineo Acensio appeals his conviction for aggravated battery with a firearm, raising two issues: the denial of his motion to suppress his confession and the trial court's refusal to instruct the jury on the lesser included offense of battery. The appellate court affirmed the conviction, finding no error in either ruling and determining that the failure to instruct on battery constituted harmless error under State v. Abreau.
The trial court did not err in denying the motion to suppress the confession, nor did it err in refusing the jury instruction on battery. The failure to instruct on battery constitutes harmless error because battery is two steps removed from the offense of conviction (aggravated battery) with attempted manslaughter as the intervening step.
[1] A trial court's denial of a motion to suppress a confession will be affirmed if there are no grounds to support a reversal.
[2] The failure to instruct a jury on a lesser included offense is harmless error when the offense is two steps removed from the offense of conviction, and the intervening of…
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“For the purpose of this opinion, and based on the facts of this case, it is conceded that battery is a lesser included offense of attempted first degree murder as charged in the information and as proven at trial.”
Establishes that battery qualifies as a lesser included offense, though the trial court declined to instruct on it.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAppellant was charged with attempted first degree murder. The trial court instructed the jury on attempted first degree murder, attempted second degre…
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CAMPBELL, Judge.
Appellant appeals his conviction and sentence for aggravated battery with a firearm. We affirm.
Appellant raises two points on appeal. His first point challenges the trial court’s denial of his motion to suppress his confession. After a review of the record, we find no grounds to support a reversal of the trial court’s denial of the motion to suppress.
Appellant argues in his second point that the trial court erred in failing to instruct the jury on a lesser included charge of battery. We do not agree that the trial judge so erred. Appellant was charged and tried for the offense of attempted first degree murder. The court instructed the jury on attempted first degree murder, attempted second degree murder, attempted manslaughter and aggravated battery. The court refused the requested instruction on battery. The jury found appellant guilty of aggravated battery with a firearm. For the purpose of this opinion, and based on the facts of this case, it is conceded that battery is a lesser included offense of attempted first degree murder as charged in the information and as proven at trial.
Appellant recognizes that while State v. Abreau, 363 So. 2d 1063 (Fla.1978) holds that failure to instruct on a lesser included offense two steps removed from the offense for which a defendant is convicted is harmless error, Abreau does not apply where the only intervening offense upon which the court instructs is an attempt. State v. Bruns, 429 So. 2d 307 (Fla.1983). In the instant case, since the only intervening offense for which the court gave an instruction between the offense for which he was convicted, aggravated battery, and the offense for which he requested a charge, battery, was attempted manslaughter, appellant argues that under the holding of Bruns, the failure to charge battery cannot be considered harmless error. Aggravated battery is a felony of the second degree, attempted manslaughter is a felony of the third degree, and battery is a misdemeanor of the first degree. While Bruns holds that “[A]n attempt instruction does not provide a ‘step’ within the meaning of Abreau,” we do not consider the holding in Bruns to apply where the primarily charged offense is itself an attempt. Here, the information under which appellant was tried, charged him with attempted first degree murder. Therefore, the next logical progression of the Abreau lesser included “steps” would include attempted second degree murder, attempted manslaughter and aggravated battery.
Battery, therefore, would be two steps removed from aggravated battery, a second degree felony of which appellant was convicted, since attempted manslaughter, a third degree felony, is an intervening offense one step removed below aggravated battery. The failure to instruct on battery was, therefore, harmless error. Affirmed.
SCHEB, A.C.J., and DANAHY, J., concur.
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Citator
Cited By
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Erineo Acensio v. State, 497 So. 2d 640 (Fla. 1986)…PER CURIAM. This cause is before us to review a decision of the district court affirming petitioner’s conviction for aggravated battery. Acensio v. State, 477 So. 2d 38 (Fla. 2d DCA 1985). The court expressly relied on State v. Abreau, 363 So. 2d 1063 (Fla.1978), a decision involving a factual situation materially at variance with the facts of the instant case. Based on the conflict created by this misapplication o…
Authorities Cited
- Grant v. State, 363 So. 2d 1063 (Fla. 1978)
- State v. Bruns, 429 So. 2d 307 (Fla. 1983)